Genesis Equilibrium as a cross racer?

RococoTapes

What do y'all think? Could prob get away with a 32mm tyre in the rear stays, right?

Chris James

I don't know what the clearances are like, but you also need to consider tyre / brake clearances.

And it isn't just a case of whether you can fit the tyre in there, but whether you can fit the tyre and a lot of mud too.

I have two bikes with long drop dual pivots, but wouldn't even attempt to race cross on them.

bendertherobot

Disc or Rim brake? TBH you could press it into dry weather duties. Any mud, nah.

RococoTapes

Disk brake, I reckon. I don't think that there is an Equilibrium available with cantilever mounts.

Chris James

This is a bit confusing. The equilibrium is available with dual pivots or discs. Bendertherobot is asking you which bike you have got.

If you haven't actually got the bike yet, but are looking to buy a cyclocross bike then I wouldn't buy the equilibrium. the equilibrium is a road bike that could be pressed into service on bridleways and very mild off road, not ploughing through muddy fields.

For example, the chain stay length on the equilibrium is 415mm, my cross bike has 430mm

bendertherobot

Indeed. I assumed that the OP had the bike and wanted to know if he could press it into duty. As Chris said, if you've not bought it, don't. Not for CX.

Indeed, if you want to do CX "properly" then the current Genesis range isn't that great. CDF a bit heavy. CDA not a bad choice. They need a replacement for the Vapour ideally.

I wouldn't choose a "road disc" bike for CX unless it's dry and dusty.

ugo.santalucia

Doesn't have the clearance for CX tyres

tgotb

bendertherobot wrote:

I wouldn't choose a "road disc" bike for CX unless it's dry and dusty.

As an aside, I saw a guy racing a full-on road bike (in very dry conditions) last September. 23mm tyres, caliper brakes, SPD-SL pedals, the works. Don't think he was enjoying the run-ups though!

As others have said, you need a lot more than 32mm clearance to run 32mm tyres as soon as there's mud around. If you already have the bike, and want to know whether it's worth having a go at racing, go for it. But if you're buying a new bike for CX, you might aswell make things easier for yourself and get the real thing. Flashy groupsets and carbon frames are strictly optional, but decent frame clearances are not.