Bike choice for all year round, Audax, Cyclo Cross, or Road?

bandsawman

Hi all,

I recently started cycling to work to lose weight, and, so far so good

At the moment though I'm having to rough it on a 1979 Peugeot road bike - until our cycle to work scheme starts again (I think it starts at the end of Sept).

I commute 11 miles each way, but I also often extend my route home to around 30 miles. Apart from the commuting I also want to do longer rides on my days off.

I intend to use it all year round, so I need to be able to use wheels/tyres suitable for snow, and I want to have full mudguards and a pannier rack fitted permanently.

My budget will be £1000 max.

Are there any road bikes that will take the wider winter tyres and mudguards/rack, or do I need to go for a Cyclo Cross or Audax?

I'd like a Shimano 105 groupset, but I realize that may not be possible with this budget, but would I also be right in thinking that this groupset isn't the best choice for prolongued use in winter weather?

Looking forward to your suggestions, Mike.

meanredspider

I just bought a CX bike because I couldn't ride my road bike in the prolonged icy conditions that typify winter up here (especially up the hills) and I want studded tyres for these conditions. The Boardman I bought comes with pannier mounting points and space for full mudguards. It also has disc brakes which work well in wet weather. Even with road tyres, it's slower than my road bike but only by a minute or so over the 15 miles into work.

Focus do a CX with 105 (the Mares 2.0) within your budget. I've not had any real issues with that set up on either of my road bikes. The Boardman, however, has SRAM Apex (though I can't think there's any appreciable difference in winter performance or durability). The only real issue you're likely to face is the thing freezing on days when the temp gets down to -5C and below especially with added windchill on fast downhill sections.

godders1

The Kinesis racelight frames have fittings for guards/rack and will take wide(ish) tyres. They're pretty racey in terms of geometry.

http://www.epic-cycles.co.uk/kinesisT2.htm

105 group option does indeed push you a bit over budget though.

The campag equipped Tifosi CK7 is another option:

http://www.fatbirds.co.uk/detail.asp/sk ... _Bike_2011

bandsawman

meanredspider wrote:

I just bought a CX bike because I couldn't ride my road bike in the prolonged icy conditions that typify winter up here (especially up the hills) and I want studded tyres for these conditions. The Boardman I bought comes with pannier mounting points and space for full mudguards. It also has disc brakes which work well in wet weather. Even with road tyres, it's slower than my road bike but only by a minute or so over the 15 miles into work.

Focus do a CX with 105 (the Mares 2.0) within your budget. I've not had any real issues with that set up on either of my road bikes. The Boardman, however, has SRAM Apex (though I can't think there's any appreciable difference in winter performance or durability). The only real issue you're likely to face is the thing freezing on days when the temp gets down to -5C and below especially with added windchill on fast downhill sections.

I have looked at the Boardman, and I was impressed with it, but at £900 it's a bit pricey considering that it comes with an SRAM Apex groupset.

I've just checked out the Focus Mares 2.0 - nice bike but unfortunately doesn't come with mudguard eyelets...

Godders1 wrote:

The Kinesis racelight frames have fittings for guards/rack and will take wide(ish) tyres.

I've just checked out the Kinesis Racelight T2 Tiagra - very nice, so nice that I think I'd settle for the Tiagra groupset...

Godders1 wrote:

They're pretty racey in terms of geometry.

Can you explain please?

Godders1 wrote:

The campag equipped Tifosi CK7 is another option.

I had a look at this - not sure about the styling, but it could look different in the flesh.
I looked up the groupset it comes with - Campag Veloce/Miche - and found that Veloce is Campag's entry level. But is entry level Campag only as good as entry level Shimano - or is it more like mid-range Shimano?

meanredspider

The Boardman can be had for 10% less using NUSAUG11 discount code (in store as well as on-line). The Apex groupset seems fine to me - slightly clunkier than 105 but it works well.

Look at the Focus Mare 4.0 (2012) in the BR article on here about the new Focus range. That's disc equiped and actually comes with mudguards.

harveyg77

I've got a Cube X-Race Comp, which is there cyclo-cross bike. As a package it works for me.

The crankset is a compact type so great for climbing the hills. It has Schwalbe Rocket Ron/Racing Ralph tyres which grip well in gloops conditions, though I switch to some Conti Grand Prix for the summer. It looks great and it rides really nice, weight wise mine is 21lb including XT MTB SPDs so its not unreasonable. Despite the Cube being 3.3lb heavier than my Scott CR1, I am quicker on the Cube. I guess this is down to the gemoetry suiting me better - I could never get comfortable on the Scott, plus the Cube has a compact crank, but otherwise identical 105 transmission to the Scott. I've sold the road bike (Scott) now and use the Cube solely for any road work and reverting to the MTBs for the gloop trips.

HTH, Harvey

meanredspider

Expect to see far more disc brake CX bikes in 2012 ranges. For an all-rounder, I think discs are the way to go - especially in the wet and with the extra load of panniers etc.

godders1

bandsawman wrote:

Godders1 wrote:

They're pretty racey in terms of geometry.

Can you explain please?

The lengths of the tubes and tube angles on a road frame will put you in a more crouched, stretched out riding position as opposed to say a touring bike frame that will put you in a more upright position. With a racing bike you’re trading off a bit of comfort for a more aero position. Having said that the more recent Kinesis racelights do have a slightly longer head tube (putting you a bit more upright) than the previous models so a bit of a balance trying to be struck I think.

bandsawman wrote:

I had a look at this - not sure about the styling, but it could look different in the flesh.
I looked up the groupset it comes with - Campag Veloce/Miche - and found that Veloce is Campag's entry level. But is entry level Campag only as good as entry level Shimano - or is it more like mid-range Shimano?

There is a plain blue CK7 too.

Campag veloce is good kit, difficult to compare directly but it's commonly considered to be on a par with tiagra/105 (so the mid range stuff).

MichaelW

Boardman CX puts the rear disc brake on the chainstay, freeing up the pannier mount for a normal rack. Many disc bikes may have pannier mounts but you need to get around the brake to access them, using stupid and weak extra-long bolts , spacers or special disc-compatible racks.

Before you go for a Campagnolo bike, check the cost of consumable such as cassettes and chainrings. Shimano/SRAM tend to be cheaper. I junked my perfectly good Campagnolo 8 speed because I cant buy replacement parts any more.

mrtuk

Whyte are just bringing out a cx range - the charing cross comes in at the 1k mark. Probably worth a look - I think the whyte frames have specific housing for the disc brakes, so leaves room for the guards/rack etc.

jeepie

I have Apex on my Audax bike and much prefer it to 105 on my road bike. So I wouldn't let "budget" components put you off the Boardman. The added advantage of Apex is that you can run 11-32T cassette which gives you very small gears that will get you up any hill even when loaded up.

fastbatard

I have a Specialized Tricross for year round commuting and would highly recommend it. If I were buying now though I would probably be getting the Cannondale CAADX with 105 for £779, bit of a bargain I think.

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

meanredspider

fastbatard wrote:

I have a Specialized Tricross for year round commuting and would highly recommend it. If I were buying now though I would probably be getting the Cannondale CAADX with 105 for £779, bit of a bargain I think.

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

With no discs, it's about par for the course at that price. The Focus Mares 2.0 (105) is £748 with the usual platinum discount.

Tom Butcher

MichaelW wrote:

Before you go for a Campagnolo bike, check the cost of consumable such as cassettes and chainrings. Shimano/SRAM tend to be cheaper. I junked my perfectly good Campagnolo 8 speed because I cant buy replacement parts any more.

Really ? Wiggle Veloce cassette £38 105 £49
Not sure about chainrings but realistically even if campag were more expensive there are plenty of alternative makes that are compatible.

dilemna

Jeepie wrote:

I have Apex on my Audax bike and much prefer it to 105 on my road bike. So I wouldn't let "budget" components put you off the Boardman. The added advantage of Apex is that you can run 11-32T cassette which gives you very small gears that will get you up any hill even when loaded up.

I had a look and ride on a Boardman CX which was knocked down to £500 in my local Halfords because they said it had been one of the bikes that had been used on the Round Britain ride. Well I had a good look at it and it had never been ridden outside. It was new, so the guy suggested they hadn't actually used it. Where as the madone was shagged and they still wanted £800 for it!!!!

Anyway I rode the CX and hated it, basically because the groupset SRAM Apex was so cheap and nasty (I am used to Shimano Ultegra or Campag Record or Chorus). Now it could have been that it wasn't set up properly but then the gears changed ok. Plus the wheels didn't feel all that good. The front fork is carbon so you can't fit low loaders to it as no bosses and clamping on to a carbon fork is not a good idea. For a CX bike having a carbon fork is probably not the greatest idea as it will be taking a pounding. They should have used an aluminium fork instead. Plus wheel clearance wasn't that great. So I took the view that for the frame only, £500 was still a bit steep if I then wanted to fit my own and far better groupset. So I didn't buy it, but some one did as I went back 4 days later and all the bikes, about 8 of them were gone.

meanredspider

A lot of CX bikes have carbon forks. Personally I don't see the issue. Provided it doesn't exceed its strength limit, it doesn't matter how often it's loaded. It gives a more comfortable ride. I agree that the Apex shifters in particular feel "cheap" but they operate well and that's all that really matters. What's the issue with the wheel clearance?

rolf_f

Tom Butcher wrote:

MichaelW wrote:

Before you go for a Campagnolo bike, check the cost of consumable such as cassettes and chainrings. Shimano/SRAM tend to be cheaper. I junked my perfectly good Campagnolo 8 speed because I cant buy replacement parts any more.

Really ? Wiggle Veloce cassette £38 105 £49
Not sure about chainrings but realistically even if campag were more expensive there are plenty of alternative makes that are compatible.

Plus of course you can potentially repair Campag components whereas Shimano breakages = a trip to the shops to buy a whole new component.

Wiggle look expensive - Ribble will do a Veloce cassette for £33 and a 105 for £31.80. So Shimano does win there but not by anything worthwhile. As for 8 speed, Ribble do a Record 8 speed cassette for £28 and a Miche Campag compatible for £18 (equivalent to Shimano 8 speed prices). Chainrings for 8 speed appear to be compatible with 9 and 10 speed.

Can\'tPedalSlowly

fastbatard wrote:

I have a Specialized Tricross for year round commuting and would highly recommend it. If I were buying now though I would probably be getting the Cannondale CAADX with 105 for £779, bit of a bargain I think.

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

I ride a Specialized Tricross Sport courtesy of my cycle to work scheme and have been delighted with it. I got mine from my local independent (Bright Cycles of New Malden,) who recommended it and since then we have got one for my g/f as well. I'm sure that there are likely to be slightly more exotic brands with more than a nice reliable set of Shimano Tiagra but I would not swap it.

jedster

Hi,

I've been using a planet-x uncle john cx bike with full 105 for these duties for five years. I typically have had 28mm tyres, full sks guards and a rear rack. It's been great. Obviously I've got through a number of chains, cassettes and chain rings plus a rear mech (spoke broke and sheared it off) but I'm on the original shifters and front mech.

I'm just buying a hub geared bike to replace it (because I fancy it, the Uncle John is still going OK).

The latest version is £899 with SRAM Rival which I think is broadly equivalent to 105 (and all the bits are interchangeable). Woth a look.
http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/CBP ... rival-bike
J

bandsawman

Thanks for all the input - please keep it coming!

I've been building a spreadsheet to help me keep track of all the different models, pros and cons, and I'm finally narrowing my search down

It seems nobody's suggesting an audax or road bike as opposed to a CX?

stuartturbo

Must admit I went for a tricross as they seem better suited to my weight can fit mud guards and racks. The wheels are generallya bit stronger than a road bike a need with the high standard of roads we have. Don't forget the wider tyre means lower pressure which means softer on the Jacobs lol

Can\'tPedalSlowly

I think that the reason why CX bikes are so popular for commuters is that you have the flexibility of being able to fit wide (35mm) tyres in winter or if you cycle along tracks or toe-paths or narrow (28mm) tyres for the summer or if you stick to the roads. The riding position is also slightly less aggresive which can make it more comfortable to ride for longer periods.
Then you lso have the potential to fit mud guards, panniers etc...

Ben64

I bought a Genesis Day 01 Alfine 8 (cycloX style). Hub gear and discs for low maintenance, can run 35C tyres (Marathon Winters) with guards. As well as 9 mile each way commute I have done 100lm Audax rides, maybe not the fastest or lightest but certainly very capable.

As an added bonus you might find that off road on skinny tyres is kind of addictive....

gadgets

I have the cannondale caadx which has the 105 groupset, the price was just 1p off 1K. it comes with 35mm tyres and have the eyelets for mudguards and rack.

bandsawman

Ben64 wrote:

I bought a Genesis Day 01 Alfine 8 (cycloX style). Hub gear and discs for low maintenance, can run 35C tyres (Marathon Winters) with guards. As well as 9 mile each way commute I have done 100lm Audax rides, maybe not the fastest or lightest but certainly very capable.

As an added bonus you might find that off road on skinny tyres is kind of addictive....

I've just been looking on the Genesis website at the Croix De Fer and found myself drawn to the Day 01 Alfines - a couple of questions:

- any idea what yours weighs?
- how are the gears and gear selection?
- do you know what's the slimmest tyre you can fit to it?

Ben64

bandsawman wrote:

- any idea what yours weighs?

I've never weighed it! When you pick it up it is noticeable that there is a bit more weight towards the rear due to the hub though.

bandsawman wrote:

- how are the gears and gear selection?

I find that the gear selection is good, it changes quicker and more quietly than any derailleur bike I have ever owned. If you are really standing on the pedals the hub can be reluctant to shift and require you to back off before it will change. I found initial cable stretch required the cable length to be checked every week when new (align to yellow stripes on the hub). I also found that during the winter I needed to take off the shift mechanism (2 mins once wheel off bike, no tools required) and clean + relube it to keep it smooth.

The gears on the hub are not evenly spaced and larger jumps that derailleur gears. You do sort of get used to it though. I can run either a 20 or 18t cog on the back which enables me to tune the gears slightly (commute 18t, hilly longer rides 20t).

I have no complaints about the Versa shifters. I have managed to find a freewheel mode in the hub a couple of times to intial cable stretch which isn't so good....

bandsawman wrote:

- do you know what's the slimmest tyre you can fit to it?

I currently run 28C tyres. Don't know what the thinnest is Alex Rims website doesn't say.

I have had to have the Tektro Lyra brakes replaced under warranty (excellent customer service from Genesis/Madisons + LBS) but the Shimano replacements seem sufficient.

prawny

For riding year round I'd definitely go CX as apposed to road or audax. If you're going to ride in snow/ice the possibility of fitting winter tyres is a massive plus.

Also having discs means not wearing out rims in the wet. Pukka.

cyberknight

Do not knock apex, the ability to have a 32 cog on th back can be a godsend for bad hills,load carrying and if you bonk you have some really low gears for spinning home.

I ride the boardman comp with apex on club runs and while people are standing on the pedals i can spin past them.

pigeon toes

I got a 2011 Scott Speedster S35 3 months ago. It is a UK specific road bike that can take full mudguards and rack. Currently have 25mm tyres and have just fitted Tortec reflect mudguards for the winter - you'd probably be able to use 28mm tyres with the mudguards.

I chose it based on the excellent reviews and because you can currently get it for £649 (down from £950). It's my 1st road bike, it has proved ideal for my twice a week 15 mile each-way commute. The carbon forks take the buzz out of the road and its a reasonable weight at approx 20lbs.

Tom Butcher

I'd go the road/audax route simply because I prefer caliper brakes to cantis. The frame and fork might be a bit lighter and with more road specific geometry too. Granted you probably will top out at 28c tyres max but personally I've never felt the need for anything more than 25s even in Winter. So for me it'd be something like a Kinesis winter frame - though what I've actually got myself is a Principia RSL AS which is a similar thing though no longer in production. The Scott someone above has sounds a bargain too.

There isn't going to be a lot in it though - there isn't a huge difference between a cross bike and a road bike after all.

Kallaen

I need to ask. #Tom Butcher how do you cope with 25c on icy / snowy winter roads? I've got a new roadbike coming, a trek 2.3 and planing to drive all winter on it.
Less air in the tires and taking more care of road condition when driving?