New Rider looking for advice on a road bike
Comments
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Good effort!
There are things you'll get used to and others you'll refine over time no doubt, see what makes you comfortable. I started doing a commute a couple of years back and wouldn't go back, I live 30 miles from the office but drive part way so I can pick the distance and have settled on about 14 miles as a readily doable every day ride, once you're used to it 8 miles will work well. I wish my downhill leg was the way home, you have the luck there.
I've tried rucksacks but don't like the feel of them swinging and sweaty back.
I've tried panniers and have them on another bike when I have loads of gear to move, but if I'm just taking a 15inch laptop or some clothes I take it in a caradice sqr tour, this keeps the luggage behind you and perhaps offers an aesthetic and aero advantage.
I'm on my third commuter bike now.
I started out with a £50 off gumtree hybrid, a calculated decision as I was going to leave it locked up at a station. I invested some time in making it work well, lower grade components aren't too bad when sensitively mainained it turns out. Comfy ride with 32mm tyres. I stopped using the train though because it was more expensive than the car and as a southern rail passenger I spent a lot of time shivering post ride on a platform. I did convert it from flat to drop bar, but it was always going to be a heavy bike and I sold it in the end.
Next was £200 used allez, I love riding that bike works very well, that's the one I use a tortec velocty rack and ortlieb panniers on. One downside is that stopping distances are terrible when it's raining heavily.
Recently I built up another bike to try and use what I've learned, so I was looking for a drop bar bike, not too heavy so I can fly along, clearance for bigger tyres, disc brakes for the wet. I ended up buying a used 2017 cannondale cyclocross bike - caadx apex1, this has 1 chainring (i.e. 11 gears total) for low maintenance and it also has hydraulic disc brakes. It came without wheels so I bought some and fitted 32mm continental 4 seasons tyres which are a decent combination of comfy and quick. I maybe would go for 28mm next time so see if they feel faster.
I wear pants, I know you're not supposed to, but it works fine for me especially on the commute and means I don't mind wearing the cycling shorts a couple of days if it's not been high effort/hot. I find I can ride 100 miles+ with pants on without discomfort.
Have fun and keep us updated how you get on.0 -
Thanks sir. I've done the usual; you know every time you buy the wood and build your own table for £35, you end up spending £350 on tools.
So over the last 2 days I picked up a backpack, mudguard, tyre-fixing kit (but no actual rubber yet), shoes, cleats, seat pack, alarm/light, some cheap clip-on rear-view mirrors from China, and a handy little thing that magnets onto anything (called a gripster or something) so you can prop your bike up for a minute.
Still need probably a bright light for in the pitch black, a water bottle (it will freeze anyway), and eventually I think I will want one of those radar lights that shows approaching vehicles from the rear.
As I say, that's my main concern; rear visibility. As a driver/racer/mechanic who sees a lot of cyclists on our country roads, it astounded me how different the experience is when you are sitting on 2 wheels with cars rushing past you.
I was also reoriented with how different it is to cutting about on a mountain bike with thick tyres, compared to a road bike. Its much much faster, and although the Specialized is widely reviewed as being super-comfy, I found it very rattly; plus the speed is incredible. I got an app and apparently at one point I went at 25mph! The speed limit in my village is 20! Its fast, noisy and not a little scary.
I think there will be a big learning curve before I become less tentative.0 -
Congrats on the new bike - the roubaix is a great road bike.
Can you take a quieter route home? Getting onto quieter roads away from the worst of the traffic can make a huge difference.0 -
Thanks for the tip on the Caradice. I bought a cheap but well-reviewed laptop bag that will hold my 17" Macbook Pro, and I am pretty sure the Henty roll bag I've got will hold my 13" Macbook Air. I've also got a Dakine rucksack that clips at the front and holds either laptop, so I'll see how I go with those.
With the Caradice does it only attach to the seat post? Its hard to tell from the pics. Its this one right:
https://www.carradice.co.uk/bags/saddle ... c-sqr-tour
Picked up a few more things last night, got a parka with LEDs in for 70% off, a brighter light, some quick light zip-tie style locks for brief stop-offs.
Going to do an evening ride tomorrow, first one was 2 so I'll try 4 miles tomorrow and test the lights and clipless shoes. Then maybe try the full 8 miles Thursday if it goes OK.
There aren't quieter roads, its very rural here. In between the roads is just fields and I've looked but there don't seem to be many cycle paths at all.
It feels to me like its more dangerous if the road is deserted for ages and then suddenly a car appears doing 60, than if you have a constant predictable stream of traffic. But we'll soon find out!0 -
Yeah getting passed a close quarters by a car moving 60mph while you're doing 10-20 is not fun. I've thought about getting mirrors but then I'm not really sure I'd know any more than my ears tell me.
Just make sure not to ride into the gutter when you hear a car approach otherwise I find it makes the driver more likely to squeeze through against oncoming traffic whether there is room or not. Hold your position.
The Carradice you linked to uses a quick release system attached to the seatpost like the linked here:
https://www.carradice.co.uk/products/sa ... econd-bike
I used one for years - works well and is really convenient to attach and the bag will probably outlive me.
I was never really sure how the other types attached which is why I avoided them.0 -
welcome to the world of cycling and empty wallets / nagging partners !!
I came back to cycling after many years and I love it !!! Trouble is there is always that bit of kit / tools / upgrades/ another bike you see and like...Which sometimes causes friction but its better than sitting on the sofa playing video games...ENJOY !!0 -
My carradice is a bit like the one you posted, I got it for £30 on a classifieds site including a spare seat-post mount. It's an older version, basically slightly slimmer and without the side pockets I think. It's been well used and has some added character but works well.
Since the below pic was taken I've changed the seat-post so I can have it higher up, avoid it being so close to the wheel.
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Huff bloody puff.
So annoyed.
My lights got lost in the post, thankfully I put a claim in and they turned up after 2 weeks.
My shoes were bought size 44 which is UK9.5, but when they came the label said EU44, UK 8.5 and they were tiny.
Found some new shoes (really cool actually, I am trying for stealth stuff that looks normal off the bike) in size 44 and they were order 10 days ago, and only arrived today.
Fitted my SPD cleats and now I find out there aren't only Road, SPD, and SPD-LT cleats but also Crank Brothers have different cleats!! So I still can't clip in.
I've been reduced to riding up and down my street like an 8-year old. At least my bum is getting used to it all.
Everybody is laughing at me cos I "need all the gear" but really what the eff am I supposed to do? Its a good bike, it was a good purchase and either I had to swap the pedals or buy proper shoes, and I chose the latter!
I need lights for the dark, I don't live in the city!
So frustrated.
But I tell you what, as soon as you swing the leg over and get moving it is a great feeling. I am still very happy and hopefully my cleats arrive tomorrow.
I will not bore you with how embarrassing it was watching about 20 Youtube videos and googling images until I finally realized my cleats just did not bloody fit.....0 -
Don't worry about it, I have a road bike with SPD-sl cleats and my commuters are on the smaller SPDs. I drive half way on my commute and bike the rest. I discovered one day trying to hop on the bike, that I only had my left shoe of one type and right of the other with me, so... I had to ride all the way in to work only clipped in with one leg and the other scraping and sliding over the pedal.0
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Finally got the Crank Brothers cleats today - according to the instructions they are meant come with short and long bolts - only long in mine. Even shimmed they were shoving up into the shoe.
So I was so annoyed I took them up to my shop and cut half length off them. Currentl waling around the house in what appears to be a solution - they clip to my pedals, I don't sound like a tap dancer.
THANK FUCK!
I don't understand why with all the info I read nobody even mentioned that CB had their own cleat style. I guess its the same as in my industry's media - you won't promote the competition, and I just got stuck in the wrong camp.
I sat in my garage for a bit and "clipped in" and I hope to actually ride a fucking bicycle tomorrow....0 -
Re the cleats - each main brand has their own style of mountain bike pedals/cleats Shimano-SPD, Cranks, Time-Atak etc But Shimano are so ubiquitous, that the term SPD is used as a catch all for the style.
The main road pedals/cleats are more more shared between Shimano's SDP-SL and Look's KEO (though, like the Cranks Bros, there are others like TIme and Speedplay) - so folks tend to use the more generic road term.
Re the rattleness of the ride - what size/brand tyres do you have and what pressure are you riding them at?0
