New to cycling - Can you help me choose a bike??

adamsilver

Hi All

Im new to cycling and have that big question road bike or hybrid. As Im new I dont exaclty know what Im going to be doing yet but i recon it will be 90% road with the option of bridlepaths, canals etc. I didnt want to get a road bike & get to a canal path and think oh i cant go down there but on the other hand didnt want to get a hybrid and then spend all my time on the road wishing id got a road bike.

I was going to go for the FUJI Newest 2.0 (2012) I tested it and it was very nice, I also tested the claud butler san remo (2012) which was horrible.

I then tested a Cannondale Quick CX2 (2012) which was so comfortable, I really wanted to buy that bike!! Then I realised there was a CX3 which was £160 cheaper but with me being a newbie I have no idea about specs & part names etc. I also read a review which stated the CX2 was good but not the best in its price range.

I started out wanted to spend £400 - £500 but seem to have moved to the £500 - £650 range which I need to be at the bottom end of.

Can you guys give me some advise please as I feel blind trying to buy my first bike! Oh I live in Leeds if anyone is wondering and these bikes were tried at Evans & The Bike Shop.

Thanks
Adam

t4tomo

Best compromise for mainly road but a a bit of bridle path etc is a proper CX (cyclo cross) bike, I.e one with drop handlebars. Soit looks like a road bike but takes slightly wider tyres probably has disc brakes and you can easily fit mudguard etc to it and it's a tad tougher than a a pure roadie.

Cannondale CAADX range or specialised tricross or similar. You might need to up your budget slightly or I'd advise buying a decent used one. For £500 you'd get something really decent thats a couple of years old.

simon_masterson

Cyclocross is not the only choice; a touring or audax bike would also be great. If you want to use bridle paths and the like, bigger tyres will make it more comfortable and many racing bikes won't allow that. Though a 28mm tyre won't do the worst job in the world.

And a secondhand tourer (new or old) is likely to be cheaper. Touring bikes get a bad rap from some snobs but it's all nonsense; in the not-so-distant past there wasn't that much difference between a 'touring' and 'racing' bike. People set time trial times on these bikes that are still incredible today. Yes they are slightly heavier (to most cyclists this isn't actually very important!) and they offer greater comfort than an out-and-out racer, but the 'engine' is most important until you reach quite a high level.

If you put on a more racey saddle, take the rack off if you want to liven the back up a bit (though they are very useful!) and choose your tyres carefully, you should end up with a very viable multifarious road machine; essentially similar to a drop bar hybrid. No-one will expect you to be raising your arms on the champs elysées, but the snobs (as if you should listen to them) will look down their noses at you just for the tyres.

unixnerd

Another vote for a tourer! A good tourer on 28mm tyres will go anywhere and they're superbly practical. Edinburgh Bicycle (not just in Edinburgh) do a superb tourer for 499 and a nicer one with disc brakes and a better groupset for a little more (well worth paying).

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/product ... ring-bikes

I have one of these and it's done 1000s of trouble free miles over the years in all weathers. Can't say enough good things about it. These days it's my winter / shopping bike.

ForumNewbie

Hi there - if you are not planning to do big mileages, a fast hybrid is a good bike to start with. A Specialized Sirrus Elite is a very good hybrid for around £600 mark. If going for a tourer, I would say consider an Audax bike which is a light tourer, because if you are not actually going touring, I would think a full touring bike is too heavy for your needs. I have a Dawes Audax light tourer with rack and mudguards which I now use for commuting as well as long day rides. I tend to stick to the roads but it could cope with canal paths if necessary. Most audax bikes (as well as tourers) have triple chain rings meaning that you should be able to cope with most hills, even if you venture up from Leeds to the Yorkshire Dales.