Hi all. Newbie here with a few questions.

amaru

Hi my name is Paul from notts. I have bought a Carrera Virtuoso 2015 model today. Unfortunately the weather is terrible so not had any chance to get out on bike.

So while i am stuck staring at bike i have a few questions.

How good are road bikes in wet weather? more wet ground rather than the 3" of rain we have had.
As i am a complete novice with road bikes, i opted to not buy shoes. Will it ruin the experience of learning?
Stock tyre is the Kenda K191 tyres, Are they any good or will it be a case of stock tyre = average at best?

Have not bought a lock yet as it won't be left anywhere other than home. Partly because i am unsure on which lock?

Anyway hopefully i will get the cycling bug and thank you for looking.

imposter2.0

You plan on riding without shoes?

amaru

Yes i thought it would save weight

I meant i never bought any proper cycling shoes. Will just use some trainers for now while i am learning

bob6397

Road bikes are mostly fine in wet weather - but as ever rim brake performance is appalling, and add in the low-grip tires (not specific to you, just the nature of treadless thin tires) and it can be quite hard not to lock up!!

In terms of a lock, a good d-lock (abus or kryptonite are good - but expect to pay around £50-£70 for a good one.)
buy with a long cable with a loop on both ends for running around the bike through wheels etc to secure everything on your bike if you are likely to leave it in medium-high crime areas

I have no experience with the tyre but i suspect that it wont have very good puncture protection - buying some conti gp4000s or similar would be a good idea once they wear out.

The shoes you can learn without, but i switched early after i got mine (a couple of days later) and the difference was night and day. I then went straight out (as my 2nd ever ride on cleats) on a 3 day 138 mile ride with a friend and i was happy as i could be when i got to the end. chuck yourself in and then enjoy the experience would be my advice. If you are unsure as to which ones to get, or are worried about the cost of all this, get some cheap shimano pd-m520 (http://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-pd-m520-pedals/) or pd-a520 pedals (http://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-pd-a520-touring-pedals/) and some cheap (£35 ish) mtb shoes (these are much easier to walk in and only snobs will say that you're doing it wrong. this works well for a lot of people)

bob6397

imposter2.0

bob6397 wrote:

, and add in the low-grip tires (not specific to you, just the nature of treadless thin tires)

Nothing wrong with 'treadless' tyres on tarmac. Most road tyres are slick for a reason. Obviously tread is useful off road, but not much use on it.

bob6397

I was simply enunciating the difference between mtb and road tires.. I agree that tread is pretty much pointless as it does increase drag. the downside of this is that it decreases grip - such as when braking, when you want as much grip as you can get

imposter2.0

bob6397 wrote:

I was simply enunciating the difference between mtb and road tires.. I agree that tread is pretty much pointless as it does increase drag. the downside of this is that it decreases grip - such as when braking, when you want as much grip as you can get

er, right. It's just that earier, you seemed to be equating a lack of grip on road tyres to a lack of tread - which is obviously not the case.

bob6397

Imposter wrote:

equating a lack of grip on road tyres to a lack of tread.

and yet mtb tires, which are definitely grippier than road tires, seem to have quite a lot tread on them.. having no tread does not equal no grip, but having tread on your tires does increase grip over slicks.

slicks are pretty much perfect for road riding but there is less grip there compared to mtb tires and this could catch a beginner out if they are used to a mtb - i know it did for me when i got my roadie a year ago now.

imposter2.0

bob6397 wrote:

Imposter wrote:

equating a lack of grip on road tyres to a lack of tread.

and yet mtb tires, which are definitely grippier than road tires, seem to have quite a lot tread on them.. having no tread does not equal no grip, but having tread on your tires does increase grip over slicks.

slicks are pretty much perfect for road riding but there is less grip there compared to mtb tires and this could catch a beginner out if they are used to a mtb - i know it did for me when i got my roadie a year ago now.

I have no idea what you are talking about. The OP has just bought a road bike - ie a bike designed and intended for road use. Nobody mentioned MTBs except you, so the comparison between - and relative merits of - MTB and road tyres is rather absurd.

Tread on tyres is largely irrelevant for road use.

bob6397

I was only using the mtb as a point of reference. ignore it if it makes you happier.

I agree that tread on tires is mostly pointless for road use, but you do have to be careful when braking hard on a road bike that you don't lock up due to this. I was just trying to make sure that the OP didn't get caught out when he gets out on his bike.

bob6397

amaru

Thanks to everyone for the replies. I went out last night as it did dry up quite good. Only did a short 5 mile ride, mainly flat with a few steady climbs. One thing i did notice on the flats is that i can out peddle highest gear. Although it is not a major concern as it was first time and going a short distance, also i probably pushed myself too hard.

As for the tyre, well as i am only learning i will try and stay in the dry. More a question for if it rained while out. Rather upgrade than get caught out.

My trainers did slip off pedal twice so think i will invest in some decent shoes.

Thanks again

simon_masterson

You would not be the only beginner to find that with gearing. The problem is that you aren't yet accustomed to the necessary pedalling speed (cadence) for road cycling. A good place to start is to use a gearing calculator (e.g. Sheldon Brown's) - pick a gear on your bike that you're comfortable on, and calculate what speed you should be doing for 80-100rpm. That assumes you have a cycle computer - if you don't, get a CatEye or Sigma for <£20.

sungod

amaru wrote:

Thanks to everyone for the replies. I went out last night as it did dry up quite good. Only did a short 5 mile ride, mainly flat with a few steady climbs. One thing i did notice on the flats is that i can out peddle highest gear. Although it is not a major concern as it was first time and going a short distance, also i probably pushed myself too hard.

As for the tyre, well as i am only learning i will try and stay in the dry. More a question for if it rained while out. Rather upgrade than get caught out.

My trainers did slip off pedal twice so think i will invest in some decent shoes.

Thanks again

as above it's unlikely that you can out-pedal highest gear, more that you can't pedal any faster

for a road bike, slick tyres have the best grip on the road including in wet conditions, they are far too narrow to aquaplane, tyres with tread will be worse, the chunkier the tread the worse the performance on smooth roads

the tyre compound makes a difference, generic tyres may be a bit slippier, conti's black chili compound (for instance gp4000s tyres) is excellent in the wet

braking in the wet can be poor until the pads have cleared water from the rims, then it's ok, try to anticipate the possible need to brake and use the pads to skim the rims clear, this is also an area where compound makes a big difference, generic pads can be mediocre, swissstop pads are among the best

take it easy while you develop experience/technique, you'll be fine

imho biggest risks in the wet are...

potholes/debris hidden under the water
wet metal manhole/drain covers, they can be incredibly slippery

navrig2

bob6397 wrote:

I was only using the mtb as a point of reference. ignore it if it makes you happier.

I agree that tread on tires is mostly pointless for road use, but you do have to be careful when braking hard on a road bike that you don't lock up due to this. I was just trying to make sure that the OP didn't get caught out when he gets out on his bike.

bob6397

The locking up has nothing to do with the lack of tread on road tyres.

markhewitt1978

bob6397 wrote:

and yet mtb tires, which are definitely grippier than road tires, seem to have quite a lot tread on them.. having no tread does not equal no grip, but having tread on your tires does increase grip over slicks.

slicks are pretty much perfect for road riding but there is less grip there compared to mtb tires and this could catch a beginner out if they are used to a mtb - i know it did for me when i got my roadie a year ago now.

That's not true at all. On the road grip is entirely proportional to the amount of tyre in contact with the surface. With tread or knobbles on the tyre the amount of surface contact is reduced so treaded tyres will actually have less grip, including in the rain.

Mountain bikes have treaded and knobbly tyres so they can dig into loose and soft surfaces and use that to provide forward traction, on the road they can't push into the surface so they are a hindrance rather than a help.

navrig2

markhewitt1978 wrote:

bob6397 wrote:

and yet mtb tires, which are definitely grippier than road tires, seem to have quite a lot tread on them.. having no tread does not equal no grip, but having tread on your tires does increase grip over slicks.

slicks are pretty much perfect for road riding but there is less grip there compared to mtb tires and this could catch a beginner out if they are used to a mtb - i know it did for me when i got my roadie a year ago now.

That's not true at all. On the road grip is entirely proportional to the amount of tyre in contact with the surface. With tread or knobbles on the tyre the amount of surface contact is reduced so treaded tyres will actually have less grip, including in the rain.

Mountain bikes have treaded and knobbly tyres so they can dig into loose and soft surfaces and use that to provide forward traction, on the road they can't push into the surface so they are a hindrance rather than a help.

+1

The reason for tread on car and motorbikes is purely to displace water and avoid aquaplaning. If we could guarantee dry roads then we would drive on slicks, just like an F1 car does (I wonder why?).

Vladimir2007

I am getting a Virtuoso from Halfords in a few weeks' time as well

I think I will almost immediately upgrade the tyres to 25mm ones. There's some very cheap Vittoria ones to be found online. Depending on how much clearance there is - I will in fact consider going up to 28mm up front, to act as a shock absorber.

Locks - I would recommend a Kryptonite New York or Fahgedaboutit [sp]. Both of these can be found for a reasonable price on amazon. If you go to an LBS, you may be overpaying to the tune of £30 on the locks I mentioned.

bob6397

Navrig2 wrote:

just like an F1 car does (I wonder why?).

And if you watch F1 enough you will remember that when they went to slicks the lap times went up - and this wasn't just because of the change in compound/aero changes.

I agree with everything that has been said. I must have just failed to explain myself in a sufficiently pedantic manner earlier on.

bob6397