Tri bike or road bike

[John Robbins]

Ive been looking around at second hand road bikes to use mainly for training and competing in triathlons.
As my budget has slowly crept up the longer i look, (started at 400 now around £700-800) im coming into the entry level tri bikes range.
Ive found an 2013 Felt S32 that i could afford but i have no experience of tri bikes. Whats the main difference? obviously i can see the handlebars are different but why? is it more or less comfortable?
...or do you think id be better off sticking to a Cube Peloton or specialized elite or similar road bike?
Sorry, lots of questions but any advice would be appreciated. Cheers.

 

[vickster]

Isn't the bike bit usually on a shortish flattish course to be ridden as fast as possible. The handlebars get you low and aerodynamic but won't be comfortable for a 100 mile run say

Is it to be your only road bike? Surely then a roadbike with tri bars attached would be more sensible if you want to use it for riding, training and not just triathlons. Much more flexible option and you'll get more bike and more choice, new and especially used for £800

Do you do triathlons already, presumably not given the questions? Why not talk to some of the other competitors, your clubmates?

 

[Hacienda71]

Unless your intention is to do nothing but tri's and tt's I would go for a road bike and some clip on bars. TT bikes do not handle as well as road bikes.

 

[Hacienda71]

I should have said as well the main benefit of a TT bike is it is more aero, but to some extent at the cost of comfort and handling. Clip on bars will take you some but not all of the way there without the expense, they reduce the frontal area of the rider.

 

[Tommy2]

It will be a toss up between aero bike saving you seconds or lots of time in the saddle saving you minutes, are you fast enough to need every extra second from your bike or have you got a long way to go before you reach your physical limit?
If so get a nice road bike and ride it lots.

 

[Rob3rt]

If you don't know what you are doing and it is going to be your only bike, buy a road bike.

 

[fossyant]

Stick to a road bike. For all the reasons above. Handling and chuckability are the key points of a road bike. Tri/TT bikes go 'slightly' faster in a straight line (ish).

If you fancy getting into TT's you can wallop some Tri-bars on a road bike (although you'll need to work on your position).

 

[John Robbins]

Ok , thanks for all the comments. I am from a swimming background just getting into triathlons. I have had a carrera road bike which i use for fitness training but i am looking for my first 'decent' road bike for improving my speed and enjoyment of cycling. Any suggestions of bike choice in my budget would be welcome.
Triathlon courses tend to be fairly flat but where i live and ride is quite hilly and bendy, so the clip on tri bars on a road bike sounds like a good option. i wasnt aware of these before so thanks for suggesting.

 

[vickster]

2013 Giant Defy 2 for around £630 from Ashcycles and spend £150 on better wheel and tyres?