A big bloke new to cycling - any advice

[Paul Moran]

Hey all,

Looks like a decent forum so I thought I would pose a question hoping for some good advice......
Im a 22 stone rugby player standing at 6'3 tall, and recently retired. Im looking to maintain the exercise however, and have purchased a Carrera Crossfire 3 Hybrid from Halfords.

Now, I have some reservation about my size, build and weight, but was notably advised from the guys at Halfords, that purchasing a hybrid was a good choice and I am worrying about nothing. I am using the bike for mainly road riding back and forward to work (approx 6 mile round trip) and some weekend leisure riding down the seafront.

Can anyone reassure me that I have made a half decent choice in bike, and that im being over-dramatic about my size and weight. I was over 24 stone about 6 weeks ago, and intend for the weight to keep dropping off.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[MikeG]

Welcome to the forum, Paul. And you're right, this is a decent forum.

I don't know the bike, but do know that the lighter you are, the easier cycling is. If you get into it, cycling will give you a great incentive to shed those pounds.

 

[ianrauk]

Check out THIS thread about the 40 stone cyclist and his amazing cycling/weight loss journey.

 

[ShipHill]

Hi Paul

I work with a guy who is a similar height and build to yourself and he also has a Carrera hybrid.

He cycles about 12 miles to work once or twice a week in the summer months and the only problems I've known him have are a few broken spokes in the back wheel. Apparently they always break the sprocket side spokes too and he's got the art of spoke changing down to a fine art.

Your ride to work is a nice distance and I'm sure you'll toughen up in no time. Watch your back wheel spokes though.

 

[Matt-g]

From my experience, the carrera range are pretty tough, about as tough as it gets. I've got a mountain bike and a road bike. I've had the mountain bike since the early nineties and it's withstood loads of hard knocks and never let me down. I've only ever had to change service items....tubes, tyres, brake blocks etc.

They aren't the lightest of machines, but they are very sturdy.

In terms of the road bike, it's much lighter....and as a result I doubt it will endure anything like the hammering I've given the mountain bike, but then again, it's not designed to.

As you have bought it new, there's always the warranty to fall back upon in the unlikely event that something fails.(I'm 6' tall and weigh 18 stone, if you want to draw any comparisons)

 

[Easytigers]

Just keep at it mate and enjoy...the weight will roll off and you'll have a fantastic time on the way! A few months in, you'll know you've got the bug and will start eyeing road bikes!

 

[Paul Moran]

Thanks for the advice guys. Unfortunatley, the Halfords deal fell through, so I have now purchased a 2014 Forme Peak Trail 1. Has anyone got any reviews for the bike. Would be greatly appreciated!

 

[wisdom]

You'll be fine with the carerra as they are tough bikes.must have been a forward with those statistics.Which club did you play for?.Sorry slightly off thread I know.
oh and welcome to cc

 

[Bryony]

Thanks for the advice guys. Unfortunatley, the Halfords deal fell through, so I have now purchased a 2014 Forme Peak Trail 1. Has anyone got any reviews for the bike. Would be greatly appreciated!

I don't know that particular bike, but I am a Forme owner and my bike has been brilliant so far! Anyway to CycleChat and happy cycling!

 

[Gravity Aided]

Like ShipHill says, watch those chain side back spokes. They are at a different angle, and somewhat tighter, and give you more grief. I had to learn some wheelbuilding skills. Nothing too fancy, just enough to sort out the problems encountered. I generally stay away from narrow V rims due to their greater tendency of pinch flats, but instead prefer box rims. I also use 700x28s and above. If I'm encountering rock roads, I'll try and use 700 x 32s.

 

[sidevalve]

If you're new wheelbuilding can seem like a dark art but just keep the spokes tensioned and all should be well. Noe just get out there and ENJOY it.

 

[philinmerthyr]

I'm over 20 st and have ridden over 4,000 miles on a carbon, specilized Roubaix road bike in the last 18 months. Last year I rode the Prudential RideLondon 100. The video is linked below. I'm only 5ft 6in so really not built for cycling but I love it. I'm up to 60 moles per week training for this years RideLondon.



View: http://youtu.be/HKA6DzN-DZo


The bike sould be fine. If you need some larger kit try love2pedal.com. Great designs and the dollar exchange rate and the sales means they are no too expensive.

Enjoy riding