First ride - CAADX 6

img_87

Evening everyone. This is my first post so be kind.

I have been talking about getting into road cycling for about 2 years and at around Easter i decided i was going to go for it. I spent a while looking into possible options and knowing that my employer ran a Cycle Scheme was a bonus. I then spent some time looking at what kind of bike i wanted. The Girlfriend was just getting into cycling after some encouragement from her dad so we went on a few rides to see how we enjoyed cycling together. It was good. So i did a bit of research and came to the conclusion that i wanted to buy a cyclocross bike.

A few weeks ago i was pointed towards the Cannondale CAADX 6 in Evans as they had just reduced the 2012 model. I made a few calls and went to have a look. I loved it. It was exactly what i was after.

So, thursday gone, i picked it up and brought it home. We have recently moved house (somewhere a bit more in the countryside) and i was looking forward to getting out and about.

This morning i took it out for a little test ride. I only did 8 miles but climbed over 600 feet. I hadn't realised i had moved somewhere so hilly.

The bike was fantastic though. My first time on the drops and it took me a mile or so to get into it but i absolutely loved it. It felt so nimble and light. Now i just need to work on my ability and we will be flying.

Anyway, for anyone that wants to see it...


Untitled by IMGPhotography, on Flickr


Untitled by IMGPhotography, on Flickr


PS. I only got overtaken once

dannyharris

Good for you. I just started too loved my first run.


Nice to see a helmet there too.

Seen so may cyclists out on the road not wearing one.

Idiotic in my opinion.

elderone

nice looking bike,very smart.keep going and you will get more and more hooked for sure.

img_87

dannyharris wrote:

Good for you. I just started too loved my first run.


Nice to see a helmet there too.

Seen so may cyclists out on the road not wearing one.

Idiotic in my opinion.

I must admit, everyone i seen today was wearing a helmet but i have seen plenty in the past who weren't. I can't imagine any reason why you wouldn't!

elderone wrote:

nice looking bike,very smart.keep going and you will get more and more hooked for sure.

Cheers, i am sure i will. Already wishing i was off work this week so i could get out again.

Stuuu

She looks a beaut!

I was tempted to go for a cyclocross bike myself but I already have a mountain bike for any off-road rides. I do think the brake handles on the cyclocross bikes make more sense.

jay197

Is it just me, or do the handlebars look like they are tilted up to high?

Lovely bike, looks great, gratz:)

lotus49

img_87 wrote:

I must admit, everyone i seen today was wearing a helmet but i have seen plenty in the past who weren't. I can't imagine any reason why you wouldn't!

Nowadays, almost everyone I see under 60 is wearing a helmet but I do see a lot of older men (and there are plenty of stupidly fit 65 year olds zooming around on road bikes around here) just wearing a classic cycling cap.

I wouldn't do it but if you watch footage of pros training, they often don't wear a helmet either. They have to in competition because the UCI says so but they are free to do what they like while training.

I'd say there are two reasons for this. Firstly, the classic look is a cap not a helmet. You don't see many pictures of Eddy Merckx (PBUH) wearing a helmet (I had a look and couldn't find a single one with a helmet although he did wear one of those scrum cap things occasionally).

Secondly, and more significantly, the evidence in favour of wearing a helmet is surprisingly weak. You would imagine that it would be a clear cut choice but that is not the case and there are plenty of people who believe riders are less safe with a helmet. If you are interested in reading more about this you can look at cyclehelmets.org - it's quite surprising.

jay197

I remember in Indurains' time they didn't wear them either, so I wonder what year they became compulsory on them ?

lotus49

Not long ago - it was in 2003. Sadly, Andrey Kivilev was killed in the Paris-Nice race not wearing a helmet. That was the straw that broke the camel's back as far as the UCI was concerned and the use of helmets was swiftly mandated in all UCI endorsed races.

Since then, as far as I know, no-one has been killed in a road race while wearing a helmet (they were fairly lax about enforcement at first so a few riders did ignore the rule but not for long). I am not and never will be a pro but I do find this fairly persuasive.

[Edit] Having checked, there sadly have been at least two, one in 2010 and one in 2011 in the Giro d'Italia. There is a Wikipedia page on the subject if you are interesting in the rather dismal details http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_pr ... ing_a_race.

lotus49

Oops, I accidentally quoted my own post without adding anything and I don't know how to delete a post entirely. Nothing to see here.

Monty Dog

A CX bike is nothing like an MTB for offroad - I race CX and MTB but know which one I ride if I want to go fast...the CX. I was racing at Muddy Hell CX last Saturday and the course was very muddy - the MTB's were a PITA as they couldn't get any drive or direction and you had to choose your line on the narrow bits to get past.