Newbie Charity ride Advice

TFC1

Afternoon all, hopefully I will be able to get some good avice from you friendly bunch!

I am a total newbie to road riding and have just signed up to do a charity ride next year. It is 450 miles in 5 days in europe with some climbs involved apprently :shock: .

so far i have done a bit of mountain biking, mainly traails round Epping forest and would say i am medium fitness. I took my hardtail out on the road on sunday and did 40 miles in 3 hours with a few hills in there and loved it!

I have about 8 months to train and get ready and will be buying a road bike soon. Budget probably £1k and would be grateful for any advice on bike suggestions (i am 6ft tall and just under 15stone. I expect to shed c 1 stone as part of the training) and any ideas for how to ramp up the training programme!

many thanks

simonhead

Are you supported or unsupported?

arran77

simonhead wrote:

Are you supported or unsupported?

Yes, this is important, if you are lugging 5 days of kit yourself and camping allowing the way then something more along the lines of a touring bike would suit more but if you have support and are staying in hotels etc the advice will be very different.

Give us a bit more info and people can advise accordingly

rubertoe

Simon and Arran are right,

This is a vitally important question and will have a big difference on the bikes suggested. If supported you can go for something a bit more aggressive as you wont be lugging a load, unsupported and your into the world of racks and luggage (and possibly even triples) and a more relaxed geometry.

TFC1

Supported... thankfully!

TFC1

And hotels rather than camping, again thankfully. \nothing too hardcore for me!

arran77

Right that makes things more straight forward then, the stock answer is generally to look at the likes of Planet X who have some great spec'd bikes for £1000 straight off the peg as it were, you'll get a carbon frame and lots of Ultegra kit, or if you want a bit more freedom to choose what you want then look to Ribble, again lots of options for £1000

simonhead

That puts it into perspective, you can then look for a road bike rather than a tourer. You need to find something that will be comfortable for 8 hours in the saddle a few days on the trot. I would try a few different ones and go for what feels right.

Regarding training it's all about miles on the bike. About a month before I would aim to do 2 hilly 100 miles at a good pace, it's one thing doing a long day on the bike but another doing it again the next day.

TFC1

Thanks for that, everyone i have spoken to has told me that it is doing it more than one day on the trot which is the really tough part and plan to do plenty of rides on both days at the weekend to get used to it. Currently excited and a bit apprehensive!

As a Sheffield lad originally I like the idea of the Planet X so might pop in next time i am back home.

rubertoe

Get a bike that fits and then its a case of miles, miles and more miles.

TFC1

Having done a bit of reasearch the two that look like the best ones to try are the Giant Defy 1 and the Planet X Pro Carbon Shimano Ultegra

Any thoughts on which is better (subject to both feeling good when trying them).

thanks

arran77

Totally different animals really, the Giant is an aluminium frame with Shimano 105 components, the Planet X is a carbon frame with Shimano Ultegra components (mainly).

Personally out of the two I would go for the Planet X but you really need to ride both and see what feels best for you

g00se

As it's your first road bike, it's best to try them out and get some advice from a decent shop. Buying blind online could leave you with a bike you hate. Tell the shop what you're doing so they can advise.

For that sort of distance and climbs, I would say you would be looking for a light bike with more relaxed geometry than a head-down racer. The Planet X one does look appropriate for what you need - but try it out and others.

MickTheMove

Just get lots of hours in the saddle on the road, not in a gym! A pal thought he could do London Paris after doing loads of spinning classes and sitting on a gym bike, he did very little road training and now has a black and blue rear end and looks a broken man!

Last heard him mumbling about hills and headwinds

Loads of training and enjoy yourself

MichaelW

You need to train over the winter, building up a base of long, slow rides. Commuting to work is a useful way of fitting in the mileage.
Consider the tyre clearance that you will need for a winter bike and also whether you want bolt-on mudguards. These require threaded eyelets. People squeeze clip-on mudguards to their racing bikes but you are not racing.

Gears come in 3 types:
traditional racing double chainset (39/53 teeth)
compact double (~34/50)
road triple (~30/40/50)

Pick one suitable for your worst case scenario.

Ribble, Dolan and possibly Tifosi, Hewett and Pearson do a carbon sportive bike with practical features.

These are all basically shop/sticker brands building up very similar style Chinese carbon frame at a good price.

TFC1

Thanks Guys. All really good advice. Tried a Giant Defy1 this week and it didn't feel that comfy so off to try the PX this weekend. Hopefully i will order it there and then!

at the moment working on running and exercise bike in the week and one long ride each weekend and will step it up when i get the road bike.

Cant wait to finally acquire the new toy. Could be a way of filling in the other 11 months of the year with a boys toy whilst waiting for the ski season!!!!!

g00se

Give it 12 months, and you'll be looking for flights to the alps when there's no snow...

TFC1

Tried that a few years ago on a summer trip for downhill MTB and golf! I can see it happening more often!

B5NGV

Committing to doing the miles and not letting the voices in your head find reasons to skip on your plan. If you sort out a plan for your self and there are loads available after a google search it is more about sticking to them. I like the sound of what you are doing, what charity are you riding for and I wish you all the best on your adventure?

GT Destroyer

here it is.

I trained quite hard for my 500 in 5, and didn't find the repetitive 100 miles that difficult. You'll have seen my rides on strava already anyway probably. If you've a decent level of basic fitness, and some experience biking before, then I don't think you will find it that hard to be honest, I didn't really. What are the local weather conditions like where you are riding the 450 miles, am really meaning wind. Wind was the biggest part of my training, and riding, if it windless or behind you, it feels awesome, if its a headwind, its a nightmare.

Lycra Man

I agree with the advice above re bike choice. Personally for a 450 miles in 5 days I would go for a relaxed frame to ensure comfort.
My recommendation for training is to start riding Audax events. They are held all over the UK, every weekend, and you can start with 50km, 100km, or 200km events, and build up from there. They are not races, so you WILL build long distance fitness, and make friends, and have fun on a bike.
Enjoy!
Lycra Man