Buying a bike for Nurburgring 24hr - what do you recommend?
Discussion
Had mountain bikes for years, but plan to buy my first racer. Don't know where to start.
Will be used for training and eventually the 24hr Nurburgring cycle race next summer.
Budget is £600-£800, although can stretch slightly if it gets me something significantly better. Ideally looking for a end of season bike that is worth £1000 but not sure if this is possible.
What do you folks recommend. With all the other hobbies I have I can't go mad on cost.
Thanks!
Will be used for training and eventually the 24hr Nurburgring cycle race next summer.
Budget is £600-£800, although can stretch slightly if it gets me something significantly better. Ideally looking for a end of season bike that is worth £1000 but not sure if this is possible.
What do you folks recommend. With all the other hobbies I have I can't go mad on cost.
Thanks!
Canyon Roadlite would be the best value for money but I appreciate some people dont like buying blind.
http://www.canyon.com/_en/roadbikes/series/roadlit...
Planet X or Ribble for a sort of mid way compromise between "direct from suppler" and "retail", again good value for money and tried and tested bikes.
Less popular brands like Cube, Genesis and Pinnacle offer good value for money too but they arent as easily found on the high street.
Then you have Giant, Specialised, Trek etc for off the peg, widely available bikes from multiple retail outlets but dont quite offer the same value for money.
The most important thing is the fit so do your research and dig around all the other forums as people often but their size and measurements for Canyons to help prospective buyers. There is no point getting a bargain if its the wrong size...
If you can stretch your budget to £900 this would be a good buy http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m7b0s6p4908/GIANT-TCR... and all sizes in stock
That Canyon looks ideal for the money, and you see plenty of them at that event. It would be a good choice.
I did that event first time out on an £800 aluminium Trek and it was fine, no problems at all. The legs matter much more than the bike for that event. The only thing is to make sure you get something with a suitable granny gear for slogging up the steep climbs at 3am in the rain.
Having said that, the Canyon is 48/34 with an 11-32. That seems a bit crazily short-geared to me. 50/34 with an 11-28 is ideal.
Same some budget to buy a really good front light, you'll be glad you did.
ETA, ignore my comment about the gearing on that Canyon, I think I was looking at the women's model!
I did that event first time out on an £800 aluminium Trek and it was fine, no problems at all. The legs matter much more than the bike for that event. The only thing is to make sure you get something with a suitable granny gear for slogging up the steep climbs at 3am in the rain.
Having said that, the Canyon is 48/34 with an 11-32. That seems a bit crazily short-geared to me. 50/34 with an 11-28 is ideal.
Same some budget to buy a really good front light, you'll be glad you did.
ETA, ignore my comment about the gearing on that Canyon, I think I was looking at the women's model!
Edited by Birdthom on Monday 4th November 10:06
TBH, I'd find a decent bike shop that's fairly near you and see what they have and recommend. You would be hard placed to buy a bad bike at that price and ensuring the bike fits you well will be key if it is your first road bike. Some shops have have had better deals that on-line stores, although they obviously have a limited selection compared to online retailers.
Dont get me wrong online is great when you know what you want and are willing to take the risk, but for first bikes I'd go LBS all the time.
Dont get me wrong online is great when you know what you want and are willing to take the risk, but for first bikes I'd go LBS all the time.
Birdthom said:
That Canyon looks ideal for the money, and you see plenty of them at that event. It would be a good choice.
I did that event first time out on an £800 aluminium Trek and it was fine, no problems at all. The legs matter much more than the bike for that event. The only thing is to make sure you get something with a suitable granny gear for slogging up the steep climbs at 3am in the rain.
Having said that, the Canyon is 48/34 with an 11-32. That seems a bit crazily short-geared to me. 50/34 with an 11-28 is ideal.
Same some budget to buy a really good front light, you'll be glad you did.
ETA, ignore my comment about the gearing on that Canyon, I think I was looking at the women's model!
48/34 11x32 is the Apex model. I agree 34x32 is lower than usual for a road bike, but it does mean absolutely anyone should get up any hill.I did that event first time out on an £800 aluminium Trek and it was fine, no problems at all. The legs matter much more than the bike for that event. The only thing is to make sure you get something with a suitable granny gear for slogging up the steep climbs at 3am in the rain.
Having said that, the Canyon is 48/34 with an 11-32. That seems a bit crazily short-geared to me. 50/34 with an 11-28 is ideal.
Same some budget to buy a really good front light, you'll be glad you did.
ETA, ignore my comment about the gearing on that Canyon, I think I was looking at the women's model!
I was just looking at the profile of the Nurburgring (in cycling terms)... http://ridewithgps.com/routes/2538021 - it looks like there's only one really nasty hill: just after Karussell it rises 100m in the space of 1km, peaking at ~17%.
~€100 per competitor... not bad value...
Gizmoish said:
48/34 11x32 is the Apex model. I agree 34x32 is lower than usual for a road bike, but it does mean absolutely anyone should get up any hill.
I was just looking at the profile of the Nurburgring (in cycling terms)... http://ridewithgps.com/routes/2538021 - it looks like there's only one really nasty hill: just after Karussell it rises 100m in the space of 1km, peaking at ~17%.
~€100 per competitor... not bad value...
The 17% bit at the top of hohe acht is usually OK, as you know the end is near and you can just get out of the saddle and stamp your way up. It's the mile or two steady grinding up Kesselchen which seems toughest. It's a real eye-opener going round on a bike though, as there are lots of short sharp climbs which you don't even notice in a car but they really disrupt your rhythm on a bike, e.g. flugplatz and ex muhle.I was just looking at the profile of the Nurburgring (in cycling terms)... http://ridewithgps.com/routes/2538021 - it looks like there's only one really nasty hill: just after Karussell it rises 100m in the space of 1km, peaking at ~17%.
~€100 per competitor... not bad value...
Its worth looking at some latex tubes and something like conti tt clincher tyres too for the actual event. I dont know what the nurburgring is like compareds to other race circuits but the tarmac is usually quite a high standard and it makes sense to take advantage of that rather than roll around on hard compound tyres
Whatever you buy make sure it has a decent set of brakes, well bedded in that you are confident with, you'll be hitting in excess of 80 kmh in some of the descents, possibly in the wet & certainly in the dark, the better your brakes, the faster you'll go.
If it's wet then it really is a lottery, even more so than on 4 wheels, it's also hard to carry the momentum you may have gathered into ascents that follow sharp corners, Ex Muhle for example. It's a great ride round the Ring and if you can get out there before the event, get out and do one of the official evening rides. I've done it several times now, it's nails.
If it's wet then it really is a lottery, even more so than on 4 wheels, it's also hard to carry the momentum you may have gathered into ascents that follow sharp corners, Ex Muhle for example. It's a great ride round the Ring and if you can get out there before the event, get out and do one of the official evening rides. I've done it several times now, it's nails.
matt21 said:
Had mountain bikes for years, but plan to buy my first racer. Don't know where to start.
Will be used for training and eventually the 24hr Nurburgring cycle race next summer.
Budget is £600-£800, although can stretch slightly if it gets me something significantly better. Ideally looking for a end of season bike that is worth £1000 but not sure if this is possible.
What do you folks recommend. With all the other hobbies I have I can't go mad on cost.
Thanks!
2014 will be my fourth radamring and it is a great eventWill be used for training and eventually the 24hr Nurburgring cycle race next summer.
Budget is £600-£800, although can stretch slightly if it gets me something significantly better. Ideally looking for a end of season bike that is worth £1000 but not sure if this is possible.
What do you folks recommend. With all the other hobbies I have I can't go mad on cost.
Thanks!
I recommend you get a fit from a reputable local fitter, 24 hrs on a bike is a long old time to be uncomfortable.
Have a think about your contact points. Many long distance (Audax) cyclists use Brooks saddles - if you want to get one, get it now & break it in.
SQ Lab also have a terrific reputation amongst more 'modern' saddle companies.
Best of luck, it sounds an awesome event.
Have a think about your contact points. Many long distance (Audax) cyclists use Brooks saddles - if you want to get one, get it now & break it in.
SQ Lab also have a terrific reputation amongst more 'modern' saddle companies.
Best of luck, it sounds an awesome event.
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