MTB to Road bike : ~£1000 budget. Help!

danbt

Hi all.

I've recently taken up road cycling on my Mountain bike (Specialized Rockhopper SL 2010), and I started to quite enjoy it. I decided as I was going to be using it purely for road use, then a good move would be to stick some slicks on it.
I bought a couple of Schwalbe Marathon Plus 1.5' ... these definitely improved things. The ride is a lot quicker, and requires less effort.

I was riding my commuting route to get my fitness up. Only about 4 miles each way, with a break between.... now 2 weeks later, I am riding a 12 mile route without any stops and I feel good when i finish. I can see that I'm improving, and with all of my friends with road bikes, I'm finding it difficult to keep up. So, I think it's a logical step to move onto a road bike.

There are a few I've been eyeing up.
- Specialized Allez Elite
- Giant Defy 1
- Focus Cayo

The three increasing in price respectively.

I was just wondering, am I going to notice a big difference between the three bikes, for the money I'm paying?
Are there any things I need to watch out for? or pay attention to?

Cheers guys.
Dan.

El Zomba

Nice bikes, all of them, but the usual rules apply; you'll end up paying more for the name (especially with Specialized). That said, some shops may still be running their end of season sales, so if you can pick up one of those bikes at a discounted price, why the hell not?

Alternatively, why now consider something from Planet X? You'll get a nice bike with a carbon frame for the kind of wedge you're looking to spend. Or if you fancy being sensible for the winter, how about Ribble's winter trainer/audax bike?

danbt

Hey, yeah, paying for the name may be an issue.

Well, I'm debating whether to buy the bike this side of Christmas, or wait until the spring, as I don't know if the weather is going to be suitable.

I haven't heard of Planet X, but I will have a look now.

Will the price of bikes shoot up in the spring as it is when people are looking to buy them?
Cheers.
Dan.

Sprool

keep your mtb for the winter rides. In the spring when the weather gets kinder then is a good time to splash out on a dedicated road bike, and you'll see an amazing difference.
Me, I couldn't wait. My old stumpjumper with slicks is now parked up in favour of my scott s30 entry-level road bike which i love. Decision about which bike was made for me by local bike shop having a good deal on a 2011 model. Theres a big choice around the £750 mark. I think theres not too much to differentiate them so its down to personal prefs. Went for a 3- ring crank and big back cassette with tiagra shifters, which gives me more of a chance up the steep hills though the gearing compared to the MTB was a shock at first, its more than compensated by the bike weight and the lack of resistance.

danbt

Yeah. I think thats a good plan.

I can't take my eyes off the new Cannondale Caad10 105 now.
I have found a shop which will give me £300 to spend on new accessories such as shoes and pedals etc when I buy the bike, as well as 0% finance.