Newbee, Help needed! :)

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jamie8c

New Member
Hi,

Im a newbee to cycling and after a year out of any form of exercise due to a ACL replacement, im keen to get into cycling. IM really sorry for any good cyclists who read this because i am probably going to sound incredibly stupid and naive!

Basically my work has a ride2work scheme with Evans cycles so I will be purchasing my bike from there. However before i buy, i need some help/advice!!

1) Road, Mountain, Hybrid or Cyclo Cross??
Basically i will be doing mainly road riding and hope to ride the London to paris next year but may occasionally need to do the odd girly thing with the mrs like go to centre parcs etc.

2) Any makes to steer clear of? or any makes that are particularly good?

3) Brakes, do disc brakes really make a difference?

4) what sort of Pedals?

4) anything else i should pay particular attention to?

Sorry again and thanks to anyone who helps!!

Jay
 
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jamie8c

New Member
Sorry guys, ive just seen that this was a big no no! sorry!
 

HJ

Cycling in Scotland
Location
Auld Reekie
First off while Evans maybe running the scheme, you don't actually have to buy the bike thought Evans (it is a requirement of all the Cycle 2 Work schemes that you are not tied to any one shop, although they might not make that clear), so have a look at your local bike shops as well. Then decide you budget as with most things in life you get what you pay for, the more you pay the better, i.e. lighter, stronger, faster the bike will be.

The riding you describe rules out the Mountain bike as it doesn't look like you need a serious off roader. As it sounds like you are likely to do some light off roading (canal tow path, off road cycle track), a full on road bike might not be appropriate as they can be difficult to handle on anything other than smooth tarmac. It is possible, but only if you are whiling to accept a rougher ride and the loss of flat out speed. Your choice, but a lot of guys with road bike get very precious about taking their road bikes away from the black top.

That suggest either a Hybrid or Cyclo Cross bike. Here you are really looking at whether you want drop bars or straight bars. This really comes down to personal preference, there those who will tell you that you can't do distance on straight bars, piffle, that is just snobbish nonsense. Drop bars do give you more choice of hand position, but most riders ride on the hoods anyway. Then there are those who will say that straight bars are better in traffic because of the more upright position. But if you are happy riding on the hoods, drop bars are fine in traffic.

Do disc brakes really make a difference? Yes they are definitely better, but it will limit your choice of bike. You won't get a road bike with disc brakes and only a few cyclo-cross bike come with disc brakes, but don't let that put you off.

Pedals, don't buy a bike for the pedals. Most bikes under £1000 will come with either flats or cheap SPDs (the more you get over £1000 the less likely they are to have pedals as standard), the reason for this is that one of the first things people change on their bike is the pedals. So don't worry about it now as you will probably change them in a years time anyway.

Best way to find out which bike is best for you, is to set a budget and try as many as you can at that price point. Once you have a short list there will be no shortage of advice here as to which is the best value (some of it maybe contradictory), but we can't tell you which will be the best bike for you and you can only find that out by riding it.

Hope that helps.
 
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jamie8c

New Member
Thanks for all your comments people, its hugely appreciated!!!

I have seen a few road bikes that i like, be warned, i am looking at the cheaper end of the market as i dont want to spend hundreds and hundreds and then not get as much use out of it as i had hoped!

What do people think about the follwing?

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/trek/1500-fuselage-2007-road-bike-ec023270
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/claud-butler/criterium-2010-road-bike-ec022487
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/claud-butler/criterium-2010-road-bike-ec022487

Jay
 

tordis

New Member
Location
London
Actually, the first Trek looks pretty good to me - is it possible that the price is so low because it's a 2007 model?
Love the CB San Remo, BTW.
 
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