Which Hybrid ??? aaaaaahhhhhhhh !!!

lat555

Hi there, looking to buy a hybrid bike solely for fitness riding , never owned a bike before , do a lot of gym work - weights and cv and have a good level of fitness , just retired from playing rugby looking to do prob an hour a couple of times a week all on road to add to my cv work. Dont like the drop handle riding position have test ridden the following , TREK 7.5 AND 7.3 FX , SPECIALIZED SIRRUS , SCOTT SUB 20 AND SUB 30 , CANNONDALE BAD BOY , ,my main reason for posting is i have this morning just ridden at Evans Cycles a PINNACLE BOREALIS 4.0 , which i really liked , both fast and fairly nice ride compared to harsh hard ride of others !! Never heard of this brand before , found out this am it is exclusive to Evans , wondered if anyone with good bike knowledge had any opinions either pos. or neg. on this brand ??? advice would be appreciated , regards Paul.

lost_in_thought

Ride lots.

Get the one you like the best.

Ignore everyone else.

Simples.

sarajoy

Bit harsh, he's come in here for advice!

Many of the posters here like road bikes very very very much and don't think hybrids are worth bothering with. So coming in asking 'which hybrid' can be a bit difficult...!

I like mine, anyway

I have a friend-of-a-friend with a Pinnacle - looked very nice indeed - but I never asked her about it I'm afraid and now I don't really see her. All I can suggest is to compare componentry with the other bikes you fancy.

However, if it rides the nicest - just have it

Mind you, you say the others were harsh - maybe their tyres were pumped up more? Or does the Borealis have a load of carbon or steel in its frame?

lat555

Hi thanks for reply, yeah the pinnacle looks fab , on your carbon comment it has carbon front forks and carbon in the rear ot the frame - would this soften the ride , pretty sure i like this bike the most rode it back to back with the scott sub 20 this am and could tell the difference , just worried because i have no knowledge good or bad of the brand .

wizzlebanger

All I can comment on is the Trek 7.5fx I have had for about 4 months. I love it and it hasn't had a single problem yet. (touch wood).

I too found the ride initially 'harsh' even with the carbon fork as I used to have a hardtail front suspension mountain bike but now that I'm used to it I find it fast and very comfortable even on rides of about 3 hours.

But like the previous poster said just pick the one you like the best that you feel most comfortable with!

I managed to get £80 knocked off the price of my 7.5fx because they had 2 in the shop in my size and none of the 7.3 which I had actually gone into buy. That was from Mike Cookson in Manchester though.

Remember you'll also need a helmet, pump and repair kit etc. I've also changed the pedals on my Trek to SPD ones but couldn't be happier with it.

sarajoy

Carbon is supposed to filter out vibrations - which (as far as I understand) aluminium bikes suffer more from than steel (aluminium is lighter, but softer - so you need more of it to match steel's strength - so it ends up stiffer).

Some people get concerned about carbon bits, in terms of fatigue - but I gather technology has got over this by now? Someone else will know more than me...

Clarion

Have you looked at the Marin ALP range?

Sirrus is a safe bet, though.

g00se

All of those a decent brands.

Most bikes are made in the far east now - with the exception of some high end kit. So all those bikes frames will come from the same 2 or 3 factories in Taiwan etc. This includes the Pinnacle (Evans own brand).

All the other components (gears, wheels etc) will be the same ranges from Shimano etc - so in terms of build, there's all much of a muchness. So price for price, where some have spend more on the gears, they will have spent less on wheel hubs etc.

So pick it on what it rides like and if you like the look of it.

Cheers

coopster_the_1st

lat555 wrote:

Hi there, looking to buy a hybrid bike solely for fitness riding , never owned a bike before , do a lot of gym work - weights and cv and have a good level of fitness , just retired from playing rugby looking to do prob an hour a couple of times a week all on road to add to my cv work. Dont like the drop handle riding position have test ridden the following , TREK 7.5 AND 7.3 FX , SPECIALIZED SIRRUS , SCOTT SUB 20 AND SUB 30 , CANNONDALE BAD BOY , ,my main reason for posting is i have this morning just ridden at Evans Cycles a PINNACLE BOREALIS 4.0 , which i really liked , both fast and fairly nice ride compared to harsh hard ride of others !! Never heard of this brand before , found out this am it is exclusive to Evans , wondered if anyone with good bike knowledge had any opinions either pos. or neg. on this brand ??? advice would be appreciated , regards Paul.

I have the Pinnacle Borealis 2.0 2009. Nothing wrong with the bikes and as commented before they are Evans own brand. I did change the grips to some with bar ends, this makes a massive difference to the comfort of riding the bike. Also, I found the factory fit tyres to be poor. I would change them to something more p* proof.

Apart from that, nothing wrong with the bike. I will still ride this bike in the winter as I do not want the road bike to suffer the winter wear and tear.

If you have any more questions, just ask.

gb155

Hybrid ?

You mean roadie ???

gb155

but a serious answer would of course be the "Dale Bad Boy

waddlie

Giant Rapid?

waddlie

-[double post]-

bike_addict

Dont get the Sirrus, I just got the Sirrus Sport 10 days ago from Evans as well. Where do I start...

Day 1 rear wheel making a whining noise, unable to locate the problem. also notes rear mech loose.
Day 3 BB starts to creak
Day 10 BB is totall scrap

The crank set has a chain lifting system to ease shifting, its utter pants as it makes so much noise when you are spinning out. Its so bad I have just replaced the BB and crank set at my own cost.

The bike looks good but rubbish build quality IMHO and most certainly the last Specialized I buy..

chrishumes

ridgeback flight?? or boardman.

WesternWay

chrishumes wrote:

ridgeback flight?? or boardman.

Love my Flight.

gbsahne001

if you want it for fitness, then get a nice heavy steel frame and good components. If you geet something too light then it's not going to help with fitness. Somthing about 15kg will be a nice ride; push it hard and your fitness will also go up.


PS; dont drink and surf!

jds_1981

Don't forget to haggle - I bought a pinnacle peak 4.0 yesterday. Asked for 10% off and got it just like that. Seemed too easy so tried to get more off but no-go

Greg T

gbsahne wrote:

if you want it for fitness, then get a nice heavy steel frame and good components. If you geet something too light then it's not going to help with fitness. Somthing about 15kg will be a nice ride; push it hard and your fitness will also go up.

Also don't put too much air in your tyres... Nice and squishy to absorb all that horrible effort you've just put in.

any other top tips?

A very big hat of some sort to increase resistance?

WesternWay

Greg T wrote:

gbsahne wrote:

if you want it for fitness, then get a nice heavy steel frame and good components. If you geet something too light then it's not going to help with fitness. Somthing about 15kg will be a nice ride; push it hard and your fitness will also go up.

Also don't put too much air in your tyres... Nice and squishy to absorb all that horrible effort you've just put in.

any other top tips?

A very big hat of some sort to increase resistance?

I like to drag a ship anchor behind me.

paddlemyowncanoe

My wife's Trek 7.5 has been excellent. I'm amazed every time I pick it up to put on the car how light it is and it never breaks. The 10 speed flat bar shifters are a gem, as are the V brakes. Space for 28mm tyres and mudguards too. A good quality bike that doesn't need any upgrades.

wizzlebanger

if you want it for fitness, then get a nice heavy steel frame and good components. If you geet something too light then it's not going to help with fitness. Somthing about 15kg will be a nice ride; push it hard and your fitness will also go up.

Why should you get something heavier for fitness? Surely given the same amount of effort by the rider the weight of the bike won't matter. Just his overall speed for a given amount of energy would be affected.

I think purposely buying a heavy bike would be a mistake in the longer term. But that's just my opinion.

RufusA

Going back to the OP I rode two Sirrus bikes back to back a few years ago when selecting a bike.

The first I found quite unpleasantly buzzy through the handlebars on tarmac.

The second (next model up), had a much more pleasant ride.

The key differences between the two models were carbon fork (with fancy inserts), carbon seat post and different choice of tyres. I suspect the largest factor being the fork.

The first Sirrus was so unpleasant to ride I dismissed it.
The second Sirrus is the one I now own and have happily commuted on for a few years.

So if it's the vibration you dislike, avoid models with alu. forks!

HTH - Rufus

wizzlebanger

+1 on the carbon fork.

You just have to get them checked out if you have a big crash as they won't deform like a steel or aluminium fork. So although they may look undamaged the inherent rigidity may have been compromised.

Plus they look cooler for some reason!!!! 8)

biondino

For fitness riding you don't want a hybrid. Their (limited) role is short rides which take in roads and e.g. gravel paths or the gentlest of trails ni which comfort is the no. 1 aim.

Riding for fitness you will want to be able to take advantage of speed and aerodynamics - riding a heavier, taller bike may well require more effort per mile but it's so much less fun that you just won't want to ride. Get a roadie* (or a cross bike, perhaps, if you do have lots of trails etc) and you'll find yourself counting down the minutes until you can go out on it!

*a roadie with straight bars is fine if you're set on that but I really think you should try drop bars, possibly with extra brake levers on the tops if that's your preferred position.

bike_addict

My Sirrus has the carbon fork. It is noticbly smoother than my pure roadie but the Sirrus has 28c rubber and the roadies does have 25c so that will also make some difference.

wizzlebanger

For fitness riding you don't want a hybrid. Their (limited) role is short rides which take in roads and e.g. gravel paths or the gentlest of trails ni which comfort is the no. 1 aim.

I don't find my Trek limited to fitness riding or short rides. Having done 30 miles in 2 hours is this not keeping me fit? I'm planning on riding 50 miles this weekend and I can't wait to next get on it.

Just because one person is an advocate of one particular type of bike you shouldn't bracket everything else as not being suitable.

Or is bike snobbery creeping in? I may ride what is referred to as a hybrid but I enjoy it, say hello to any other cyclist I meet / pass or passes me and it helps keeps me fit. So far the only people that generally don't say hello back are hard core roadies. (whole new thread there!)

He hasn't asked what is the best bike for entering a race and competing on? The question was what is the best bike out of a selection for helping him keep fit. He also stated he didn't like drop handlebars.

Maybe we should all try to encourage and welcome someone who is getting into cycling rather than belittle other people's choice of bikes.

So pick what you like the best and feel comfortable on. And more than anything enjoy it!

KulaBen

One further option to throw into the mix- Cannondale Synapse Flatbar

wizzlebanger

Or a Giant Rapid???

I really wanted to test ride one of these but couldn't find a local dealer in my area. Hence the Trek.

RufusA

bike_addict wrote:

...but the Sirrus has 28c rubber.

I run 25c on my Sirrus and TBH didn't notice much/any difference in ride quality going from 28 to 25. However going from Specialized All Condition Armadillo to Schwalbe Marathon Plus made a significant difference to ride feel! The latter being a much smoother ride, but feel like you are cornering on blancmange!
Rufus.