Is my bike run out of date?

[buggi]

Unless your friends are pro riders it's not the bike as it would make little difference to us mortals.. Bet they have been training behind your back!

 

[palinurus]

And remember there were riders 40-50 years ago on steel bikes that are definitely 'out of date' now, who could go faster than you on the latest carbon tech.

There are quite a few around today too.

 

[bladesman73]

Dont listen to the bike snobs, oooh my bike costs £5k and is much better/faster than yours.i have a mate like that, he cant deal with me pasting him on a sprint everytime with my £1k Merida whilst his outfit costs over £4k.ways u can get faster include getting aerobars(i did it and my speed on flats shoots up by avg 2/3kph)...riding in the drops more..training more..i would suggest upgrading wheelset but you say you have campag eurus which are very good,why not have the hubs serviced? Again dont listen to the Pinarello idiots, they have bought a bike that is too good for their level and they need to justify the overspend somehow

 

[novetan]

Hi novetan,

As they say, it's never about the kit, it's about the athlete.

If you're doing only relay events, then I'm guessing they are doing three times the training you are - swim and run fitness may not directly translate to bike, but the cardio gains will definitely help.

I'd suggest you get yourself an FTP test, I'm doing one on a gym watt bike next weekend, t get a measure of your bike fitness - get your mates into it as well if you can.

Next point will be aero - they should be training to ride in the most efficient manner possible, nothing like the group rides you do.

I can see why your experience leads to these questions but the likely uncomfortable answer is fitness and technique - not the bike.

---
On the other hand, a Bianchi is always a good thing, right? . I want the pico myself.

Hi Tin Pot,

You r probably right. I lost time on them, ranging from 10 to 20 mins over 90 km. Hence it prompt me to probe whats wrong with me. Quite easy to blame the bike. And yes, after 2 experiences, I'll be getting an aero wheel and a tri bar. Its pleasing to hear honest comment here its not abt the bike though one would always use the excuse of getting a newer one.

Am I right to say too stiff a bike will have diminishing return? Discomfort and fatigue set in due to harsher ride and feel? But bike are getting stiffer and stiffer for newer model !

 

[novetan]

Dont listen to the bike snobs, oooh my bike costs £5k and is much better/faster than yours.i have a mate like that, he cant deal with me pasting him on a sprint everytime with my £1k Merida whilst his outfit costs over £4k.ways u can get faster include getting aerobars(i did it and my speed on flats shoots up by avg 2/3kph)...riding in the drops more..training more..i would suggest upgrading wheelset but you say you have campag eurus which are very good,why not have the hubs serviced? Again dont listen to the Pinarello idiots, they have bought a bike that is too good for their level and they need to justify the overspend somehow

Tks. I heard you

 

[Big Dave laaa]

My ride buddy rides a 15 yesr old Trek. Albeit a good one its a US Postal Armstrong replica. I ride a 2015 Giant TCR Advanced 1. Light years apart in technology as they are my mate is smashing 22-23 mph averages on solo rides against my 19 mph. Bikes don't have an expiry date.

 

[totallyfixed]

My ride buddy rides a 15 yesr old Trek. Albeit a good one its a US Postal Armstrong replica. I ride a 2015 Giant TCR Advanced 1. Light years apart in technology as they are my mate is smashing 22-23 mph averages on solo rides against my 19 mph. Bikes don't have an expiry date.

Not something I would be inordinately proud of. Armstrong did those solo ride speeds too.

 

[Big Dave laaa]

Not something I would be inordinately proud of. Armstrong did those solo ride speeds too.

Yes but my friend isn't doping so it's not a level playing field. Also the bike would have been brand new not 15 years old. Other than that I agree totally

 

[Tin Pot]

Hi Tin Pot,

You r probably right. I lost time on them, ranging from 10 to 20 mins over 90 km. Hence it prompt me to probe whats wrong with me. Quite easy to blame the bike. And yes, after 2 experiences, I'll be getting an aero wheel and a tri bar. Its pleasing to hear honest comment here its not abt the bike though one would always use the excuse of getting a newer one.

Am I right to say too stiff a bike will have diminishing return? Discomfort and fatigue set in due to harsher ride and feel? But bike are getting stiffer and stiffer for newer model !

It depends on what your bike splits are - nearer to 3hrs or nearer to 5hrs?

 

[palinurus]

Am I right to say too stiff a bike will have diminishing return? Discomfort and fatigue set in due to harsher ride and feel? But bike are getting stiffer and stiffer for newer model !

Personally i'd guess bike stiffness isn't very important once it is stiff enough. It's likely influential when comparing a Bickerton with a road bike, but whether it is important when comparing two road bikes made of similar material I don't think there's any data out there- unless the bike manufacturers are holding onto it. I doubt whether frame stiffness has much influence on ride harshness- I take stiffness to mean less lateral movement under a given load, particularly around the bottom bracket area.

 

[TheJDog]

A good tt position will be helping your friends immensely. My chum recently bought some aero clip ons for time trials, he hasn't got his position set, but took about 45s-60s off his 10 mile TT time in two tries. I've been out with him on the road quite a bit, too, and I'm fairly sure he hasn't got that much fitter.

 

[subaqua]

don't buy upgrades , ride up grades. Lots. and keep the tyres at optimum pressure ( I hate my tourer when pressures are too low as it handles like a boat) the more i ride the quicker and less knackered i feel , and as a fat knacker thats gotta be good

 

[derrick]

The best way to get a faster average than your mates is to increase the wheel circumference size in your bike computer. I suggest using something like 3000mm, that should sort them all out. It won't work for Strava though, so I suggest you go lights out on Strava for a while and just publish your averages.

Don't give that away, there are to many people doing that already.

 

[winjim]

Since there's a lower weight limit defined by the UCI, there's no point manufacturers making bikes lighter. They have therefore had to find a new metric by which to differentiate themselves and stiffness appears to have become the one they've managed to convince people is important. The Dogma and the Oltre are both pro level bikes and the difference in stiffness between them will be imperceptible to all but the most nuanced of pro riders and will confer the most pointlessly marginal of marginal gains.

Ditto the difference between a 2011 and a 2015 bike, the technology hasn't progressed that much.

 

[derrick]

Does not matter what size Dogma you buy they are all the same weight.
952 Carbon Red, 42cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 44cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 46.5cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 50cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 51.5cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 53cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 54cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 55cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 56cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 57.5cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 59.5cm: 1850g952 Carbon Red, 62cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 42cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 44cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 46.5cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 50cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 51.5cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 53cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 54cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 55cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 56cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 57.5cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 59.5cm: 1850g953 Black Yellow Fluo, 62cm: 0g


Where as the Bianchi is
The Oltre XR2 is made from UMS40 and CN60 ultra high modulus carbon fibre and Bianchi claim a frame weight of 895g (+/-5%, 55cm frame) and 355g for the fork. You can get your hands on lighter framesets, but not that much lighter. The Oltre XR isn't going to look tubby in any company.Jan 30, 2014
Just saying.