First Race with Specialized Tricross Sport?

jhillis
jhillis Posts: 2
edited July 2014 in Amateur race
I have just started getting into biking and purchased a Specialized Tricross Sport for my commute to work (~15 miles) a couple months ago. I just registered for a local race coming up in 2 months with a distance of about 28 miles.

My question is: Should I use my Tricross in this race, or should I seriously consider getting a dedicated road bike? Am I going to look ridiculous racing with my commuter bike? If I should get a second bike, does anyone have any recommendations?

Thanks in advance.

Comments

  • jgsi
    jgsi Posts: 5,062
    A few years back, raced with a Tricross. As long as your setup is race ready you should be fine. Whats the worse that can happen.. a DNF? welcome to that club .... most of us have been there.
  • milese
    milese Posts: 1,233
    So long as you have slick tyres you'll be fine and it will make a minimal difference.

    You'd look more ridiculous getting dropped on a Cervelo S5. Dont let the marketing hype get you, as it has gotton most of us at some stage.
  • damocles10
    damocles10 Posts: 340
    Looks fine to me...what gears are you using? that would be my main concern as a full on sprint or chase would, possibly, require 53 on the front and an 11 on the back.

    If you feel strong then race and forget what other people think.
  • ollie51
    ollie51 Posts: 517
    Is it the disc model, if so, you cannot race using disc brakes!
  • milese
    milese Posts: 1,233
    damocles10 wrote:
    Looks fine to me...what gears are you using? that would be my main concern as a full on sprint or chase would, possibly, require 53 on the front and an 11 on the back.

    I won a 2/3/4 crit in a sprint against a good field of ~35 with 50 x 11 (with an alloy frame and 32 spoke open pro).

    I think its only a problem if you have a downhill sprint, which is probably unlikely.
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 40,452
    damocles10 wrote:
    Looks fine to me...what gears are you using? that would be my main concern as a full on sprint or chase would, possibly, require 53 on the front and an 11 on the back.

    If you feel strong then race and forget what other people think.

    I've never in over 20 years used a bigger gear than 52 x 12 and the bulk of my serious racing was with a maximum 52 x 13. 11t sprockets have only been common for a few years.
  • ratsbeyfus
    ratsbeyfus Posts: 2,841
    I did a crit a while back on my commuter/x-bike as my road bike was broken. The problem I found was that the brakes weren't sharp enough to allow me to confidently go full pelt downhill towards a crucial sharp bend and I ended up falling further and further back on the corner in which at previous races I had made up places. Pretty quickly ended up as a DNF. Just make sure your brakes are really well set up. Agree with the above comments as well - very unlikely you'll need an 11t sprocket.

    I had one of them red bikes but I don't any more. Sad face.

    @ratsbey
  • damocles10
    damocles10 Posts: 340
    OK, I see, perhaps a 11t is overkill for your first race, you might not use it as it can be a tough one to push without a lot of training, but, it's worth considering as you develop and get stronger. If everyone else is running lower gear ratios and you have the power you can make a significant jump on a 53/11...Just saying ;)

    And obviously you need to have gear options open for different race types ( technical corners, big hills, fast crits ). In my experience the 11th will give you that extra kick if you intend to break away.....I don't race anymore but I still train and can go fast.
  • Agent57
    Agent57 Posts: 2,300
    Take the rack and mudguards off though.
    MTB commuter / 531c commuter / CR1 Team 2009 / RockHopper Pro Disc / 10 mile PB: 25:52 (Jun 2014)

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