Dangermouse
MousePower
Well after sitting and looking at the bike for nearly a week ans getting more and more frustrated waiting for some pedals, I finally got a couple of miles on it today, I decided only to do a 10 miler as it needs all the parts bedding in and although I have checked and double checked I expected sometthing to malfunction.......how wrong I was, it was near perfect out of the box.
To set the story, I was on late shift yesterday and stupid early shift today (04:30am) so when I got home I was a little tired to say the least but I wasnt going to let that put me off, or the 25mph winds we are having here.
The route is flat and very open and I thought it was roughly 10 mile but its a bit shorter and only 7 mile, so on with the shoes and away I went.
First thing I noticed was I need a shorter stem, the 110mm stemm is a litte too much for me to stretch over so why dont Halfords just put a 100mm on which is in the middle and would make it easier for non Urangtangs but still it didnt dishearten me I was determined to get some miles in today, the route goes in a square but for some reason the wind just seemed to be head on no matter which way I tirned but the bike is nice and light at 8.4kg so didnt feel like I wad dragging lead behaind me, it just cut through the air like a knife and the only things that were holding it back were the wheels you could feel the wind hitting them and trying to alter direction all the time.
Now there has been som reviews stating the frame is soft but honestly I dont know if its down to my current level of fitness but it felt very solid to me but this is the latest frame and Carrera may just have stiffened the stays a little as I stood up over the bridge and gave it my all and it just felt spot on with no movement, very stiff.
The only small gripe I have is the cornering as its a longer wheelbase than some bikes, it isnt anything you would want to ride in a city centre race as it just lacks a little in response going into corners but this makes it ideal as a long range bike and will easily forgive any mistakes you could make.
The components are really quite well suited with the FSA Gossamer chainset and Shimano 105 front and rear derailleurs all seeming to work together in harmony although after a few gearchanges I did get some chain rub in the front mech and a little chattering from the rear mech but this is probably down to cable stretch and I will fine tune the gears again tomorrow and see if this happens again.
Saddle is very comfy as are the bars and 105 brake levers, it all just seems to fit together and ride extremely well and fast as Strava clocked me at an average of 15mph into a strong wind constant, so all in all Carrera seem to have waved a magic wand and got this right finally.
All thats left to say is I am going to enjoy riding this for a very long time"
To set the story, I was on late shift yesterday and stupid early shift today (04:30am) so when I got home I was a little tired to say the least but I wasnt going to let that put me off, or the 25mph winds we are having here.
The route is flat and very open and I thought it was roughly 10 mile but its a bit shorter and only 7 mile, so on with the shoes and away I went.
First thing I noticed was I need a shorter stem, the 110mm stemm is a litte too much for me to stretch over so why dont Halfords just put a 100mm on which is in the middle and would make it easier for non Urangtangs but still it didnt dishearten me I was determined to get some miles in today, the route goes in a square but for some reason the wind just seemed to be head on no matter which way I tirned but the bike is nice and light at 8.4kg so didnt feel like I wad dragging lead behaind me, it just cut through the air like a knife and the only things that were holding it back were the wheels you could feel the wind hitting them and trying to alter direction all the time.
Now there has been som reviews stating the frame is soft but honestly I dont know if its down to my current level of fitness but it felt very solid to me but this is the latest frame and Carrera may just have stiffened the stays a little as I stood up over the bridge and gave it my all and it just felt spot on with no movement, very stiff.
The only small gripe I have is the cornering as its a longer wheelbase than some bikes, it isnt anything you would want to ride in a city centre race as it just lacks a little in response going into corners but this makes it ideal as a long range bike and will easily forgive any mistakes you could make.
The components are really quite well suited with the FSA Gossamer chainset and Shimano 105 front and rear derailleurs all seeming to work together in harmony although after a few gearchanges I did get some chain rub in the front mech and a little chattering from the rear mech but this is probably down to cable stretch and I will fine tune the gears again tomorrow and see if this happens again.
Saddle is very comfy as are the bars and 105 brake levers, it all just seems to fit together and ride extremely well and fast as Strava clocked me at an average of 15mph into a strong wind constant, so all in all Carrera seem to have waved a magic wand and got this right finally.
All thats left to say is I am going to enjoy riding this for a very long time"
