mididoctors
Über Member
Cheap bikes have had no trickle down effect from aero tech
Pro cycling “has been failed structurally and commercially”
- Thread starter Happy_Days
- Start date
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cyberknight
As long as I breathe, I attack.
- Location
- Land of confusion
in 1908 the tdf they had to ride on bike provided by the organisers so its been done before , mind you henri desgrange thought gears were for weaklings
Punkawallah
Veteran
It could be said cheap bikes are what bikes should cost if there were not the pursuit of aero tech.
M.R.M
Well-Known Member
I think you can build a competitive road or gravel bike for 3-4k € (from parts, used etc.). Whether that is cheap or expensive, is for each person to decide. Gear will cost you an additional 300-400€ I'd guess. I think it's very possible to win spending that level of money. When you do, the gear will improve due to the interest your results will have garnered.
Of course you can also buy a 16k bike and shoes for 550€ etc.
Of course you can also buy a 16k bike and shoes for 550€ etc.
Dogtrousers
Lefty tighty. Get it righty.
Getting away for a moment from the CC obsession with the price of the most expensive bikes and the fact that it's a bad thing.
I read that report. Well, sort of. I had to skim a lot It is unbelievably badly written and poorly structured. I'm really gobsmacked that they can release such a dreadful document.
Their fundamental beef is that the calendar is a bit of a buggers muddle, which is pretty true. It's a mishmash of the truly great, the generally good and the things that no one cares about. Individual riders' calendars are entirely random. Could it be improved? Undoubtedly. Does this document have a cogently argued alternative? No. Every now and again they come up with a sensible idea but they never have any reasoned argument.
It reads like the manifesto of an extremely earnest political party that knows that it doesn't have a hope in hell of gaining power so they can say what they want. "If elected we will clear the streets of crime using flocks of well trained weasels".
By the way I saw a bike for sale the other day that cost several thousand pounds! Wot a liberty.
I read that report. Well, sort of. I had to skim a lot It is unbelievably badly written and poorly structured. I'm really gobsmacked that they can release such a dreadful document.
Their fundamental beef is that the calendar is a bit of a buggers muddle, which is pretty true. It's a mishmash of the truly great, the generally good and the things that no one cares about. Individual riders' calendars are entirely random. Could it be improved? Undoubtedly. Does this document have a cogently argued alternative? No. Every now and again they come up with a sensible idea but they never have any reasoned argument.
It reads like the manifesto of an extremely earnest political party that knows that it doesn't have a hope in hell of gaining power so they can say what they want. "If elected we will clear the streets of crime using flocks of well trained weasels".
By the way I saw a bike for sale the other day that cost several thousand pounds! Wot a liberty.
Dogtrousers
Lefty tighty. Get it righty.
in 1908 the tdf they had to ride on bike provided by the organisers so its been done before , mind you henri desgrange thought gears were for weaklings
And freewheels.
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
Nothing to do with the Grifter's grip-shifter being a lot quicker to use than a typical 10-speed's downtube levers, or a three speed hub being more efficient than a typical child's clag-covered derailleur? (even if it's less efficient than a clean derailleur)
Punkawallah
Veteran
Yeah! Chain drives are for sissies.
cyberknight
As long as I breathe, I attack.
- Location
- Land of confusion
Once a Wheeler
…always a wheeler
Pro cycling is important and enthralling but I find the real glory of UK cycling is summed up by families such as Laura Trott's (Kenny). Nothing beats a Trotty devil for sheer excitement but if she had been just an average performer with no public profile she would have had years of unforgettable pleasure riding the highways and byways of the UK and Europe to a level of personal satisfaction that is different from sporting achievement but probably just as rewarding and formative in the making of a great life. It was that depth in UK cycling which broke through when changed road rules and lottery funding made it possible for the UK to go professional. I am glad that it did go professional in a big way, but that is far from the main point of the story.
from what I remember of Grifter gears, that was the worst one to be stuck in.
cyberknight
As long as I breathe, I attack.
- Location
- Land of confusion
it would explain my thunder thighs .
Hacienda71
Mancunian in self imposed exile in leafy Cheshire
- Location
- Wilmslow, Cheshire
Don't know how much it has changed in the last ten years since I raced my last road race, but I podiumed on a Chinese bike that cost a grand. I at no point felt that I was disadvantaged compared to guys on their S works and the like. I wasn't the only one using cheap parts in races.
Also recalling a guy who used to be on the forum being competitive in crits on a budget Btwin with a triple.
Harry Mack raced the Nationals on a cheap Chinese sourced bike and was competitive. The junior world champion was on a Chinese bike last year. All substantially cheaper than equivalent brands that want to charge you five grand plus for a decent race bike.
The biggest factor is the engine.
Also recalling a guy who used to be on the forum being competitive in crits on a budget Btwin with a triple.
Harry Mack raced the Nationals on a cheap Chinese sourced bike and was competitive. The junior world champion was on a Chinese bike last year. All substantially cheaper than equivalent brands that want to charge you five grand plus for a decent race bike.
The biggest factor is the engine.
