Novice in need of advice

[jasonbaldry]

Hi All,

I'm sure you get fed up with posts like this but here we go.

My commute is only about 3 miles or so but i am wanting to use a bike more for trips into the city etc. However, i have barely ever even sat on a road bike let alone traveled anywhere on one but all i know is i am envious of the lightness. They go screaming past me on my £10 car-boot mountain bike made of granite (and plastic) which is also far too small for me.

I am hoping to use my employers cycle to work scheme but not wanting to spend much over £500 if i can help it. From looking around the £500 - £650 area seems to be the meeting place for most of the entry level bikes.

So far i have seen:

Specialized Secteur Triple
Trek One
Giant Defy
Forme Longcliffe 4.0
Specialized Allez

The chap in the Forme shop said he doesn't stock anything with Claris because it is so bad. This is unfortunate because of all of them i likes the look of the Secteur the most! However i just read something about alignment problems with these and the paint coming off after one trip

...but i love the top-bar shape, and also the satin paint!

From what i gather i am looking for a "Sportive" bike that i can change the tyres on for winter which will be comfortable over some rougher roads and through the park (paths). I wasn't sure which specialized suited me best.

Advice would be GREATLY appreciated.

 

[Fubar]

Hi All,

I'm sure you get fed up with posts like this but here we go.

My commute is only about 3 miles or so but i am wanting to use a bike more for trips into the city etc. However, i have barely ever even sat on a road bike let alone traveled anywhere on one but all i know is i am envious of the lightness. They go screaming past me on my £10 car-boot mountain bike made of granite (and plastic) which is also far too small for me.

I am hoping to use my employers cycle to work scheme but not wanting to spend much over £500 if i can help it. From looking around the £500 - £650 area seems to be the meeting place for most of the entry level bikes.

So far i have seen:

Specialized Secteur Triple
Trek One
Giant Defy
Forme Longcliffe 4.0
Specialized Allez

The chap in the Forme shop said he doesn't stock anything with Claris because it is so bad. This is unfortunate because of all of them i likes the look of the Secteur the most! However i just read something about alignment problems with these and the paint coming off after one trip

...but i love the top-bar shape, and also the satin paint!

From what i gather i am looking for a "Sportive" bike that i can change the tyres on for winter which will be comfortable over some rougher roads and through the park (paths). I wasn't sure which specialized suited me best.

Advice would be GREATLY appreciated.

Hi

I'm not going to try and advise you which of those to buy as I've never owned any, though there will be plenty that have and will - also worth having a search of the forum as these names come up often.

From the sounds of things if you haven't used a road bike you won't go too far wrong with any of them, more important than the label is to make sure you are comfortable on it, it fits properly and is affordable for you. Make sure you have a triple at the front in case you hit any big "lumps" as you venture further afield. You may at first find the ride "twitchy" compared to your MTB but that will soon pass. You might also want to consider whether your pedals will be clipped-in, toe-hooks or just flat - clipped-in can be a scary thought but if you go for double-sided pedals you would soon get used to it. You can also include things like shoes, helmet, jacket, etc in the BTW scheme so depending on your budget you might want to save a little on the bike so you can add in the extras.

My first road bike was a Btwin Triban 3 and whilst not very fashionable it was a good all rounder and not so expensive that I worried about small scratches, dirt, etc. which you will enevitably get if riding through the winter. Also if that's the case make sure you can fit mudguards (probably need to be raceblades or similar).

Remember that a road bike will not instantly make you a pro-cyclist, it takes time to build up stamina and confidence and we all never stop learning and improving (or trying to!).

Hope that helps. Regards, Mark

 

[Cyclist33]

Hi All,

I'm sure you get fed up with posts like this but here we go.

My commute is only about 3 miles or so but i am wanting to use a bike more for trips into the city etc. However, i have barely ever even sat on a road bike let alone traveled anywhere on one but all i know is i am envious of the lightness. They go screaming past me on my £10 car-boot mountain bike made of granite (and plastic) which is also far too small for me.

I am hoping to use my employers cycle to work scheme but not wanting to spend much over £500 if i can help it. From looking around the £500 - £650 area seems to be the meeting place for most of the entry level bikes.

So far i have seen:

Specialized Secteur Triple
Trek One
Giant Defy
Forme Longcliffe 4.0
Specialized Allez

The chap in the Forme shop said he doesn't stock anything with Claris because it is so bad. This is unfortunate because of all of them i likes the look of the Secteur the most! However i just read something about alignment problems with these and the paint coming off after one trip

...but i love the top-bar shape, and also the satin paint!

From what i gather i am looking for a "Sportive" bike that i can change the tyres on for winter which will be comfortable over some rougher roads and through the park (paths). I wasn't sure which specialized suited me best.

Advice would be GREATLY appreciated.

Get a flat barred road bike or fast hybrid, you get more for your money and they work better weaving around in town.

 

[jasonbaldry]

Hi Both,

Thank you for the advice, especially about the triple, i hadn't realised that element of it. Think i will just got for standard or toe pedals for now.... i normally arrive at work with miments to spare so i generally wouldnt have the time to change shoes and clothes etc.

I am torn between a flat barred bike but i guess i just need to try some out.