Advice to new commuter please

[CommuterBen]

Now i'm sure there are many of these threads floating about and for that I am sorry but I needed some advice tailored to myself and after a few hours of trawling I'm still non the wiser!

I have been looking for a road bike to commute to University on fr around 4 weeks now and am strugling badly. I am 26 and pretty un-fit so I thought why the hell not commute to Uni and my part time job; saving money and losing weight at the same time. Being a student I am pretty poor and I have a rather short attention span so am not wanting to spend money on something that I may get bored of within a few weeks which will then go rusty in the shed. I shall be doing around 20 miles a day 3 days a week boarding a train and there are a few steep hills in my commute.

At the moment I am looking at around £200 hence why I have been looking for so long. Having been looking for a decent second hand bike for so long and not finding anything in my not so local area or anything in my prce range I have taken to the idea of getting a cheap, new, low quality bike to a) figure out if I will continue my quest to save money and weight an b) Get a taste for cycling with the plan to upgrade in Septmeber when I get a proper student loan.

So basically what I'm saying is:
a)Please don't say "don't buy new by used"
b)Don't try to put me off a very cheap bike as it is what I am going for regardless

Also without clogging up the forum with my noob posts I have been racking my brains for accessories I will be needing my list so far comprises of:

• helmet
• thick lock
• clothing
• lights
• tool kit and mountable pump (spare inner tube)
• mudguards
• computer
• padding for carrying

Any other help/info or deals would be greatly welcomed! Thanks for reading

Ben.

 

[Supersuperleeds]

If I was you I would go have a look in Halfords, they sell bikes in your price range that will suit your needs but don't know if you will get a road bike from them at £200. If you can stretch to £300 have a look at the Triban 3 at Decthalon

 

[Easytigers]

You've pretty much thought it through in terms of what you'll need. If starting soon, add overshoes to your clothing list. Everyone here will tell you spend a bit more money and buy a Triban 3..and for good reason, It'll do you for years and you'll get the experience of a 'proper' bike straight away. It's £300 but the best money you'll spend in a long time. If you definitely can't afford that...well there are a lot bikes sub this price but probably spend more on replacing parts pretty much straight away or have to buy twice in a short period of time.
Good luck and just enjoy cycling...you'll find that you get to Uni and job feeling full of life and hopefully you won't look back (apart from to see if a car is overtaking!!!).

 

[jefmcg]

Do a search here for Triban 3. It's £300, but generally agreed to be the best VFM budget bike out there.

edit: Beaten. Twice. By more informative posts.

 

[CommuterBen]

A guy I study with went straight in with the Triban 3 again I would love to I'm just genuinly too skint to afford an extra £100 at the moment! He did reccommend the Vittesse Sprint 21 though which is £158 on Amazon. He said he uses one as his winter bike and for whatI wuold use it for it would be fine. But he did mentio that the gears were poor on it. The only other bikes I can find in my price range are Viking bikes, which have mixed reviews and seem to be heavier than the vittesse and priced at £199. SupersuperLeeds I've been to Halfrauds they only stock mountain bikes in my price range which I'm not interested in for commuting, the chepaest road bike they ha was a carerra at £379 so am looking elsewhere. Thanks for all the speedy replies guys

Ben.

 

[CommuterBen]

The train bit, does the bike go with you for that? If so are there restrictions on taking a bike at the times you travel?

Yeah the bike will be coming with me. Ive looked into it and there aren't any restrictions on my commute only that the conductor may refuse me bringing the bike on if it is extremely busy. I will be calling up to book and reserving a space for my bike on the train in both directions. There are 4 bike bays on the train I get and after commuting for 2 weeks by train now i've noticed that only one is used on regular basis. Cheers for the heads up though.

Ben.

 

[Supersuperleeds]

How far do you go on the train? Is it possible to skip the train and bike all the way and with the money you save get a Triban 3?

 

[CommuterBen]

How far do you go on the train? Is it possible to skip the train and bike all the way and with the money you save get a Triban 3?

Its a 150 mile round trip so as a beginner I dont think it's really do-able

 

[CommuterBen]

I was thinking that you might be having to think of a folder, which makes everything a whole new and complicated game.

No thank god!

 

[CommuterBen]

Was also considering the Viking sprint at £184.99 at Rutland cycles. So these seem to be my best options so far:
http://www.google.co.uk/products/ca...a=X&ei=4LPxUPWFMoi20QXtyoCACw&ved=0CE0Q8wIwAA
or
http://www.google.co.uk/products/ca...a=X&ei=CLTxUKPkBcnK0AWM3IGQDw&ved=0CE4Q8wIwAQ
I think either will suffice for 9 months or so

Ben.