70 m a week MTBer, looking to upgrade to 1st road bike help.

Cardio75

Hello fellow cyclists,

I am addicted, and what an addiction :-)

A little bit about me..

I have been back cycling, for 2 months now, on the mountain bike, which stared in order to loose weight,
I'm 36, cycled on and off, but recently due to being a lazy coach potatoe, for the last few years,
Have got back into cycling, which stared off to loose weight, but now I'm really really loving it.. And think its time to
Upgrade to a roady..

I stared cycling again just 2 months ago, after weighing in at 20 stone!!.. Now 7 weeks on, I am now 18 and a half.. A lot moe too do, but I have never been more commited, and I will be 13 stone this time next year...

Anyway, I cycle about 70 miles a week on the MTB, at the moment,
Average speed 12-13 mph. 4x short rides 10-15 miles,
and a 20-30 miler at the weekend.

Fairly fast considering the size of the knobbly tyres on this claud butler 2005 series.. And my weight.
I can keep up with you guys for a mile, then I drop lol.

I am looking to upgrade just after Xmas, to a road bike, mainly as I enjoy this sport so much,
But 30 miles is soo much effort on the MTB.. And am sick of being over took by the road bikes, I want speed!!..
I mainly ride the roads too, so it seams the best option for me.

My budget is 750-1000 for the bike, and the gear I will buy, when I am at a lesser weight,
Although I do wear helmet, shorts, and carry my fluids, bananas, in the back back.

I just wonder if anybody has any general advice for buying my first road bike, has made the change them selfs,
Or if anyone has started cycling to loose weight, or has lost weight, or was a larger size rider.

Any help will be truly appretaited, none of my friends or associates ride bikes,
And it's a kinda lonely sport, which I don't mind, but when it comes to advice, I don't have any..
We all have to start somewhere aye?.

Regards,
Phil

simon_masterson

Hello Phil,

The main advice I'd offer you is that anything you get in that price range will be great. You can get a lot of bike for your money. If it's a new complete bike you want, I'd personally be more inclined to spend at the lower end to allow for other purchases and because there isn't £200 of difference between a £700 Specialized and a £900 Specialized, but you have little to lose in spending all of the money on the bike; assuming that you've got 'other funds' to spend on clothing, shoes and pedals (if you want to use them, that is) and the like. I'm guessing that you've already got much of the basic gear so I won't patronise you!

As folk around these parts will tell you, there are plenty of great entry-level offerings from Specialized, Giant, Boardman, Cannondale, Ribble and others. That's assuming you want a 'modern' bike; if you were interested in vintage steel then we'd really be talking!

Cardio75

Hi Simon,

Many thanks for your reply,
As a complete newb to the world of cycling, I am totally over whelmed when googling up on the subject,
Which I can understand as a music producer, if I started talking about aux sends, and master bus compressors, etc..
It would be complete gobaldy gook to those that didn't know the subject lol..

I have searched a lot, and I kind of find myself drawn to the boardman range, the team 2012 in particular, with the carbon forks, and gears.

Although I'm a little concerned, as after reading up, I found this range fround upon by some, as its a halfords range?..

I have not even considered peddles, and correct foot ware at this stage lol,
god I hate being a noob...

Anyway, thanks for taking the time to read my post, and replying,
I will for sure look at all those brands you mention, as for steel, mmmm controversial I bet, kinda like analog v digital in my field lol..

Cheers,
Phil..

Philinmerthyr

Your story is very lose to mine except I'm about 10 years older and 2 stone heavier.

I've been training for 3 weeks and am also addicted. Passed the 200 mile mark yesterday with a 30 mile ride and plan another 20 today. I've gone from 22st 7lb to 21st 7lb in that time.

Why not put road tyres on your bike. I did this a couple of weeks ago and it made a huge difference. I've also signed up for a charity sportive (London100) in August which gives me a target to work to.

Good luck and well done.

knownothingbozo

I was in a similar position a year and half a go, and made the mistake of not understanding the concept of upgrading a bike, thus brought a bike which had a good groupset, but as it turns out cacky frame, whereas a better frame, will be much easier to upgrade the mechanicals, as they can often be done bit by bit and from ebay (from those who are at the next stages of upgrade).
You may think - I won't want to upgrade - but as time goes on, the bug will bite, and sure as eggs are eggs, the upgrade disease will get you!
So bottom line - frame that you like the look of and is comfortable, is more importrant than the rest of the mechanicals, which at beginners level will barely make a difference.

davem399

The latest issue of Cycling Plus (October 2012) has a test of 6 road bikes in the £650 to £850 range. It might be worth a read to get an idea of what to look for in a road bike regarding frame, components, etc.

frazered

Similar stOry here. Btwin triban 3 bought for 300 will see how I get on. It roading sticks then will sell the triban and get something more lovely

The tribans have been selling at nearly 300 secondhand on eBay - crazy.

chorlton chimp

A familiar story told by many. I was around the 19st mark 11 months ago and have stalled at just over 16st and still have plenty to shift. I am still going strong on the cycling side of things but have fallen back into the old bad habits of eating crap and drinking too much. Still I know what I need to do to kick start the weight loss.

On bike choice I would basically buy the best bike you can afford. The good news is that it is a good time to be looking as the 2012 models are all discounted. Buy a Cycling plus and scour the classifieds - this should give you a good idea of what deals are available and then use the 'net to further hunt out the bargains.

As far as spec goes I would (funds permitting) try to avoid Sora. There is nothing wrong with it, it works fine but being 9sp it limits your replacement/upgrade potential and the thumb shifters are a pain. New Sora has done away with the thumb shifters but it is still 9sp. Both my bikes run Sora and I don't have a problem with it personally but it does limit swapping bits when they wear out.

Being a newb I would advise you go for a triple (3 chainrings at front). You get slightly lower bottom gears for climbing and no big jumps between gears. When starting out it's very comforting having a decent set of lower gears. There is a weight penalty but let's face it, as big lads the extra 100g on the bike isn't a big deal is it? In fact be careful with your drivetrain selection - there are standard doubles lurking out there and I imagine you would find yourself totally overgeared on one of these.

On the subject of brands - the German brands (eg Focus and Cube) are renowned for offering good bikes with very good spec for the price. The big American brands are all fairly similar offerings. I like Specialized myself, it's a safe choice but the bikes come with very comfy finishing kit from their inhouse range and I believe the frames are lifetime warrantied. Trek and Cannondale both make excellent bikes too. The 'dale CAAD8 and CAAD10 range seem to be well discounted at present. Giants Defy range is well reviewed and if you can find one the Defy1 is excellently specced for £1K.

If you look at the less well known brands you can get a full carbon frame for £1K. Decathlon do a 105 specced triple at that price which I think comes with clipless pedals, Halfords flog a carrera at a garnd and Mekk also do a carbon bike at the same price.

Anyway - I have probably confused you enough for now. If you need any new kit, try decathlon. As a, ahem, larger rider myself it's been a great resource. Their '7' range is good quality and affordable, has a two year guarentee, is sensibly sized and goes up to XXXL. Last two pieces of advice - at least sit on the bike before you buy and preferably have a test ride. Budget for replacement tyres, most new bikes come with fairly ropey puncture magnets attached.

Enjoy the shopping!

zx6man

I bought a carrera TDF when I did the same £264 quid from good old halfords, its fine for me for commute and coast to coast rides... I went from 17 stone to 11.5, although was on road bike for the last stone, couldn't bear to crush the wheels...

haf1zur

Fitted City Jet tyres to my MTB last week and what a difference compared to the MTB off road tyres. Felt like a completely different bike

zx6man

haf1zur wrote:

Fitted City Jet tyres to my MTB last week and what a difference compared to the MTB off road tyres. Felt like a completely different bike

Did the same to my MTB for my commute but it was a bit "hairy" when taken slightly off road so ended up with schwalbe land cruisers as a happy medium, but the road bike can put the power down way better so I use that more for commute