Advice on beginners bike please

Vimesy74

So another “Beginner seeks advice on 1st bike” thread…sorry!

A little background, I’m 43 and I haven’t really cycled for about 15 years and all that was off road on an MTB. Recently I’ve lost a fair bit of weight (still have a couple of stone to go) but I seem to have picked up the cycling bug again. So here’s the problem…

I never really cycled Road before. I have a Fuji Absolute 2.0 from almost 10 years ago which is a hybrid but I’ve never really found it to be that comfortable. I find the ride very unforgiving (23/25mm tyres maybe) especially on the country roads where I live in Wiltshire (just outside Bath). So I go to my LBS and they advise that I should be looking at something with endurance based geometry and wider tyres i.e. a gravel bike - which completely makes sense to me. They’re a Cannondale dealer so they recommended either a Synapse (endurance) or a CAADX (cyclo-cross). Again none of this is a particular surprise as I’d been looking at similar bikes like the Kona Rove.

However my main issue is that these bikes are all sitting around the £900 mark, which is a lot of money for someone like me who is just trying to find their feet in this hobby. Should I bite the bullet and spend the money? Or would I be better off going for something like a Triban 500 at a third the price (£349)? Sadly there isn’t a Decathlon in the South West so test rides aren’t really an option. Or even a Pinnicle Lacerite (£420) or Specialized Allez (£600)?

In short I’m worried I’d find the ride too harsh on a “standard” road bike but that bikes with wider tyres all seem to be the expensive option. I’m aware I’m tying myself in knots but just can’t quite decide which way I should be going. Any help would be hugely appreciated.

kajjal

The best value for money bikes tend to be from decathlon and Halfords until you get into higher price brackets. If you check on the websites it usually tells you the max tyre size the bike will take and changing tyres is easy enough. Also check for bikes at sale prices. From a traditional bike shop you tend to get a better quality of service but this does vary.

I have a gravel bike (diverge) and it takes up to 33mm tyres, the newer version even bigger tyres. It is handy as it rides well on or off road. The challenge with buying the right bike is to spend enough to get the spec you want as upgrades are normally more expensive than buying a bike of that spec in the first place.

Andymaxy

Looking back I think a beginner has two options

1. Buy a $600 or less bike. Though you may not think you want a better bike later, you almost always will, by the time this bike will become your training bike most likely. This give you the opportunity to make mistakes in terms of bike fit(very very important for road bike), without too much consequence.

2. Buy a mid/top range bike since the beginning, so you never have to buy a better bike(or at least not until your first bike is too old). If you go down this route definitely consult a bike fitter.

I went down route 1 caz I didn't know anything about cycling when I got into the sport, and I didn't want to spend too much. Looking back I ordered a bike that's probably too big, and my LBS didn't help me at all. I bought a top of the range bike two years later when I got into racing. I don't know what I'll do next.

I feel like route 2 is more cost effective in the long term, but for beginner it's a hard decision.

joe_totale-2

I'd get a Triban 540 for £640.
It can fit 32mm tyres without mudguards so you can have the chunky rubber that you want and it's a pretty capable bike with some quality components you just don't find on other bikes in the price range such as Mavic Aksium wheels and most of a 105 groupset.

If down the line you go head over heels with road cycling and buy a fancier machine then the Triban can become the winter/commuter bike, it has eyelets for mudguards and rack mounting points making it ideal for that role. The Triban is certainly a good bike mind so this shouldn't be done for a long time.

Vimesy74

Thanks all... my head is just doing with options. Just tonight I've looked at the Allez, Diverge, Contend, Defy, Synapse, CAADs, various Treks, Konas, Btwins and even a Ribble.

Guess I'm just going to have to hit the bike shops and ride everything they'll let me until I find the "one". ☺️

The Triban is certainly tempting but not sure I could buy without riding it first.

Moonbiker

Maybe you had too much air in the tyres?

e.g It may say 120 psi on sidewall but don't put that much in try 80psi

23mm tyres are fine for country roads although if buying a new bike I would choice choose a bike that could take 25mm or 28mm tyres

But 23mm it what millions of road cyclists etc have being riding for decades with no problems. No one needs gravel bike for tarmac though if you want one why not, they are nice bikes if you do want to ride gravel tracks, though I ride gravel tracks round forests sometimes on 23mm tyres & it isn't an issue.

Before you buy a new bike try sticking a pair of theese tyres on the fuji as stock tyres may be terrible cheap heavy wire bead jobs.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/vittoria-rubino ... 4066957368

If you found the fuji hybrid uncomfortable getting a road bike with a more aero/agressive position won't help unless you had the bike set up wrong or it was wrong size etc for you.

Vimesy74

Thanks Moonbiker, I'll try all those suggestions. I think my tyres are at 90psi so I'll try dropping them a bit.

I'll also drop into my LBS and see if they can help a bit with fitting. Maybe that will help.

mr_mojo

I'm a believer of buy the best you can afford. Don't believe in buying cheap because you are a beginner, you'll get the bug and want to upgrade it. Look on eBay for something a year or two old. Can pick up an excellent lightly used bike for under £1.5k. I built up a Colnago C59 with 11 speed Campagnolo Record group for about that. Looks like new and a fraction of its new cost. Just remember to buy something that fits!

dmont

Out of interest, are you buying the bike outright or through a cycle to work scheme. I only ask as I’m close to buying a £900 odd bike on cycle to work and it works out at just over £600. Which is the overall price you’re looking at.

Vimesy74

I can't use Cycle to Work I'm afraid, my with doesn't support it.

I might have done a silly thing and test rode a Cannondale CAAD12. Bloody loved it. My budget is becoming silly.

singleton

I've got a CAAD12 and am very happy - it's a superb bike.
Depending on what size you need, they are available online for under £1k with a 105 groupset which is a great buy.

Alternatively, you could consider a CAAD Optimo which is very similar to the 12 but slightly lower budget - or an older model CAAD8 which would also be a great bike.

Vimesy74

Well I've arranged to take out a Scott Speedster, a CAAD12, CAADX & a Synapse back to back in a couple of weeks so that should give me a direction to look in if nothing else. Endurance, cross or pure road.

Meanwhile I'll be making a few changes to my hybrid and just getting out on it as much as possible.

Fun times.