Cycling thread.

[kiddin like jason]

I know we have a solid cycling community here. Threads usually come up in General, but if cycling isn't a sport, I don't know what is.

What do you ride?

Where do you ride?

How much do you ride?

Anything. Let's hear it.

I just got into cycling last summer, and it is easily one of my favorite hobbies now.

I'm a novice in every aspect. I have a cheap Schwinn hybrid that I got from Target because I didn't want to spend a ton of money on a first bike. Imade a terrible error in judgment by getting a hybrid; a road bike would have perfectly suited me.

I ride strictly pavement, mostly the local trails. Last summer, the most I rode in one ride was about 41 miles, and a few close to that. A typical ride wasmore around 10 miles, and that was at least three times a week.

I haven't touched my bike once this summer, so it's really all I've been thinking about. I suppose that's why I made this thread.

Also, if anybody has some unknown source for cheaper, quality road bikes (Cannondale, preferably), please let me know.

 

[cincoseisdos]

I was seriously thinkin roids

 

[brrraptors]

cycling

i ride an '08 Fuji Roubaix road bike. where i live its mostly flat terrain with the exception of very very small but steep climbs that i do over n over oncertain days to work out better. I ride 70-80km a week but sometimes more. i try to mix in 30-40km rides on days i don't run because im training for myfirst half-marathon i don't wanna burn out doing all kinds of things. between running, beach volleyball, ultimate frisbee, cycling and a thing called workits almost too hard to not burn out. man.. i only picked up cycling last summer after a longgggg layoff from the sport. i remember its all i did as a kid,there was no asking for rides or taking the bus. it was a crappy old single gear bike that i rode to every friends place and ball games. then i had a fixedgear for awhile, that was the weirdest thing to get used to riding as a 12/13yr old. then i didnt ride for a long time before one of my best friends got a roadbike and i realized how much i loved to ride.

KLJ, when i got my Fuji this spring I almost paid for a Cannondale. The breaker was the Fuji was an 08 model so the bikeshop owner said he'll gimme 30% offbut the cannondale was an 09 model. the cannondale caad9-5 was ridiculously nice. compared to my fuji its stiffer frame so it translates to betteracceleration, climbing, better top end speed etc. the geometry is also more aggressive, i loved it. go to a local bike shop and ride a few. what i can tell youis, its VERY important to get fitted right for a frame. there are various rules you can find online but nothing is as sure as a knowledgable guy picking outthe size you should test ride and then you riding a few models yourself. how much are u looking to spend? you can't go wrong with even the cheapestcannondales. imo the other reason i took the fuji was it had the shimano 105 rear while the caad9-5 had the tiagra. besides cannondale you can also check entrylevel fuji, trek, opus, giant.

 

[jcuk3tm0]

been thinking about getting a bike or new golf clubs. how much do road bikes go for?

 

[kiddin like jason]

brr, the CAAD9s were exactly what I had my eye on, too.

Too out of my price range for now, though.

I've tried to go by the "Lemond System" online for my frame size, and it put me somewhere between 60-62. Judging by what I've seen, itisn't very easy finding bikes that size.

Anyway, thanks for the advice. Let's keep this going.

been thinking about getting a bike or new golf clubs. how much do road bikes go for?
Anywhere from $150-$12,000.

I'm obviously no expert, but I'd say you can acquire a very capable road bike for a few hundred dollars.

 

[xxballaboveallxx]

I'm glad this thread came up. I've been sitting here for the past two weeks trying to do in insane amount of research as I prepare to purchase my firstbike.

One of my good friends just picked up this bike. It's priced at around 900, so a decent starter bike, though the components are not great.

I am currently debating between these two bikes for myself:

Cannondale Caad9-5

and the Felt F85

Both use 105 components which seem to be solid components that you won't need to replace right away as you become a more advanced rider. (Brr, are you surethe 9-5 uses tiagra on the back? From my understanding they're fitted with 105 components throughout.)

Anyways, I hear the 2010 Cannondales should be hitting at the end of this month, so I am contemplating holding out for those, but I'm not quite sure.You're very limited in terms of finding cannondales on the cheap. Your LBS is your best and pretty much only bet since Cannondale does not allow theirdealers to ship any of their bikes.

 

[capo617]

I dont really mess with the road bikes and all that like you guys but I BMX. Always fun cruising around in the city, jumping over random things, weavingthrough traffic just having fun.

 

[airmaxpenny1]

I ride a bike around the city that currently doesn't have a seat.

Getting from A to B

 

[after h0urs]

I just got a Trek 7.3FX:

I really like it so far, but want to replace the seat. Anyone have any recommendations?

 

[fugualarmclock]

Looking for a road/commuter type bike I could use for riding a century in a few months. No geared bike riding experience (BMX only when I was a kid) and budgetis up to $600. Probably a 48cm to 50cm frame. I'm have short legs.

 

[wegotthis]

I was going to start a similar thread myself.

I am going up to Berkeley this august to attend Cal and I won't be taking my car up there. Can someone recommend me some decent used road bikes that I canpick up off of craigslist for about 150-200?? I went to a nearby bike shop and road bikes went from 1000-8000 ...

Don't need anything fancy, especially since things get stolen a lot up there around campus....

 

[boys noize]

Originally Posted by weGOTthis

I was going to start a similar thread myself.

I am going up to Berkeley this august to attend Cal and I won't be taking my car up there. Can someone recommend me some decent used road bikes that I can pick up off of craigslist for about 150-200?? I went to a nearby bike shop and road bikes went from 1000-8000 ...

Don't need anything fancy, especially since things get stolen a lot up there around campus....

Bikes get stolen regularly at Cal. It's disgusting walking down the street and seeing all the mangled bikes missing everything but the frame.

If you bike at Cal, invest in a really good lock + maybe a cable to attach to the lock too. I'd also recommend not leaving anything outside overnight.

 

[jcuk3tm0]

Originally Posted by Kiddin Like Jason

brr, the CAAD9s were exactly what I had my eye on, too.

Too out of my price range for now, though.

I've tried to go by the "Lemond System" online for my frame size, and it put me somewhere between 60-62. Judging by what I've seen, it isn't very easy finding bikes that size.

Anyway, thanks for the advice. Let's keep this going.

been thinking about getting a bike or new golf clubs. how much do road bikes go for?

Anywhere from $150-$12,000.

I'm obviously no expert, but I'd say you can acquire a very capable road bike for a few hundred dollars.

looks like im getting some irons first. i really want to get into riding but it seems so expensive

 

[knightngale]

I used to ride bikes a lot when I was a kid but now I know nothing about them

what's a good cheap bike to ride in the city/cement/asphalt?

 

[wegotthis]

Wow this thread is full of questions but no answers...

Any bike experts on NT? Our cycling community is lacking big time haha.

 

[kiddin like jason]

I mean, like anything else, you can spend more money and get a fancy product that works great, or you can spend less and get something that isn'ttop-notch, but still gets the job done.

I have a $150 Schwinn that I got from Target. Is it great? Hell no, but it serves its purpose, and as I mentioned, I didn't want to spend much on a firstbike, especially if I decided it wasn't a hobby I would continue to pursue long-term.

what's a good cheap bike to ride in the city/cement/asphalt?

You want a road bike. Schwinn seems to be the staple "cheap" brand and you can find them anywhere.

When most people think of "cycling", I assume they think of, like, Lance Armstrong and the Tour de France. Those are road bikes.

Road bikes are for pavement. They have drop handlebars and an overall more compact build.

Mountain bikes are for off-road surfaces. They have straight handlebars, are bigger and built to take a beating. There are different varieties.

Hybrids are a combination of both. They usually have road bike tires, and essentially mountain bike everything else.

Obviously, that's just a very brief overview. I'm sure somebody with more bicycle knowledge could add an endless amount of information to what I said.

I made the mistake of getting a hybrid, when I ride strictly paved surfaces. I thought I couldn't go wrong with the best of both worlds, but I wasmistaken; a road bike would have been perfect for me. That's what I get for not reading enough into bikes first.

http://www.omninerd.com/articles/Cycling_A_Quick_Start_on_the_Right_Path

 

[mayhemmonkey000]

Hybrid bikes are a waste to me... I have not ridden one I liked so far.

 

[kiddin like jason]

Yeah, I'm stupid.

 

[mayhemmonkey000]

Don't worry, it was my first pick up too

. Forgot what that POSwas... I was on a budget and I like to go to the mountains a lot but like to cycle a lot to stay in shape, so I was like what the hell. Horrible choice on mypart. Ride on the mountains felt horrible and I felt like I had a clunky piece of metal with me when I went cycling. Still have my pops old Trek 520, mightbrush it off after seeing this. I haven't touched in about 2 years. Now when I hop on a bike it's only when I decide to go to the mountains.

 

[juan baller]

Road bikes are built for speed, so they don't hold up to less than ideal conditions as well as mountain bikes and hybrids.

Hybrids is a very broad category. I think you're referring to entry level bikes that you are often the bike of choice at rental shops near the beach andolder folks who ride casually for exercise.

As someone who would never own multiple bikes (not counting a beater for bad weather), I swear by cross bikes, also referred to as cyclo-cross or CX bikes,which are basically road bikes modified to handle more surfaces than just smooth pavement.

Currently riding a 2008 Trek XO2.

 

[wegotthis]

but don't you think something used off craigslist for 150 would be 10 times better than getting something new from target/cosco/walmart for the same $150???

im totally fine with used.

 

[smokey13]

Originally Posted by weGOTthis

but don't you think something used off craigslist for 150 would be 10 times better than getting something new from target/cosco/walmart for the same $150 ???

im totally fine with used.

I think you're better off with CL. Only thing is you might wanna get the bike tuned up. What kinda bike you looking for? road or mountain?

 

[wegotthis]

definitely road. This is a bad analogy but what would the toyota camry/honda civic of road bikes be?!?!? Something that will still run smooth even though its5-10 years old and not fall apart... I dont want a Ford Taurus or Dodge Neons haha... I'm looking to spend about 150.. maybe 200 if i can get somethingthat will not only be good for commuting, but if I can actually use it to give cycling a shot and to stay fit.

 

[superofficial]

I ride an older Trek, I've been getting into Duathlons. My buddy got me into them, he does Tri's, and does them well. I'm not about to swim a milethough, I want to live afterward, haha... anyways, he rides this:
http://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/thebikes/road/ventura/09_venturarace.html

but he's looking at getting this:
http://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/thebikes/road/xenith/09_xenithpro.html

3700 bucks for a bike!!
I told him he's ridiculous, but he's set on it.

 

[brrraptors]

the thing about road bikes is, you're only going to love riding it if you're comfortable in your bike. by that i mean, you have to be fitted to yourbike by a pro. buying from ebay/craigslist/classifieds saves you money but only if you know what you're doing. if you know your frame size based on thegeometry of the frame then you can go ahead and buy used frame that fits you and then tweak the rest of the setup for your body. if you have an expensive roadbike with amazing components that dont fit your body right then you will experience discomfort, pain (especially early fatiguing of your leg muscles), necksoreness, etc. that would defeat the purpose of you having spent all that money on the machine. heres why buying an entry level road bike from a local bikeshop makes sense:
- they fit you to your frame. including saddle hide, saddle position, stem size/angle etc
- usually that fitting costs anywhere from $75-150 or more depending on how detailed the fitting session is, but if you buy a bike frm them its usually free
- they give you free tuneups for the first little while
- if you maintain a good relation they can hook you up with some deals down the road for upgrades
- good local bike shops stand behind their service so if there is a problem with the bike you will get it fixed for free if its a manufacturing fault,something you cannot with used bikes from other owners.

my Fuji Roubaix has 105 shifters and my front shifter jammed awhile ago. i took it to the shop i got it from and the guy opened it up to find out that thelittle ratchetting gear was completely broken. he doesn't charge me for his time or labor and instead of sending the part to shimano and waiting for areplacement he just gives me a new one and said he'll handle the warranty issues on his own. if i had taken this problem into a random shop after havingbought the bike from classified i'd have paid a few hundred outta my pocket.