Road bike or cyclocross ... decisions!

[ChrisV]

Seems these 'What bike?' threads are compulsory for new members!

I've just taken up cycling with a Trekk 7200 FX hybrid (I think, from memory) and am now comfortably doing 20+ miles (I'm not the fittest).

I started on canal paths but got a bit bored and now quite like the road. My plan is to commute the 40 miles return journey to and from work, hopefully Tuesday - Thursday. I also have half an inkling that I'd like to go on longer cycles at the weekends (50 miles etc, fitness dependent).

The journey to work is mainly roads but there are some disused pavements etc that can be used - it's not compulsory though. I do like the flexibility of being able to go anywhere, which was what attracted me to cyclocross bikes, but I don't want to be held back in comparison with a road bike.

Likewise, I don't want to get a road bike and feel restricted. This bike will be used to commute through winter so needs to be hardy enough.

I have 1k available through Cycle To Work scheme and will probably go to Velocity 44 in Stirling.

Any thoughts over type of bike or what to look for?

Oh, phoned Velocity 44 looking for a hybrid (off them now) and was told better to wait until September-ish for new models to come out. I am pretty impatient but if this is best then I suppose I can wait
Thanks for your help.

 

[ChrisV]

Visited the bike shop today.

After much discussion, decided I didn't really need the different tyres etc on the cyclocross bike. Most of my mileage will be road so a road bike seems sensible.

Narrowed it down to Whyte Dorset:

http://www.velocity44.com/products.php?plid=m20b0s6p3860

Or Giant Defy 1 (red/black):

http://www.velocity44.com/products.php?plid=m20b0s6p3908

The Whyte is £899, the Giant £999.

The group (is that what you call it?) is the Shimano 105 on Giant compared to the Tiagra on the Whyte. So better components on Giant I think. But the Whyte has disc brakes. Is this important?

Whyte also takes a rack but I don't know if this is a deal breaker either.

Any experience/thoughts?

 

[Wafer]

Both are good, lots of happy defy riders on the forums, very nearly got the Dorset myself recently. Whyte are less common and do branded mudguards that will fit, assuming you want them. I'm sure you can get something to fit the defy too, but might be more fiddly.

Probably about personal choice as much as anything, I like the discs on my bike but many don't see the point..... Sit on them and see, from what I've seen neither are likely to disappoint.

 

[KneesUp]

I do like the flexibility of being able to go anywhere, which was what attracted me to cyclocross bikes, but I don't want to be held back in comparison with a road bike.

You've got two conflicting ideas going on there, and how you weigh them up against each other is going to determine what bike is best for you.

A road frame won't take wider wheels/tyres so it's kind of stuck on the road. They are actually pretty sturdy - take a look at professional riders hammering along on cobbles in Paris-Roubaix, for example, but it's hard work riding a narrow-tyred road bike on rough surfaces because you are the shock absorber - and if you're on a surface with any 'give' (mud, gravel) you will have no fun at all as the wheels will dig in because all the weight of you and the bike is concentrated on such a small area.

A cyclo-cross bike frame isn't so much different from a road frame apart from being a bit sturdier and having more clearance for wider tyres though, and of course you can fit narrower ones if you want.

I'd suggest that a cyclo-cross bike on the road is less of a compromise than a road bike on a canal towpath. And if you live near Stirling surely you want to be having a crack at the forest tracks and so on that are (relatively speaking) on your doorstep. I can't imagine living in Scotland and restricting myself to being on the road!

 

[ChrisV]

The plot thickens

I've realised that a lot of this cycling malarkey is about compromise - do I want a bike that will be most effective going from A to B as a commuter or do I want something that can cope with other scenarios but not be as effective for the commuting part? Do I want a bike more suited to commuting, with fittings for panniers, mudguards (Whyte) or is it more about the performance? (Giant)

Do I want disc brakes (better) or will the weight affect me if I start trying to race other people?

Is it worth going down a level in spec (105 to Tiagra) to have more adjustability (tyre clearance, racks) than the Giant, or do I go better spec ( and more attractive bike, but guessing this is not important!) in case I get fed up of having 'inferior' spec in 6 months time and end up buying another bike!!!!

Nobody said cycling was so stressful!

 

[ChrisV]

Cheers for the replies.

Where are these forest tracks? I have a hybrid at the moment.

 

[KneesUp]

Cheers for the replies.

Where are these forest tracks? I have a hybrid at the moment.

http://scotland.forestry.gov.uk/activities/cycling to start off

Plus there is no such thing as trespass in Scotland, is there?

 

[KneesUp]

The plot thickens

I've realised that a lot of this cycling malarkey is about compromise - do I want a bike that will be most effective going from A to B as a commuter or do I want something that can cope with other scenarios but not be as effective for the commuting part? Do I want a bike more suited to commuting, with fittings for panniers, mudguards (Whyte) or is it more about the performance? (Giant)

Do I want disc brakes (better) or will the weight affect me if I start trying to race other people?

Is it worth going down a level in spec (105 to Tiagra) to have more adjustability (tyre clearance, racks) than the Giant, or do I go better spec ( and more attractive bike, but guessing this is not important!) in case I get fed up of having 'inferior' spec in 6 months time and end up buying another bike!!!!

Nobody said cycling was so stressful!

If you're commuting and you have to take 'stuff' you definitely want panniers. I commute about 3 miles each way and currently use a rucksack, but even for that distance it's not ideal. The bike should be taking the weight, not my shoulders. Plus you get a sweaty back. No way would I consider a 20 mile commute with a rucksack.

Don't forget that if you want to just use the road to commute you can have two sets of wheels, a 'road' set and an wider set. That said, the width of the tyre doesn't make a huge amount of difference on road to your speed anyway, and some tests show that a wider tyre is faster because it's more comfortable. If you are going to swap wheels regularly it might be easier if you have disc brakes so you don't keep having to adjust for the different rim widths.

 

[ChrisV]

Is a rucksack that bad? That would be the deal breaker I suppose.

I'll drive on a Monday/Friday, dropping off my suits/shirts for the week, then cycle Tuesday - Thursday. I've no idea what I'll carry besides maybe an iPad, lunch, towel, possibly a pint of milk on way home. Could fit it in a rucksack but then if it's uncomfortable that would be a bad situation over 20 miles. I do get lower back pain at times so perhaps a rack/pannier is essential.

Functionality is probably going to have more impact on my life than Tiagra over 105 group set

 

[ChrisV]

Although a Defy with no panniers is much sexier than a Dorset loaded with panniers.

Therein lies the crux ...

 

[KneesUp]

Is a rucksack that bad? That would be the deal breaker I suppose.

It's sweaty, and your shoulders and back are taking the weight as well as your legs hauling it. I've never used panniers, but I've never commuted more than about 6 miles (and I was younger then - and had a bike with no mounts) but I will pick up racks for my bike at some point. If you're really only going to carry

iPad, lunch, towel, possibly a pint of milk and a few tools, and a spare inner tube, and your phone, and your wallet, and a waterproof and so on - you could just use a saddle bag.

 

[ChrisV]

You could fit all that in a saddle bag? I need to have another look at them. I have a bag under the back of the seat on the hybrid at the moment but it's wallet, multitool, tube, puncture repair, banana. Definitely not much else and not an iPad!

Looking at the two different bikes, I've now discovered the whole controversy about disc brakes on road bikes!

So much controversy...

 

[KneesUp]

You could fit all that in a saddle bag? I need to have another look at them. I have a bag under the back of the seat on the hybrid at the moment but it's wallet, multitool, tube, puncture repair, banana. Definitely not much else and not an iPad!

Looking at the two different bikes, I've now discovered the whole controversy about disc brakes on road bikes!

So much controversy...

When I were a lad my dad used to fit two lots of everything needed for a days ride in his Carradice saddle bag (being a nipper I didn't have to carry anything, see)

http://www.carradice.co.uk/index.php?page_id=category&category_id=13

 

[ChrisV]

And they just hook onto the seat without any fittings? No interference with pedalling?

That could be just the ticket!

I never knew such a thing existed

I thank you!

 

[vickster]

Or you could get a beam rack, easily removed for faster non commutes