Wife new to cycling - considering the B'Twin Alur 700?

Raker

Hey guys.

My wife is looking to get into road cycling in lieu of a sprint tri in April next year. We've been drawn towards the B'win Alur 700 which seems kind of ideal in many ways in terms of frame, riding position and groupset. She's 5'3" which would put her on an XS frame. 2 questions really:

1. Has anyone got any experience with B'Twin or the Alur itself?
2. I wouldn't be able to get to the store - is buying blind a bad idea?

Thanks for reading!

Simon.

bagz3

I bought my first bike blind, and had little problems with it. Maybe the reach was a bit too much, but i could have got a new stem to sort that, but couldn't really be bothered. Stuck with it for 4 years and it's now my winter bike. I did buy a Cannondale though, which are kind of tried and tested with plenty of info on them available online.

Raker

Thanks for the reply. There's a detailed spec sheet with dimensions which is helpful and seems accurate?

manticore

Hi there

I have the B@Twin Alur 700 with the 105 group set, brilliant bike can't really fault it.

Really pleased with it, fantastic spec for the money. I'd have to say go down to Decathlon and try one out.

Don't think you'll be disappointed

Regards
Keith W

daniel_b

All I would say to check, if it bothers you, is if the wheels are 700c, as on the Triban 300 Red, the 48 and 51 both came with 650c wheels, and it wasn't until the 54 that 700's came into play.

Cracking bike for £500 though, the groupset cost me £350 alone two years ago!

97th choice

Excellent bike, and a steal at that price.

lakesluddite

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19671509#p19671509]97th choice[/url] wrote:

Excellent bike, and a steal at that price.

Have to agree, £500 for Shim 105 and a carbon fork is a reet bargain. Saying that, not sure about the BB mounted rear brake - I bet that's a real pain to maintain.

Good point about the differences in wheel size as well - maybe worth giving them a call as some models have 650's on smaller sizes, whereas other models have 700 throughout the size range (I can't see a mention of the Alur wheel size on the Decathlon size guide, which may indicate 700 throughout).