New bike - advice and suggestions welcome

IgorB25

Hi All,

New to the forum. The main reason being that I am in the market for a new bike. I have a limited amount of knowledge around bikes but am by no means an expert. I will admit that I get a bit overwhelmed by the array of kit and options out there.

I've had my old entry level road bike for nearly 7 years now, and used it mainly for commuting and leisurely rides out and about. Speed, relative to other riders, was therefore never an issue. I recently took part in a triathlon with a friend who had a very nice looking bike (perhaps from my inexperienced perspective) called a Dolan L'Etape (sp?). Despite my best efforts it was clear that my bike was not up to it compared to everyone else. It felt like a fight most of the way through, conditions were also awful but that was the same for everyone, and following that got chatting to a couple of people to see if upgrading the bike would really make that much difference. They all seemed to agree that it makes a big difference, like moving from a MTB to a road bike, for the same effort you'll just get so much more out of it etc etc.

I can get on board with all that, and so I've got myself a budget of up to 1500, however that is not to say I'm going to spend that. If the best bike is less I'll happily pay less and spend that money on something else. Beer, perhaps. I've done a lot of looking around online and there is plenty of choice, plenty of bikes that by and large get good reviews. I wanted to ask the experts though, that being the good folk of the cycling community. As I say I have my old bike for commuting and donkey work, so this is very much focused on getting better performance in triathlon and cycle events.

I understand its not a tremendous budget in road biking terms but its the one I have, so please give me your honest thoughts.

Should I look towards a more aero type? Or would that make relatively little difference compared to other more worthwhile component upgrades like wheels and groupsets?

Sorry for the long winded waffle but I thought the more you know, the better advice you can give.

Thanks

sloppyschleckonds

Welcome, TLDR

supermurph09

Welcome to the forum.

£1,500 will buy you a lot of bike, but I agree the choice can be a bit overwhelming.

Whatever you buy needs to fit so make sure above else you get that bit right. Not sure where you are based but Cycledivsion have a nice range of Scott and Cannondales that can be had for your budget:

https://www.cycledivision.co.uk/product ... rbon-bikes

I'm a big fan of Canyon and I'd be surprised if you can get more for your money than they offer. It's mail order only but IMO worth it. (I have an Ultimate and a Speedmax).

https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/ultim ... l-7-0.html

Alternatively a decent place to look is the Bike Radar bike of the year articles, if nothing else they have a big range of the contenders that might help you whittle things down.


https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/endur ... f-7-0.html

Also have a look in the "Your Road Bikes" section of the forum.

keef66

Once you get to round about £600 for a bike, it's diminishing returns. Spending more you'll get lighter, possibly more aero, maybe longer lasting kit, but it's a lot of money for little benefit. Triathletes are buggers for spending thousands on kit.

If your sole objective is to ride faster in triathlons, get a reasonable mid range bike of the correct size and have it fitted properly so you can ride comfortably in an aerodynamic position. Any money left over consider spending it on a coach / training plan and stick to it.

trek_dan

If you want to get a decent aero position for Tri but stick with a conventional road bike then the Giant Propel seems to a good half way house.

daddy0

IgorB25 wrote:

...so this is very much focused on getting better performance in triathlon and cycle events.

I've just been looking into some of this both for myself and a friend.

So work out if you need a road bike, or a TT bike. You can use a road bike in sportives, road and crit races and club runs - you can't use a TT bike for these.

If you don't have one buy an aero helmet. You'll go faster.

If you decide on a road bike you can get clip on TT bars which you should definitely get too for triathlons and TTs.

If you really want to take it seriously then get a power meter. Its tempting to get "the nicest bike" you can for you budget, but if you use a power meter you'll be able to pace yourself much better and maximise your performance.

BTW- this all assumes you have an Ant+ computer and already own some decent shoes?

Suggestions:
I have never ridden on of these, but during the Prudential Ride London I rode with a chap who was on one of these, and he seemed to be getting on OK (he dropped me in the final few KMs and finished in just over 4 hours):
http://www.wiggle.com/eastway-emitter-r3-105-2016/
£935

https://www.evanscycles.com/4iiii-precision-power-meter-shimano-105-5800-EV273962
£349

https://www.evanscycles.com/bell-javelin-aero-time-trial-helmet-EV274486
£75

http://www.wiggle.com/deda-parabolica-alloy-clip-on-aerobars/
£45

Total £1404 - remember you'll still need pedals, bottle cages etc....

IgorB25

Thanks for the cracking feedback folks. I'm now going to float through all those links and read up on the bikes you've recommended :-)

I'll say that I do not want a TT bike, Im certainly not looking to delve into the all gear no idea area of amateur sport.

Although I'm looking for something that can perform well at sportives or in a triatlhon I'd still like to take it out for a spin on nice days and such. I rarely ride over 60 miles at once so I do not need anything that is designed primarily for super long periods in the saddle.

What sort of equipment should I be looking at in terms of groupset, wheels and so on? Would I be better off going the extra mile in one of these areas rather than frame?

trek_dan

Group sets wear out, a good frame could last a lifetime. Always worth getting the best frame you can afford and changing other stuff as it wears out.

Coley10

Just purchased my first bike. It's dedacciai scuro hcr frame with arsis carbon microshift. The bike is second hand so intend on taking to local shop to get it checked. Any feedback on frame and gears would be gratefully appreciated

kubeism

There's a Giant Defy advanced at Triton on sale. Looks a great frame but by the time you add hydraulics and 105 minimum, I think I'd rather try to find the money to buy one with all that included.

thepeginator

1. I can't stress this enough, buy a bike that fits.. if you've only ever owned one bike and don't know the ins and outs of geometry or exactly what you need go to a shop and get sized for a bike, that doesn't mean you have to buy a bike from there, any good shop with the right attitude will happily size you for a bike and not necessarily expect you to buy one from them. You can't just buy a bike based on your height, that's like buying a bike based on your shoe size. If it doesn't fit, you won't be comfortable and you won't want to ride it.

2. Most of the money should be in the frame. Most other bits on a bike either wear out or can be easily swapped and most stock wheels on bikes are cheap and heavy. Invest in a quality frame and make a decent set of wheels your first upgrade.

3. If you're not arsed about buying new there's a lot of mental bargains on second hand bikes as long as you know what size/geometry you need. If you don't, refer to point 1.

With regards to power meters, they are a good training tool if you know how to use them but they're far from essential - plenty of seriously class riders never use them, they're also expensive so probably wait until you're sure you are going to make use of it before buying one - walk before you can run and all that.

Along with that, you don't need gear to be competitive, case in point; http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/and ... bike-29431 - he rides that bike for everything, club runs, Sportives and it's his race bike, he even has a rack panniers on it half the time!

TL:DR
Most important, buy a bike that fits, ideally get sized/fitted by a good shop. Get the best frame you can afford, other bits can be upgraded later.

supermurph09

trek_dan wrote:

Group sets wear out, a good frame could last a lifetime. Always worth getting the best frame you can afford and changing other stuff as it wears out.

I understand what you are saying but realistically not everyone hangs on to every bike they own, most people who are buying their 1st or 2nd bikes will want to upgrade the whole lot and get a new bike within 1-3 years? Admittedly that might not be possible but I'd rather have a slightly poorer frame and better contact points to see me through that period.

After that I've most likely built up experience of knowing exactly what I want and can purchase confidently.

thepeginator

^ If you buy the right bike you won't need to change it. Better off buying a quality frame and upgrading other parts as you go. The parts that come off can always then go onto another bike.

It's a lot more economical to buy the right bike first time.

supermurph09

thepeginator wrote:

^ If you buy the right bike you won't need to change it. Better off buying a quality frame and upgrading other parts as you go. The parts that come off can always then go onto another bike.

It's a lot more economical to buy the right bike first time.

"Won't need to change", correct, but more likely you'll want to change once you first start out. I'd then wager people hang on to bikes a bit longer, usually because they have paid more or because they now have a couple of bikes in rotation.

I started riding nearly 5 years ago. I bought my first bike (Spec Allez) for £550 via C2W, I had that for 5 months and sold that on for a Cube Agree GTC Race for £1,300. In my opinion that was at least twice the bike so a worthwhile upgrade. I then sold the Cube 12 months later and now have a Canyon Ultimate which was £1,850. Again twice the bike for less than twice the cost. I've had it close to 3 years. I'd say this was typical for new starters?

fenix

I think the frame thing is a bit outdated now.

They change the standards so often now that your frame will get outdated.

It was relevant back in the days of steel and 531 frames that would last a lifetime - but now it's a consumer society and carbon is cheap.

Any road bike over £500 or so should be pretty decent.
Aero road frames are more marketing than anything measurable.
If you want to TT then you can get a decent TT bike for under a grand.
If you dont want to spend that much then get a decent tight suit and an aero helmet, tribars and a wheel cover.

darkhairedlord

don't worry about getting a TT bike or such like for the odd tri, Where you finish only matters when money is involved.

drlodge

Fenix wrote:

They change the standards so often now that your frame will get outdated.

It was relevant back in the days of steel and 531 frames that would last a lifetime - but now it's a consumer society and carbon is cheap.

I regard this as nonsense. A frame will always perform as well as it has performed, it won't get outdated like a mobile phone does. Invest in a bike with a decent frame and there's no reason why the frame shouldn't last a long long time, unless of course you want an even better frame.

Yes the price of carbon has come down and the raw materials may be cheap but frames are not.

thepeginator

^ What he said. You could buy a Canyon Ultimate CF for £1500 with change, in 5 years or even 10 years that's still going to be a quality carbon frame. You could also probably buy 4 carbon frames from ebay for that but they're never going to be the same bike the Canyon would be.

mfin

Good shout on the Canyons ...if you know what will fit. Note, when people are saying about bike fit they don't mean "pick a bike you like then decide which of the sizes they sell that you need", sometimes it is more complex than that.

https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/ultimate/ultimate-cf-sl-9-0.html for £1849
This has Ultegra and better wheels.

https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/ultimate/2016/ultimate-cf-sl-7-0.html for £1349
This has 105 and entry level wheels. You could later get some Campagnolo Zondas (available for Shimano) for £250-£275 when the deals are right.

There are plenty of options out there though, Canyon is just one but these frames are quite well respected if they fit you.

So... shop around and see what catches your eye!

Here's another example of a well respected frame where the wheels are entry level and same applies, you could upgrade later. http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b65s6p6621/CANNONDALE-SUPERSIX-EVO-ULTEGRA-2016 ...the fit on these is normally better if you want it or can have it lower at the front.

Remember as said before, £1500 can get you something second hand that was twice that or more when new, sometimes hardly used too.