fast bike to ride to work

jackzR

Wanting to get a bike to cycle to work but can't decide on what to get was looking at hybrids so far thinking.. I don't know much about the specs...

Boardman Comp

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165534

Camera Gryphon

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165534

and my local bike shop recommended this

Merida Cross Cyclo 10 & 20

http://www.merida-bikes.com/en_gb/bike/ ... rossway+10

http://www.merida-bikes.com/en_gb/bike/ ... rossway+20

I also like the look of the felts which are on sale..

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/sale/felt/commuter-urban-bikes/

thanks

manonabike

Are you only looking at hybrids? I'd recommend a touring bike with mudguards and a pannier as a fast (uness you get a heavy one) and comfortable ride to work, with the capacity to carry work clothes and waterproofs, and pick up some shopping on the way home. Unless you're riding to work off-road of course.

craker

How far do you ride, on what sort of surfaces? What's your budget?

I commute most weathers on a drop barred road bike with clip on mudguards.

unixnerd

Are you only looking at hybrids? I'd recommend a touring bike with mudguards and a pannier

+1

jackzR

my budget is £500

not really bothered about putting stuff on the bike I'll just use a backpack

not sure about the drop down bikes because I get back pain

Mikey41

Depends how extreme a position you get into. My Giant is a "sportive" geometry frame and while the saddle is still higher than the bars, I could set the bars a lot lower still. My body is more leaned over than on a hybrid, but pretty upright compared to some. If I flipped the stem, it would bring the bars up and back towards me a bit giving an even more upright posture, so a road bike need not be uncomfortable.

It also depends on how much you will be carrying in the backpack too. I would not want to carry much in a pack on a road bike. On a hybrid or MTB you can get away with it.

The Boardmans seem to be good bikes, but if you get one, make sure Halfords have put it together properly as their mechanic skills vary a lot between stores.

EDIT: How far are you riding on the commute?

BigLights

well, having ploughed through 4-5 hybrids I swear by my Specialized Sirrus. It has the same frame as the Alliez (at least I think so) but with flat bars. I've put 700/23 wheels on it and it's great. However, I am now going to switch to a road bike for commuting...i'm waiting for teh Ribble Reynolds 525 to come out properly.

daddy0

If you get back pain then DON'T USE A RUCKSACK.

A lot of people start with hybrids, but it seems most then move onto proper road bikes. There is a reason for this!

I started out with a hybrid bike, then moved to a road bike with drop bars. Drop bars are fine if you ride with your hands on the hoods and as said before you can flip your stem to raise the bars a bit.

It is tempting to ignore the advice offered here, panniers or racks do ruin the "look" of a nice bike. I don't bother with them myself, but I never carry anything on my bikes (because I used to get back pain). However, after you've ridden any distance with a rucksack on a few times you will see the logic.

BigLights

I swear by panniers for commuting. I've never really cared about the 'looks' or being 'cool', I just like to ride. I, too, have a ropey back so taking the weight off it helps immensely. Also, getting your bike properly fitted is a revelation. I can now spend hours on my road bike in more comfort than an airline seat, it's perfect. And I have tried to replicate that as much as possible on the Sirrus, to take the pressure off my back.

supersonic

How far is your commute and is it all smooth roads?

jackzR

I will be cycling 14 miles pretty smooth

what do you think about this bike?

http://www.drakescycles.co.uk/m1b100s18 ... 91%29_2012

cheaper version

http://www.drakescycles.co.uk/m1b100s18 ... io%29_2012

does anyone know any good insurance companys?

supersonic

They are decent enough - not the lightest option out there though.

symo

If your budget is £500 I would wait for the new sub £500 boardmans.

The Boardman Road Sport (£499) features a 7005 aluminium frame with a combination of Shimano, SRAM, FSA and Tektro components and Mavic CXP-22N rims built on Formula 32 hole hubs. Gearing consists of a compact 50/34T chainset combined with a 12-26T rear cassette.

jackzR

can't decide between

http://www.ashcycles.com/site/giant-rap ... beb61728be

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165534

supersonic

The Boardman is better equipped, and lighter too I believe.

garethrex

Blimey this bike milarky is a nightmare. I thought I'd have a little look around then pop out and get one, but no, there has to be millions of shiny bikes with differences that I don't understand. I wonder if anyone can help me, I cycle a lot, but up until now on a crusty old mountain bike. But as I am mostly on the road I'm think hybrid, along the lines of this thread. So far narrowed, maybe to:

Giant Roam 3 (this has v-brakes)
Merida Crossway 20 (this one has mech discs, but does that make a difference?)
Carerra Gryphon (much cheaper, but suspiciously so!)

All help and sage advice is much appreciated.

Initialised

I've come close to rear-ending a moped and a bus (pretty much at the same time) with good V-brakes (XTR) in heavy rain. I went from there to mechanical discs which were OK but needed regular adjustment and screamed like banshees when they got hot on long descents to hydraulic disc brakes which are so good that I need to run bigger tyres to be able to take full advantage of them.

A £500 hybrid should come with reasonable, entry level hydraulic disc brakes like Shimano M395, Tektro Gemini and at least 9 gears at the back look for Sora (road spec) or Alivio (mountain spec) derailers.

Avoid suspension, it adds weight, complexity and cost and is largely redundant on a bike specced for road use
Avoid Tourney spec components. Around the £400 mark look for Claris (road) or Altus (mountain) components.

7869hodgy

Good advice.....

I am an avid mountain biker but fancied a cheap(ish) road bike I can ride to shops/station and go for a blat on the road. Drop handle bars are a no no, so hybrid was the only choice.

The HOY Shizuoka featured in August's STUFF magazine and took my fancy and I wanted the .004 @ £900 (they start at £550) but I ended up spending £699 on a Whyte Portobello. Hyd. Disks and Sora groupset.

Most manufacturers work to similar price brackets with similar groupset quality so I'd just work out what you have to spend, what makes you like and make your choice based on that.

I got mine through the Cycle to Work scheme to so check if your company does that.

davis

garethrex wrote:

Blimey this bike milarky is a nightmare. I thought I'd have a little look around then pop out and get one, but no, there has to be millions of shiny bikes with differences that I don't understand. I wonder if anyone can help me, I cycle a lot, but up until now on a crusty old mountain bike. But as I am mostly on the road I'm think hybrid, along the lines of this thread. So far narrowed, maybe to:

Giant Roam 3 (this has v-brakes)
Merida Crossway 20 (this one has mech discs, but does that make a difference?)
Carerra Gryphon (much cheaper, but suspiciously so!)

All help and sage advice is much appreciated.

Disc brakes are much better in the rain. They're more predictable and more effective. If you're riding in all weathers, and you've only got one bike to do it, then I would get discs.

If you want one bike for everything everywhere, then I think the following matters, in approximate order of importance:

Comfort
Mudguard options (they keep the rain and muck off you and the bike, even though they do look a bit crap)
Pannier option (if you've got lots to carry, but try to leave as much as possible at work!)
Disc brakes (there's a reason MTBers use them - they work)
Weight

I'd rate suspension as totally unimportant for your intended use, and it'll add weight and complexity. I like the Carrera out of all of those, if you're still sure you want to have flat bars.

The Rookie

I ride a Hybrid, but I run very low bars and pretty much the same riding position as a road bike on hoods, and it's just as fast (or slow depending on the rider!), It's a Carrera Gryphon frame but that is all that is original.

The Voodoo Marasa is a good option, all decent parts (Hydraulic disc brakes) and if you swap the clunky Hybrid tyres for some road tyres (say 32mm) is a pretty fast bike (My Nephew has one), has rack and guard mounts, advantages over the Gryphon are
1/ Easier to fit wider tyres and mudgaurds, the Gryphon has a very narrow rear
2/ Hydraulic discs.

You certainly do not want suspension.

enisdem

jackzR wrote:

can't decide between

http://www.ashcycles.com/site/giant-rap ... beb61728be

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165534

boardman's parts are a lot better & lighter on this occasion. But you can also go ahead and buy a second hand - it is a good budget and you will be amazed there are a lot of people selling their brilliant bikes due to lack of use. 2011s - 2012s but low milage ...

ebay would be your answer my friend -

peace ...

snig

what ever you do get one that has mudguard mounts.

14 miles in wet is not fun with a wet bum and feet, it could have stopped raining but if the road is still wet, within minutes your bum and back will be wet and covered in muck.

As for drop bars, don't be talked into them, I made that mistake, returned the bike and bought a flatbar bike, I commute 14 miles a day and most of it I'm needing to be looking where I'm going and ready to stop, not crunched down at full speed, yes they also help in the wind but I prefer to be comfortable killing myself pedaling against the wind not bent over double and killing my self.

You can't really go wrong with a Boardman hybrid.

cookeeemonster

what ever you do get one that has mudguard mounts.

14 miles in wet is not fun with a wet bum and feet, it could have stopped raining but if the road is still wet, within minutes your bum and back will be wet and covered in muck.

As for drop bars, don't be talked into them, I made that mistake, returned the bike and bought a flatbar bike, I commute 14 miles a day and most of it I'm needing to be looking where I'm going and ready to stop, not crunched down at full speed, yes they also help in the wind but I prefer to be comfortable killing myself pedaling against the wind not bent over double and killing my self.

You can't really go wrong with a Boardman hybrid.

+1 to the mudguard mounts - you really need them for a commuter bike and clip on guards just dont cut it (speaking from experience).

Also speaking from experience drop bars are far better for that distance. All the above arguments are tosh (millions of threads on the subject, not gonna waste time going over them here. Suffice to say you can do your commute on either if you want. Plus my brother found the boardman hybrid pretty uncomfortable on the hands and wrists as did I, but other people dont mind them)

BSRU

I always thought it was the engine that made a bike go fast or not

cookeeemonster

BSRU wrote:

I always thought it was the engine that made a bike go fast or not

oi!!! This is a bike forum, there are very specific rules.

Rule 1. If someone alludes/implies/says nothing about wanting a new bike/toy/shiny thing, then suggest new bike.

BSRU

CookeeeMonster wrote:

BSRU wrote:

I always thought it was the engine that made a bike go fast or not

oi!!! This is a bike forum, there are very specific rules.

Rule 1. If someone alludes/implies/says nothing about wanting a new bike/toy/shiny thing, then suggest new bike.

The OP should buy a fast bike then do some comparison rides and come back here to report the results.
Of course by then it's too late, they should be thinking about the next new bike .