Any road racing cyclists here?
Discussion
I'm looking to get into some competitve road cycling next year, including the 24hr Rad Am Ring. Ideally, I'd like to stick to the £750 mark for a bike and current choices include the 2008 Specialized Allez Elite (£640 at my local bike shop), which is now discounted due to being 'old' stock, or an entry level Wilier, which is around the £800 (upwards lol). The Wilier is a full carbon fibre body. I picked one up today... it felt like a piece of paper and make the Allez Elite feel like my mountain bike! 
Any suggestions from you guys?
Any suggestions from you guys?
Edited by 5H4K on Tuesday 16th September 23:52
IMO up to a grand you generally get what you pay for - lighter, better quality components, etc. A lighter bike isn't always better - aerodynamics often add weight because of profiling for example, so it depends what you intend to ride.
Personally though I go for lightness simply because it makes the bike easier to accelerate and climb, so from your options I'd go for the Willier. I've got both Al-framed & carbon bikes and prefer carbon for comfort and the way they ride.
I think the best advice is to concentrate on the frame itself, because you can upgrade the wheels/saddle/bars later if you wish, whereas changing the frame is new bike time. So pick a good frame which has got cheap wheels/gears to get into the budget bracket rather than one which has been dressed up with bling components.
It's all subjective though, you're usually best trying to ride an example of the serious contenders to see how they suit you. Although most road bikes are similar geometry there are differences in forks/wheelbase/top tube lengths, etc which can have a big effect on your comfort.
If you can, I'd wait until the end of the year because there's usually quite a few discounts of last years' bikes around in Nov/Dec and the colour makes no difference to how fast it goes !
Personally though I go for lightness simply because it makes the bike easier to accelerate and climb, so from your options I'd go for the Willier. I've got both Al-framed & carbon bikes and prefer carbon for comfort and the way they ride.
I think the best advice is to concentrate on the frame itself, because you can upgrade the wheels/saddle/bars later if you wish, whereas changing the frame is new bike time. So pick a good frame which has got cheap wheels/gears to get into the budget bracket rather than one which has been dressed up with bling components.
It's all subjective though, you're usually best trying to ride an example of the serious contenders to see how they suit you. Although most road bikes are similar geometry there are differences in forks/wheelbase/top tube lengths, etc which can have a big effect on your comfort.
If you can, I'd wait until the end of the year because there's usually quite a few discounts of last years' bikes around in Nov/Dec and the colour makes no difference to how fast it goes !
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