First ever road bike on order..b'twin triban 500 few q's?

rhysyd

So, just ordered my first ever road bike a b'twin Triban 500 SE Read very good reviews on bikeradar and other websites. I am a regular mtb'ing and am very exicted on testing it out on the roads!

Any tips on starting out?
For the first few outings ill try to get out early as possible so the roads arent as busy build my confidence up. Is there any particular roads i should stay away from? Or any other hints or tips when it comes to road biking?

Thanks
Rhys

Mark909

I was in a similar situation to you 4 weeks ago having been mountain biking for 20 years.

Big shocks are going to be poor brakes, no grip with tyres (watch out for freshly mown grass!), less stability due to handle bars lack of width, brake shifters sure are interesting, and potholes, lots and lots of potholes. Oh how you will miss suspension. Also when turning the tyres actually extend past your feet so can cause you to crash if you don't keep one foot down and one foot up. Oh and the gears. You know your granny ring? None of that. Different gearing makes riding up hills on a racer interesting but it certainly gets you fit. An advantage of this is that I can now climb hills on my mtb like never before.

On the roads people would rather kill you than they arrive at their destination 5 seconds later. You are the lowest of the low. As soon as people see you they feel the need to overtake even when you're going 30 in a 30, Double decker buses will pass you with a foot to spare. Pedestrians walk out in front of you on the road and don't take the slightest notice of cycles lanes. Keep back at junctions as there is a good chance that truck hasn't seen you and is going to turn and catch you under it's back wheels. Other cyclists are dicks jumping through red lights, riding like an idiot and swearing at people thinking they are safe like in their car and generally making everyone hate cyclists like you.

Apart from all that I'm loving the commute to work. Nothing like the adrenaline rush of brushing with death every morning to wake you up.

Check out Sustrans. They have a cycle map you can use to plan your journeys using as many cycle lanes as possible. They have signposted routes along quiet roads which seem to be the best routes to take.

rhysyd

Cheers mark! If anything im looking forward to ir is going faster up hills when im back on the mtb!

daniel_b

I went through this about 7 years ago, my first roadbike was a Felt F70 - which I still have.

My bro bought a Triban 3 Red for his gf last year, and that is a superb bike, so the 500 will be a fantastic bike for the cash I would wager.

Anyway, I digress - my first few rides on flat pedals were fast, but also fairly unstable - the 'narrow' 44cm bars, although at the time were actually too wide but I didn't realise (I now ride 40's) seemed very twitchy to me, and I struggled to take a hand off them!

Going up hills was a revelation though, as was the seemingly effortless (compared to an MTB on the road) of pickig up speed, and accelerating.
Just to add here, I don't love my MTB any less, I enjoy both disciplines, and to me both provide different thrills.

Within a short space of time I had converted to SPD pedals and shoes (Spd so I can kind of walk in the shoes reasonably well, and carbon soles so they are rock solid) and fell off probably 4 times, all at low speed, but the 'unclip' automatic reaction, that I liken to the instinctive reaction of dipping the clutch in a car, is now hard coded - famous last words.

Then the slippery slope of apparel begins, there are many jerseys, bib shorts and SHOES out there looking for your cash!

ENJOY!

juanerasmoe

If it rains or if the road is wet, STAY AWAY FROM ROAD PAINT. It gets VERY slipery when wet.

arran77

The only things you need to know are;

1. Smile / wave / say hello to all other cyclists.
2. Helmets are the law.
3. Red lights and other road regulations only apply to cars.
4. Getting KOM on Strava is all that matters.

:P

Oh and just have fun btw