Bought a B'twin sport 1
Mike400
Posts: 226
Long time commuter, first time roadie 
Ive been commuting every day for over a year on my trusty MTB (with slicks/rack/full guards etc),
Now Ive always been happy with it for the commute, its reliable and comfy but found it lacking for faster / longer rides - feels dead, too heavy, handles like a truck!
But it gave me the cycling bug and its like an old friend so ill not be too harsh....
My company have been talking about implementing C2W for over two years now, and I have been holding off getting a road bike for that reason. Long story short, I got fed up waiting, had a (tiny) bit of spare cash so bought a btwin sport 1
Now before I parted with the cash I had a look at the usual entry level road bikes, giant defy 4, spesh allez etc etc.
What I found was they had pretty much the same spec as the Btwin, but over twice the price. Now I know the frame is bound to be of a higher calibre on the big brands but what the hell it felt "right" in the shop, so I bought one, and anyway £500 was pushing things for me somewhat - third child on the way etc!!
So whats it like?
It has mostly shimano 2300 groupset (8 speed), which after a bit of tweaking by myself seems to shift quite well. Time will tell how durable it all is.
The 2300 STI levers do feel cheap, quite plasticky but set up properly the shifting action feels nice and postive. Levers are Sora style with the thumb button, which I dont mind but I know others cant stand them!
"ounce" triple chainset (me neither), 50x39x30, steel and looks a tad cheap but probably on level with the shimano 2300 in the quality stakes
Own brand b'twin brakes which I think arent great - my commuter has discs so maybe I just need to get used to them but I will be trying decent pads just to see if I can improve things a bit
The frame seems very well built, its not the lightest bike (as youd expect) but is nicely put together. Some of the welding, especially around the BB isnt quite as neat as youd find elswhere but im really being picky here, especially given the price. Some nice touches like flared chainstays.
The front fork is steel, as youd expect, nothing special to see here although its well made, and the headset is an integrated cane creek job - nice to see something branded and an area I thought they would have tried to save some £
Wheels are own brand, fairly true (enough not to rub on the brake pads!). Standard 32 hole rims. Again not the lightest but seem well enough made. Fitted with Hutchinson Nitro tires, (23mm width) and the whole package seems to roll well enough, smooth bearings.
Finishing kit is as you would expect for the money. Seat post is fairly basic, the seat itself isnt bad if a bit spongy (royal viper) but havent done the distance to really judge it yet. Bars are fairly standard anatomically shaped alu, feel fine to use. Stem is fine too, own brand again. Cables are standard cheap black outers as youd expect, and the only other notable thing is the inclusion of a chain catcher.
The ride
Ive only been out on it once, as it arrived yesterday afternoon and I had half an hour free that evening, so ive only taken it on a quick local loop. Also being used to a MTB Ive no suitable basis for comparison, and a lot of what I write here will reflect more my introduction to road bikes in general however I am probably typical of the sort of person who will buy this bike so I guess my experience will be valuable to someone!!
Im yet to stick SPDs on (as I use these on the commuter, get on well with them!) so I didnt enjoy the flat pedals with the clip ons included with the bike. I guess they are there to get you started but I would change these ASAP
The ride is surprisingly comfortable when you consider you are on a cheaper alu frame with a steel fork. I was expecting to get a hammering but It wasnt that bad.
Of course there is a step up in vibration / harshness compared to the MTB but rather than being unbearable its actually quite a positive experience - you can really feel the road, and for me added another dimension to riding the bike, it felt more involved.
The acceleration was brilliant, from a standstill I felt the bike really took off, and for a similar effort compared to the MTB I was comfortably holding an average speed 3 or 4 mph faster.
Handling wise its razor sharp, and feels really alive, but it scared the crap out of me the first couple of times I tried sprinting out of the saddle - there isnt the same stability im used to with the MTB, the bike moved around a lot under me, and in general it took a lot more concentration to keep the bike on course!
But once you start to adapt, and it happens quickly, rather than cursing the twitchyness of the bike you start to appreciate how nimble it is.
The tires gripped fine however I was on dry clean tarmac so time will tell how they cope with water etc. Billed as a training tire I would hope they show some resistance to the puncture fairy too!
Im sorry this was a bit long winded, but I really wanted to give people a feel of what the bike is like, as I couldnt find much info on the net when I was looking. In conclusion for £260 this bike is amazingly good value and you wonder why you would spend more on a bike at this level.
I will get some pictures up when I get the chance as decathlon's website does the bike no justice. The colour doesnt even look right, its bright red not brown!
Oh and re Decathlon (Belfast) brilliant service but the bike still needed gears / brakes tweaked when I got it home. Not a major gripe but the typical customer wont know how to do these things I would imagine.
Ive been commuting every day for over a year on my trusty MTB (with slicks/rack/full guards etc),
Now Ive always been happy with it for the commute, its reliable and comfy but found it lacking for faster / longer rides - feels dead, too heavy, handles like a truck!
But it gave me the cycling bug and its like an old friend so ill not be too harsh....
My company have been talking about implementing C2W for over two years now, and I have been holding off getting a road bike for that reason. Long story short, I got fed up waiting, had a (tiny) bit of spare cash so bought a btwin sport 1
Now before I parted with the cash I had a look at the usual entry level road bikes, giant defy 4, spesh allez etc etc.
What I found was they had pretty much the same spec as the Btwin, but over twice the price. Now I know the frame is bound to be of a higher calibre on the big brands but what the hell it felt "right" in the shop, so I bought one, and anyway £500 was pushing things for me somewhat - third child on the way etc!!
So whats it like?
It has mostly shimano 2300 groupset (8 speed), which after a bit of tweaking by myself seems to shift quite well. Time will tell how durable it all is.
The 2300 STI levers do feel cheap, quite plasticky but set up properly the shifting action feels nice and postive. Levers are Sora style with the thumb button, which I dont mind but I know others cant stand them!
"ounce" triple chainset (me neither), 50x39x30, steel and looks a tad cheap but probably on level with the shimano 2300 in the quality stakes
Own brand b'twin brakes which I think arent great - my commuter has discs so maybe I just need to get used to them but I will be trying decent pads just to see if I can improve things a bit
The frame seems very well built, its not the lightest bike (as youd expect) but is nicely put together. Some of the welding, especially around the BB isnt quite as neat as youd find elswhere but im really being picky here, especially given the price. Some nice touches like flared chainstays.
The front fork is steel, as youd expect, nothing special to see here although its well made, and the headset is an integrated cane creek job - nice to see something branded and an area I thought they would have tried to save some £
Wheels are own brand, fairly true (enough not to rub on the brake pads!). Standard 32 hole rims. Again not the lightest but seem well enough made. Fitted with Hutchinson Nitro tires, (23mm width) and the whole package seems to roll well enough, smooth bearings.
Finishing kit is as you would expect for the money. Seat post is fairly basic, the seat itself isnt bad if a bit spongy (royal viper) but havent done the distance to really judge it yet. Bars are fairly standard anatomically shaped alu, feel fine to use. Stem is fine too, own brand again. Cables are standard cheap black outers as youd expect, and the only other notable thing is the inclusion of a chain catcher.
The ride
Ive only been out on it once, as it arrived yesterday afternoon and I had half an hour free that evening, so ive only taken it on a quick local loop. Also being used to a MTB Ive no suitable basis for comparison, and a lot of what I write here will reflect more my introduction to road bikes in general however I am probably typical of the sort of person who will buy this bike so I guess my experience will be valuable to someone!!
Im yet to stick SPDs on (as I use these on the commuter, get on well with them!) so I didnt enjoy the flat pedals with the clip ons included with the bike. I guess they are there to get you started but I would change these ASAP
The ride is surprisingly comfortable when you consider you are on a cheaper alu frame with a steel fork. I was expecting to get a hammering but It wasnt that bad.
Of course there is a step up in vibration / harshness compared to the MTB but rather than being unbearable its actually quite a positive experience - you can really feel the road, and for me added another dimension to riding the bike, it felt more involved.
The acceleration was brilliant, from a standstill I felt the bike really took off, and for a similar effort compared to the MTB I was comfortably holding an average speed 3 or 4 mph faster.
Handling wise its razor sharp, and feels really alive, but it scared the crap out of me the first couple of times I tried sprinting out of the saddle - there isnt the same stability im used to with the MTB, the bike moved around a lot under me, and in general it took a lot more concentration to keep the bike on course!
But once you start to adapt, and it happens quickly, rather than cursing the twitchyness of the bike you start to appreciate how nimble it is.
The tires gripped fine however I was on dry clean tarmac so time will tell how they cope with water etc. Billed as a training tire I would hope they show some resistance to the puncture fairy too!
Im sorry this was a bit long winded, but I really wanted to give people a feel of what the bike is like, as I couldnt find much info on the net when I was looking. In conclusion for £260 this bike is amazingly good value and you wonder why you would spend more on a bike at this level.
I will get some pictures up when I get the chance as decathlon's website does the bike no justice. The colour doesnt even look right, its bright red not brown!
Oh and re Decathlon (Belfast) brilliant service but the bike still needed gears / brakes tweaked when I got it home. Not a major gripe but the typical customer wont know how to do these things I would imagine.
twitter @fat_cyclist
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Comments
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Fantastic review!
I bought the Sport 1 in April and have covered a couple hundred miles on it already. just like you I came from a mountain bike back ground so had nothing to compare the ride too and like you I couldnt justify to myself or my missus the extra £250 etc to buy a better branded bike when I was unsure I would take to road cycling.
My opinion on the bike after a good two months riding is, although the shifters do look and feel a bit plasticy and cheap do actually do the job just fine, maybe not as refined as pricier versions but do do the job.
The saddle does give a fair bit and I actually find it very comfortable now, in fact I would go as far to say it fits my arse better than the saddle on my mountain bike.
Wheels and tyre do the job but I think I will upgrade the wheels and tyres eventually as when out riding with friends its obvious the more expensive wheelsets roll a lot quicker.
I also changed the pedals to SPD's the week I bought the bike as I wasnt keen on the flats provided with it. Other than that I love the bike, the bright red paint looks fantastic in my opinion and I've had many people comment on the fact its a good looking bike and a great bike for the money.
I have had zero problems with the bike and only the other day posted a thrad in the "your rides" section.
Hope you have as much fun riding yours as I do mine!
Andy!0 -
I see a ton of Decathlon mountain bikes around but few road bikes, despite them appearing to be very good value. Maybe that's why they did the re-branding? Don't like their colour schemes still...
If they slapped an on-message "Sportive" label on them, changed the geometry to pensioner-friendly sit-up-and-beg and swapped to compact chainsets maybe they'd sell them by the truckfull?0 -
Very informative write up. Interesting to hear about the 2300 groupo as most of the bikes I have looked at have this fitted.
I hope to be able to report back when I get my first road bike. It was meant to be this week but there has been a delay (on the shop's part) so will have to wait a tad longer now!Allez 16 - bad weather / turbo trainer
Tarmac Expert SL3 - test colours
Dogma 2 - ex Team Sky0 -
I went for something in between MTB and road bike - a £650 Kona Dew Drop which has drop handlebars, steeply sloping top tube, triple chainset and a big cassette with 34-teeth climbing cog. I added Cane Creek crosstop brakes so that I could stop from the upright handlebar position as well as when I'm down on the drops. The bike has Shimano 2300 8-speed thumb-button brifters and these work a treat. They're a bit rough when shifting but that's the downside of cheap components, particularly when the jumps at the front are across three chainrings and the jumps at the back are over such a wide range(11-34). They are easily tuned and I haven't had a problem with them in 2,000 miles (since February). If you're switching from mountain bike commuting to road bike cycling, you could try out the Kona. It's a kind of cyclo cross bike but is a little heavy at 28lbs.But it handles paths and chewed up tar as well as smooth roads. Some websites are showing the Dew Drop at £200 off, but only on odd sizes and last year's models.0
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I bought a sport 2 ltd in oct 2008, my first ever road bike at 169 quid.
Did a winter and a summer on it before it got relegated to winter only when I got a trek.
for the money though a very good bike (mine was sora 8 speed), only thing I had issue with on it was it was a standard chainset, 53/42. Sicne i've never biked before well I quickly bought a chainset online second hand for 20 quid and converted it to a compact and spent 10 quid on a MTB cassette. Maybe I should of gone for the model about that had a triple lol!
Either way very good entry level bikes0 -
I`m going to get a SPORT 1 tomorrow morning as it will be my first road bike, as above i looked at the Allez and Carrera range but decided to go for the sport1 mainly for price and the triple chainring.
One question tho, as i live in Scotland can you fit mudgaurds to the Sport1?0 -
Decent review!
As a fellow amateur, you answer all the questions I would have asked a year ago. So I would happily say that this will benefit other new potential Roadies.
Glad you seem to be enjoying the ride!!
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too slow to go wrote:I`m going to get a SPORT 1 tomorrow morning as it will be my first road bike, as above i looked at the Allez and Carrera range but decided to go for the sport1 mainly for price and the triple chainring.
One question tho, as i live in Scotland can you fit mudgaurds to the Sport1?
It might take them - it has eyes to take mudgaurds (although the ones on the front are in the fork inner side if that makes sense)
Then theres the clearance issue with the calipers, ill let you judge:
front:
rear:
[/img] twitter @fat_cyclist0 -
too slow to go wrote:
One question tho, as i live in Scotland can you fit mudgaurds to the Sport1?
It will take guards no problem.I've fitted many pairs of SKS chomoplastics to sport 1's.0
