London to Brighton

DT9447

Looking for some pointers on a half decent bike that I could do this on.

Done a little bit of mountain biking but only on my £100 Halfords cheapy that still looks 'ok' but mechanically only really lasted the first few outings (I Know I know, my own fault)

Budget £400 MAX really & dont mind second hand if someone could give me some indication of what to be looking for price/make/accesory wise.

Be good to be able to use it to replace the £100 donkey after and do similar stuff on it too, so i'm thinking some sort of hybrid?

Not a serious cyclist so will need to do some training on it too and soonish!

All advice welcome. Ta

Dan

fernholt

I am not too sure what options there are, but I would go to a few local bike shops and ask them and see what is available from there. I would check out Wiggle.co.uk. I had a Focus bike from there once and it was good value for money and a decent frame.

A bunch of years back I did the London to Brighton a few times. I did it on two separate mountain bikes with slick tyres, once with front suspension. It was ok but slowish. I then bought a Lemond bike for the next year. That made a BIG difference. It improved by time a lot (can't remember by how much - maybe 45 mins) and from that point I was hooked into road riding. I have progressed on to more expensive and waste tonnes of cash now. But, the London to Brighton was great for me and I ride a lot now. The bike you get may turn you into an obsessive and may be a stepping stone.

I'm sorry I can't give specific advise on bikes, but maybe a decent frame, light tyres and borrow some expensive wheels? If not, stick with the cheapy wheels that would come with the bike. A second hand bike, might be good. I think the frame is the important thing you'll buy, the next is big difference comes with the wheels. Everything else does make a difference, but you can live with it and upgrade. Weight difference isn't that big a deal at this stage.
Ah, you said hybrid. Apologies. I can only think in terms of road bike with drop handle bars. If my ramble in not relevant. .....
The London to Brighton is a really nice ride but leave early to avoid the crush up the hills.

ralph1471

If you are thinking about using it for mountain biking afterwards you should definitely consider a Specialized hardrock (buy one with disk brakes). You couldnt get a better mtb for the price and I dont think it would be too hard to pedal on the road, given that it has minimal travel on the forks. It always gets good reviews as a budget bike.

heres a couple of links-

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/spe ... gn=froogle


http://www.leisurewheels.co.uk/products ... 6919&rs=gb

the second one is older i think but for only 315 quid you could afford to get some road tyres for it or you could try to borrow some. I don't think a hybrid would be much use for off road if thats what you might be doing with it in future., but a hardrock would do the job!

LaAndy

Hello Dan

I am also new to road cycling, having come from a MTB background. I was looking to buy a road bike to cycle the great Yorkshire Bike Ride on, but now i have also been talked into cycling from London to Paris later this year :shock:

Everyone's opinions will differ on your question, but my choice was to spend (around £100) on an Ebay bike, then spend £50 - £100 pounds updating.

I bought an 02 Trek 1000, in good condition, STI gears etc then have invested in some new wheels and tyres, and a general service (cables/brakes etc).

I now have a bike which is capable of doing the things i want to do, but that hasn't cost me a fortune. As i get better i can choose to upgrade the bike further of just upgrade to a better bike.

Let us know what you choose to do, i can recommend eBay though ;-)

Andy

DT9447

Thansk for the tips...definately gives me something to go on.
Will update when I know more myself.

Dan :arrow:

xxmimixx

Hi Dan
good luck with the ride, I will be doing it myself!

CiB

L2B is so crowded and slow, and the route so congested with inexperienced cyclists who have no idea about keeping left & letting faster riders through on the right, that you may as well do it on any BSO that comes to hand. A lot do. The both times I did it the range of machinery was eye-popping. But as for expecting to make good use of closed / semi-closed roads with a decent bike, don't hold your breath.

It's huge fun the first time; it's for charideee too good mate so not all bad, but as a cycling experience it's one best done if only so that you can cross it off the list before moving on to better things.

<pers experience />

Peddle Up!

You should get a decent s/hand hybrid for that kind of money. Tried the classified ads here?

spezial

I'd just spend a bit of money getting your current bike in good working order at your LBS (gears, brakes tuned, everything lubed up, new chain) plus maybe some slick hybrid tyres/ cheap thinner wheels. Depends on what sort of riding you're thinking of doing in the future.

Don't think it's worth trying to be too fast in the L2B, just do it at a nice easy pace and raise as much money for charity as you can. If you're riding on a bike you're familiar with you can feel more comfortable riding in the sometimes unpredictable crowds. It can be a bit of a dangerous mix of people who get off and walk at the first hint of 2% gradient, and people who think it's a good idea to go for a "time" and hammer it past everyone. Be somewhere in the middle!

If you live near enough, have a go at Ditchling Beacon before the event if you can so it doesn't take you by surprise.

Good luck!