Am I a snob?
flyer
Posts: 608
I have a Roubiax Pro and only use it in summer on dry days. Problem is if I am honest my fitness is suffering, as I am using a mountain bike which I only do about 30 miles max on!!!
Perhaps I should buy another cheap road bike or even a flast bar for winter that can get all the salt etc on it without me worrying.
Thing is I had an S WORKS Tarmac 3 years ago and used it in all weathers, but dispite my best efforts the brake calippers/wheels etc all got attacked by the weather and the bike looked about 5 years old after just one winter.
I really admire those people who just get up and jump on the bike in any weather.
May be I am just a snob, but I like to keep my bike in pristine condition, however there is a price to pay. In my case its lack of fitness and weight gain.
I have a turbo trainer but was told not to use it on a carbon frame, it this true?
Flyer
Perhaps I should buy another cheap road bike or even a flast bar for winter that can get all the salt etc on it without me worrying.
Thing is I had an S WORKS Tarmac 3 years ago and used it in all weathers, but dispite my best efforts the brake calippers/wheels etc all got attacked by the weather and the bike looked about 5 years old after just one winter.
I really admire those people who just get up and jump on the bike in any weather.
May be I am just a snob, but I like to keep my bike in pristine condition, however there is a price to pay. In my case its lack of fitness and weight gain.
I have a turbo trainer but was told not to use it on a carbon frame, it this true?
Flyer
0
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Bikes are for riding MTFU
Your not a snob - just sensible - if you've got the funds, get a Ribble winter bike for autumn/winter use - and keep your best machine for racing/sportives/summer riding etc.
I see why you don't want to ride the good bike. Buy another for winter. Then the good bike will be even more fun when you ride it and you will have been able to cycle all winter as well!
Everyone wins.
3 hours pedalling across (on the non-tarmac bits) the peaks/any ohter hilly area in the UK will definatley keep you fitness levels up
I've just bought a new madone, but it will be used in all weathers over winter. A tip from the motorcycling world though, invest in some ACF50 and coat it on all the bare metal bits. It's amazing stuff and should leave your bike looking more or less pristine in spring.
I hope not!!
Bought a Focus Cayo recently and it get's 4 sessions a week on the turbo, could someone please clarify either way as I would hate to wreck it before I get a chance to cane it in the spring.
for me Its a precious tool that needs respect and gets me to work/Uni...
I have to ride to work and Uni or I dont earn money and end up stupid! a £600 bike is worth that sacrifice for me.. despite £600 being way above my disposable income right now.
This is not snobbish, have a troll around, you will find lots of others do it, too, if finances allow.
It's nothing to do with MTFU, either!
I see your point, but for me, two road bikes is a big no as I cant accommodate another bike at the moment....I have a huge Lapierre MTB too. I concur about the MTB thing though, certainly keeps the fitness levels up massively.
Pete.
I just bought a new madone too and have the very same worries as the thread writers this ACF50 sounds like good stuff? Where's the best place to get it?
You need to lighten up a bit...it's only a bike.
it's actually from the aero industry, but recently marketed to bikers. A good motorcycle shop should stock it, otherwise there's plenty of places onlyline. I've been using for 3 years now on my motorbikes and as long as you take time to apply it properly it WILL keep out the salt and protect the metal/alloy parts.
More info here: http://www.acf-50.co.uk/
It then takes a while to clean off but its nice underneth.
Be careful to keep off rims, brake pads and contact points.
Hein Gericke or any other local motorbike place should sell it.
Fail to prepare, prepare to fail
Hills are just a matter of pace
Each to his own
Think you will find its everything to do with MTFU
which 'bare metal' bits are you referring to..??
The only 'bare metal' on most bikes is the braking surfaces, the rest will be coated or plated somehow.
Most of my frame is bare metal.
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Ok, maybe not completely bare, but road salt will eat through a lot of the coatings they put on brake calipers, cranks, rear mechs, nuts and bolts etc making them furr up and look tatty quickly.
Help I know I'm getting old but MTFU ?
Fail to prepare, prepare to fail
Hills are just a matter of pace
In anwser to the original thread, no, you are not a snob. Nothing wrong with wanthing to look after the 'best' bike.
Buy a road bike for a sensible amount, £500 ish and up. Ride it, see if the sport gets you and then up grade to another bike after a while. The first bike then becomes a winter/training bike and your expensive all singing and dancing new bike is used in summer and events/races.
As long as you take moderately good care of your winter hack it will be ok.
I've got a mountian bike that, should I have to replace it like for like I'd be looking at £4k and this thing gets ridden as hard as I am capable of, it's been crashed mildly 4 or 5 times since I got it and properly twice.
It's a bike thats designed to be ridden, a couple of scrapes here and there are not going to affect it's performance, it might not look as pretty as a box fresh super cared for bike.
Perhaps it's a different mind set within the road biking community, but as far as I can see people tend to look at mountain bikers with pristine bikes as not ever having ridden them properly.
i think it is more to do with the differences between road bikes and mtbs than the price range. an mtb will have disc brakes that are much better designed for muddy or poor conditions, not to mention a front mech that doesn't gunk up etc. oh and suspension. even if an mtb is made of carbon it is much more durable than a carbon road bike. and as a result it probably looks better with a bit of wear on it. i think you have to be more careful with a road bike, not because it is a treasure, but because it is more fragile.
I do exactly the same though from the MTB angle. The lurvly carbon beauty sits warmly in the garage for winter, while I thrash about on an older bike, which by now looks 10 years older than it really is.
Gary Fisher HKEK (for commuting)