Entry level bike suitable for racing

jmp04
jmp04 Posts: 10
edited July 2012 in Road buying advice
Hi all. Ive been looking around for bikes to buy, with a view to racing in the future, having come accross from MTB.

I dont have vast amounts of money to spend, so have been looking at bikes with finance available (preferably £40/month outgoing). Any recomendations on complete bikes suitable for not just training, but entry level/amateur racing?

Many thanks.

Comments

  • ShutUpLegs
    ShutUpLegs Posts: 3,522
    Chinerello
    Or CAAD10
  • stueys
    stueys Posts: 1,332
    Spesh Allez
  • huuregeil
    huuregeil Posts: 780
    Anything, basically! If money is tight, I'd suggest getting a decent secondhand bike and saving money to cover race fees, spare set of wheels, decent tyres. There are a couple of guys racing cat 3/4 races round where I am on 10-15 year old steel framed bikes which can't be worth more than a few hundred quid. The critical thing is to get out there and get some racing miles under your belt. Good luck!
  • jmp04
    jmp04 Posts: 10
    The main issue is I have a Flat rental deposit due out of my bank in the next 6 weeks, and another payment for my part time degree course, hence why I was looking at finance, a until they have been paid I don't know exactly how much disposable cash I have spare, more of a ballpark figure.

    I'm in Oxford so may well go see Flavio Zappi as he's got a team here and may be able to give me tips or point me in the direction of a good deal.
  • pastryboy
    pastryboy Posts: 1,385
    Get a credit card?

    I recently got a NatWest card that's interest free for 18 months.
  • jmp04
    jmp04 Posts: 10
    would never get one, its a slippery slope in my eyes. I try pay by cash as much as i can, just want a decent bike again so 0% finance packages are looking like the best option as they can be upto 36 months.
  • amaferanga
    amaferanga Posts: 6,789
    jmp04 wrote:
    would never get one, its a slippery slope in my eyes. I try pay by cash as much as i can, just want a decent bike again so 0% finance packages are looking like the best option as they can be upto 36 months.

    How is buying a bike on finance any different to buying one with a 0% credit card? At least with the CC you could buy any bike and not just what's available on 0% finance.

    FWIW my advice would be to just buy a cheapish second hand bike and get some riding done before you think about racing. Racing bikes is not really a cheap sport (licence, race entry fees, travel costs, etc. all add up) so if money is a bit tight at the moment you'd probably be better to wait until you've got a bit more disposable income before you start racing. You can race on any road bike really, as long as the gears change and the brakes work.
    More problems but still living....
  • jmp04
    jmp04 Posts: 10
    Just temptation with a credit card is all i meant.

    As for racing, I know its reasonably costly, and have a decent amount of disposable income each month, just with finance it would make life easier without that one off bulk payment, and still leave me with the disposable cash to pay for licences and entry fees etc...

    Theres afew amateur and pro clubs in my area so training and riding wouldnt be an issue, and theres 3 or 4 that meet on different days so could easily put 400-600km a week behind me riding with those guys (if theyd let me that is).
  • dcj
    dcj Posts: 395
    second hand caad9, brand new caad10 or to a lesser extent the spesh allez.

    infact seeing the amount of crashes in newbie racing, there is no way i'd want to trust anything more exotic to mass start racing if i was paying for the kit.

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