Help choosing a GOOD road bike please..

[odessouky]

I am taking on cycling, hoping to get fit and lose weight. I am 5'10", and weigh 97 kilos..

Went in to my local Evan's and tried out some of the bikes there.

A friend of mine has a bike with 105 full group set,and I tried out his bike, and loved the gears, even though I did not feel comfortable on the bike in general.

So, I aimed for finding a nice bike with nothing lower or of less quality than Shimano 105.

Unfortunately, the chap at Evans showed me quiet expensive options, considering this is my FIRST ROAD BIKE!!:

I need URGENT advice on these choices, as I put down a deposit yesterday, and they called me today, saying that my bikes have arrived. Here are the options:

Specialized Secteur Comp: £1350!!
very comfortable, but felt I had to put in a lot of energy to go fast

BMC Street Racer SR02: £1599!!
very stiff ride, but enjoyed the gears and power

BMC Street Racer SR01: £1099
Very uncomfortable, but MASSIVELY powerful and fast. Felt that I put little work in, and got a lot of speed.

Specialized Secteur Elite: £999
very very comfortable, but SLOW, and HATED the SRAM apex gears...

ALL the above options have light Alu frames, with carbon forks....

A friend of mine advised me to try less commercial brands, as I might get MUCH more for my money. He suggested BIANCHI, FELT, Willier etc....

He suggested a FELT Z6 2011, £1080, which is a FULL CARBON FRAME, with shimano 105?

Another option is a Focus Cayo 105 Ltd 2011, £999, also FULL CARBON FRAME, with shimano 105?

Can some one please advise, apart from: if you enjoyed riding it, buy it?

I'm hoping for advice on aspects that I might be missing, or not aware of?

Many thanks

 

[Cletus Van Damme]

Not sure I have a Specialized Secteur Sport 2010 and love it, then again it does not have SRAM gears. The only negative about it is that the Alexrims wheels (well the rear one is) are utter shoot. Hopefully they have changed to a different brand now.

 

[VamP]

I have gone through a similar selection process, also at Evans due to C2W. Ended up with Bianchi Via Nirone with Xenon.

Click here

The Campagnolo groupset is supposedly below the 105 - but has a 10 speed cassette and feels very good TBH. In any case my budget was 1k due to C2W and my priority was to get the best frame I could get, and look at upgrading wheelset etc. at some future point.

Probably not the most important reason for choosing a bike, but the Bianchi is VERY beautiful.

The frame is very stiff and strikes a good balance between comfort and speed. A better wheelset and tyres make this bike a lot faster, but I am going to stick with the standard initially.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Wilier Lavaredo. Mirage and Xenon for £999. Or what VamP said.

Nowt wrong with Spesh but every b*gger has got one. Ditto BMC round here (proximity to Evans warehouse I think)

 

[ammwhite]

I got my Bianchi Via Nirone with 105 last year from Evans for around £920 ... I think this years equivalent model has gone up in price to around £1125 (I got a 10% discount on mine - last years RRP was £1025). As VamP says they are beautiful bikes, although I can see why you would be tempted by a full carbon bike like the Focus for around £1000. Also, if you can buy from Halfords you might consider a Boardman, which get good reviews and are very good value.

 

[odessouky]

I am leaning towards the FELT Z6 2011 @ £1080, from Wiggle.

Any thoughts on that particular bike?

Thanks

 

[oldgreyandslow]

Go the bianchi route! I got the via nirone xenon in 2007 and have since upgraded wheels to fulcrum 5's tyres to bontragers lite something or other and chainset and bb to sram apex, probably could have got something with all that on originally but the bianchi frame and forks work for me and as has been said before it is beautiful

 

[VamP]

I am leaning towards the FELT Z6 2011 @ £1080, from Wiggle.

Any thoughts on that particular bike?

Thanks

Looks on paper like a lot of bike for the money. I wonder why they're not selling?

Test ride it and see what you think - my main concern would be that the geometry might be too aggressive for you.

 

[uphillstruggler]

the Ribble 2011 Sportive Bianco got a very good write up in cycling weekly back in february but i cant find my copy from that week to tell you what it is equipt with.

trouble is, can you ride one to find out if it suits you? thats more important than looks i imagine when spending that kind of money.

good luck

 

[dellzeqq]

At the risk of spoiling your day...

did Evans tell you if any of the bikes had a weight limit?

what size frame did they recommend?

did they offer a free service after three months?

I ask because Evans branches differ one from another, and sometimes they are a bit rushed.

the other thing I'd suggest is asking yourself what you want the bike for. 'Road bike' covers a multitude of sins and virtues. The bike that feels the most fun on a test ride might not be the most fun after a day's ride.

 

[bad boy]

Agree with the above no offence but instead of asking what about this bike and that you would be better served working out what you will most likely be using it for.

I say that as your comments above are based on bikes with very different geometry. The secteur is a sportive based relaxed geometry frame with curved stays and a long head tube. What makes a bike slow is it's engine some bikes might be quicker up to speed but won't be much "faster" at all.

Decide what ridding you want to do mostly then decide what frame material you want and test ride your shortlist within your price range. Should round it down nicely

Good luck

 

[The Jogger]

I have one of these and love it ( the 2010 model ii black).



http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_777713_langId_-1_categoryId_165710

or even cheaper

http://www.halfords....tegoryId_165710

 

[odessouky]

At the risk of spoiling your day...

did Evans tell you if any of the bikes had a weight limit?

what size frame did they recommend?

did they offer a free service after three months?

I ask because Evans branches differ one from another, and sometimes they are a bit rushed.

the other thing I'd suggest is asking yourself what you want the bike for. 'Road bike' covers a multitude of sins and virtues. The bike that feels the most fun on a test ride might not be the most fun after a day's ride.

No spoiling at all...

Nope, they didn't mention a weight limit...is there one?

No mention of free service..

They were funny on the sizing...I am 5'10", and they suggested a SMALL/52 frame in Specialized, and a S/51 in the BMC.

I found that funny, and they didn't let me test drive more that 2 bikes....well...they didnt really refuse...but made it very clear after 2 test rides that they would like to see the back of my shoulders...

 

[odessouky]

I have one of these and love it ( the 2010 model ii black).



http://www.halfords....tegoryId_165710

or even cheaper

http://www.halfords....tegoryId_165710

it seems CB are very good buys...

Do Halfords offer test rides?

 

[potsy]

They were funny on the sizing...I am 5'10", and they suggested a SMALL/52 frame in Specialized, and a S/51 in the BMC.

I found that funny, and they didn't let me test drive more that 2 bikes....well...they didnt really refuse...but made it very clear after 2 test rides that they would like to see the back of my shoulders...

Hmm I would imagine you'd want a 54 or even a 56 in the Secteur, I have a 54 and am nowhere near 5' 10"

it seems CB are very good buys...

Do Halfords offer test rides?

Yes. Round the car park a couple of times