What do I need to know about road bikes?
Discussion
Over the last few weeks I've started riding to work again - 7 miles each way. I've done this in spring/summers in the past but this time I'm enjoying it a bit more as I'm a bit fitter. So as I'm doing it more I'm thinking of getting a road bike.
I have the cycle to work scheme option, but I've had my current MTB for about 4yrs or so now so am thinking of saving that option for a new MTB and getting a second hand road bike from ebay or a local bike shop. At the mo I try and ride 2 or 3 times a week depending on the weather so think its worth spending about £300 - will that get me a reasonable bike? Or should I use the cycle to work scheme and get a decent one straight off as I seem to be doing less weekend rides lately. And if so, what do I need? I notice they seem to come with varying numbers of gears - are more neccesarily better? And I assume I should look for a bike with those fancy pedals with clips on and get some compatable shoes? If I brought a bike of ebay what sort of frame size should I go for, I'm 5'9".
Sorry for the dumb questions but my only experience of road bikes was a 2min ride on mate at schools about 15yrs ago and all I can remember is that the handle bars made me wobble!
I've already got my commute down to 23mins from 27mins over the last 3weeks so am hoping a road bike will help me crack 20mins... does that seem reasonable? (Currently on a full suss with no lock out option but its quite light)
I have the cycle to work scheme option, but I've had my current MTB for about 4yrs or so now so am thinking of saving that option for a new MTB and getting a second hand road bike from ebay or a local bike shop. At the mo I try and ride 2 or 3 times a week depending on the weather so think its worth spending about £300 - will that get me a reasonable bike? Or should I use the cycle to work scheme and get a decent one straight off as I seem to be doing less weekend rides lately. And if so, what do I need? I notice they seem to come with varying numbers of gears - are more neccesarily better? And I assume I should look for a bike with those fancy pedals with clips on and get some compatable shoes? If I brought a bike of ebay what sort of frame size should I go for, I'm 5'9".
Sorry for the dumb questions but my only experience of road bikes was a 2min ride on mate at schools about 15yrs ago and all I can remember is that the handle bars made me wobble!
I've already got my commute down to 23mins from 27mins over the last 3weeks so am hoping a road bike will help me crack 20mins... does that seem reasonable? (Currently on a full suss with no lock out option but its quite light)
Get a proper road bike and be one of the elite. You can then wear proper road shorts, not those baggy jobs that show your wedding tackle to the World.
The clue is in the name, ie. "Road Bike". They are meant to be ridden on the road. MTBs are for everywhere else, marshes, deserts, jungles and inner city centres.
Road bikes run silently on the tarmac and do not sound like a swawm of demented bees, a noise which frightens horses and old maids. The same old maids are turned into raving nymphos by the sight of smooth well fettled legs flashing in the sunlight. Road bike riders also develop an inbuilt ability to look condesendingly at all tintops in their Porsches and Lambos.
The clue is in the name, ie. "Road Bike". They are meant to be ridden on the road. MTBs are for everywhere else, marshes, deserts, jungles and inner city centres.
Road bikes run silently on the tarmac and do not sound like a swawm of demented bees, a noise which frightens horses and old maids. The same old maids are turned into raving nymphos by the sight of smooth well fettled legs flashing in the sunlight. Road bike riders also develop an inbuilt ability to look condesendingly at all tintops in their Porsches and Lambos.
P-Jay said:
Stick with the MTB and get up earlier. It'll make you fitter not to mention the obvious downsids of being a "Roadie". Shaving your legs and having to tell your parents you're Ghey.
Hmmmmmm, this kind of post on a car forum of all places!!!! it kinda like saying "Don't bother buying that elise, stick with your land rover discovery because it'll save telling your friends you're ghay"See my point?
P.s road bikes are where its at!
gorisan26 said:
P-Jay said:
Stick with the MTB and get up earlier. It'll make you fitter not to mention the obvious downsids of being a "Roadie". Shaving your legs and having to tell your parents you're Ghey.
Hmmmmmm, this kind of post on a car forum of all places!!!! it kinda like saying "Don't bother buying that elise, stick with your land rover discovery because it'll save telling your friends you're ghay"See my point?
P.s road bikes are where its at!
Road Bikes have just never appealed to me. Perhaps it’s a subject for a new thread. But I can’t see the pay off? I can see they’re super efficient and quick, in a straight-line kind of way. But where’s the thrill? Read some threads on Bikeradar and the most important thing about it seems to be riding within a few mm of your mates and scouring the ground ahead for tricky little pebbles.
My LBS has offered me some kind of Road thing Demo for a weekend. If anyone can tell me where the adrenaline comes from (aside from nearly getting run over by trucks and buses) I’ll eat my words and try a ride on one for a day.
P-Jay said:
If anyone can tell me where the adrenaline comes from (aside from nearly getting run over by trucks and buses) I’ll eat my words and try a ride on one for a day.
An early morning country road ride in summer, just before the heat starts to build, clear blue sky, no wind, no traffic, moving along effortlessly at 25mph, hearing nothing but the tyres on the road and the whirr of the chain. It's a zen moment I tell ya, a zen moment 
As the poster says above, I don't see the real point in using an out & out MTB on the road. You just wear out your expensive knobbly tyres and there is no need for super expensive brakes or suspension which are essentialfor getting down a mountain on rough tracke.
Personally - unless you are going to get into time trials, triathlons etc, I would get a lightweight hybrid/flat handlebar road bike. They are more comfortable to ride and usually a bit more robust than an out and out racer. They are great for fitness training, and you can put good mudguards on them for winter/wet use, and the bigger, slimmer wheels make for faster riding. You can often take them on dryish trails too.
All the major manufacturers, Specialized, Marin etc make them now.
Personally - unless you are going to get into time trials, triathlons etc, I would get a lightweight hybrid/flat handlebar road bike. They are more comfortable to ride and usually a bit more robust than an out and out racer. They are great for fitness training, and you can put good mudguards on them for winter/wet use, and the bigger, slimmer wheels make for faster riding. You can often take them on dryish trails too.
All the major manufacturers, Specialized, Marin etc make them now.
The Londoner said:
P-Jay said:
If anyone can tell me where the adrenaline comes from (aside from nearly getting run over by trucks and buses) I’ll eat my words and try a ride on one for a day.
An early morning country road ride in summer, just before the heat starts to build, clear blue sky, no wind, no traffic, moving along effortlessly at 25mph, hearing nothing but the tyres on the road and the whirr of the chain. It's a zen moment I tell ya, a zen moment Works for me.
If you need to ride on the road, then you need a road bike. As well. Obviously.
Something with Shimano Tiagra STIs and rear mech as a minimum - Giant SCR or Spesh Allez are a good place to start - I can't believe there are posters on this thread advocating that you shoudn't buy more kit...!
Hmm, looks like I've started a bit of a road v MTB debate here!?
Surely there's people on here who have a bike fit for each purpose?
It just seems crazy for me to carry on using my MTB for road use when I'll be clocking up 30 to 50 miles per week soley on the road.
Also, I wana know if I'll still get overtaken by guys on their road bikes if I had a road bike too.... or are they really that much faster and fitter than I am? (more than likely!) How much faster are road bikes compared to MTB's? 10%? 20%?
Anyways, after reading this entertaining thread I'm afraid I'm still none the wiser for what I need on a road bike. i.e. how many gears ideally, roughly what frame size, and do the clipless pedals really make much difference?
Surely there's people on here who have a bike fit for each purpose?
It just seems crazy for me to carry on using my MTB for road use when I'll be clocking up 30 to 50 miles per week soley on the road.
Also, I wana know if I'll still get overtaken by guys on their road bikes if I had a road bike too.... or are they really that much faster and fitter than I am? (more than likely!) How much faster are road bikes compared to MTB's? 10%? 20%?
Anyways, after reading this entertaining thread I'm afraid I'm still none the wiser for what I need on a road bike. i.e. how many gears ideally, roughly what frame size, and do the clipless pedals really make much difference?
Dan-S2k said:
Hmm, looks like I've started a bit of a road v MTB debate here!?
Surely there's people on here who have a bike fit for each purpose?
It just seems crazy for me to carry on using my MTB for road use when I'll be clocking up 30 to 50 miles per week soley on the road.
Also, I wana know if I'll still get overtaken by guys on their road bikes if I had a road bike too.... or are they really that much faster and fitter than I am? (more than likely!) How much faster are road bikes compared to MTB's? 10%? 20%?
Anyways, after reading this entertaining thread I'm afraid I'm still none the wiser for what I need on a road bike. i.e. how many gears ideally, roughly what frame size, and do the clipless pedals really make much difference?
£500 will get you a good quality aluminium frame/carbon forks combo from a big name brand. You're almost certainly looking at a 9spd set-up, with a double at the front.Surely there's people on here who have a bike fit for each purpose?
It just seems crazy for me to carry on using my MTB for road use when I'll be clocking up 30 to 50 miles per week soley on the road.
Also, I wana know if I'll still get overtaken by guys on their road bikes if I had a road bike too.... or are they really that much faster and fitter than I am? (more than likely!) How much faster are road bikes compared to MTB's? 10%? 20%?
Anyways, after reading this entertaining thread I'm afraid I'm still none the wiser for what I need on a road bike. i.e. how many gears ideally, roughly what frame size, and do the clipless pedals really make much difference?
STI (combined shifter/brake lever jobbies) quality is important - and they're one of the priciest components on a road bike - look for Shimano Tiagra or above; ditto the rear mech.
Shimano road groupsets run Sora, Tiagra, 105, Ultegra and Dura-Ace - roughly equivalent to Alivio, Deore, LX, XT and XTR in MTB terms. 10spd from 105 upwards.
Brakes are not terribly important.
Fit is critical, more so than with an MTB, particularly if you're going to use SPDs, so try before you buy. SPD's make a big difference and are well worth having.
Depending on how much gubbins you want to carry, and how bothered you are about getting filthy in the rain you may prefer to look at a flat-bar commuter/tourer that can take a pannier rack and full mudguards and will have a heavier frame with more relaxed geometry than an out-and-out race bike. Flipside is it won't be much quicker than your MTB would be with a set of narrow slicks on it - which takes you back to square one.
Answer to your questions -
a) Gears: If you opt for the common standard, you'll end up with 18 gears. These will usually have controllers built into the brake levers and you push them from side to side to change up and down and are pretty good (no more reaching down to the levers on the downtube). Shimano are very common, and good, but there are also lots of other makes which are equally good (Campagnolo, Bianchi, Ritchey, FSA etc.) I cycle to work on my mtb/hybrid commuter with only 1 gear, and get along fine, so that's worth looking at if you like the simple, stripped down life. Unlike MTBs, most standard road bikes have only two front chainrings. More commonly you are seeing 3 rings on bikes, but usually on lower end "beginner" racers, so that hill climbs aren't so much of an effort. You will find though as you improve, that the bikes are so light you don't really need a small granny ring unless you are planning to ride up Mont Blanc.
b) Clips are vital - they connect you to the bike more efficiently and allow you to pull as well as push with your legs during the pedal stroke - a strange feeling at first, but a very effective technique to develop. Make sure you practice and get used to clipping in and out fast, or you will give other drivers a few laughs at the traffic lights!
c) As for sizing - go to a shop and get measured up as bike fit (frame size, saddle height, position, stem height, angle & length). This is perhaps more important on a road bike than a mountain bike. You you will want to be in the "crouch" position for a long time while riding, and if you're fitted wrong it will be agony and you won't be able to get the power down effectively, and potentially you will damage your knees. If you find you are more comfortable just leaning on the tops of the bars, and getting an aerodynamic position is not a priority for you, then seriously consider buying a flat handlebar version or hybrid (as mentioned in my post above), because the drop bars are just a waste of metal if you never use them.
a) Gears: If you opt for the common standard, you'll end up with 18 gears. These will usually have controllers built into the brake levers and you push them from side to side to change up and down and are pretty good (no more reaching down to the levers on the downtube). Shimano are very common, and good, but there are also lots of other makes which are equally good (Campagnolo, Bianchi, Ritchey, FSA etc.) I cycle to work on my mtb/hybrid commuter with only 1 gear, and get along fine, so that's worth looking at if you like the simple, stripped down life. Unlike MTBs, most standard road bikes have only two front chainrings. More commonly you are seeing 3 rings on bikes, but usually on lower end "beginner" racers, so that hill climbs aren't so much of an effort. You will find though as you improve, that the bikes are so light you don't really need a small granny ring unless you are planning to ride up Mont Blanc.
b) Clips are vital - they connect you to the bike more efficiently and allow you to pull as well as push with your legs during the pedal stroke - a strange feeling at first, but a very effective technique to develop. Make sure you practice and get used to clipping in and out fast, or you will give other drivers a few laughs at the traffic lights!
c) As for sizing - go to a shop and get measured up as bike fit (frame size, saddle height, position, stem height, angle & length). This is perhaps more important on a road bike than a mountain bike. You you will want to be in the "crouch" position for a long time while riding, and if you're fitted wrong it will be agony and you won't be able to get the power down effectively, and potentially you will damage your knees. If you find you are more comfortable just leaning on the tops of the bars, and getting an aerodynamic position is not a priority for you, then seriously consider buying a flat handlebar version or hybrid (as mentioned in my post above), because the drop bars are just a waste of metal if you never use them.
Thanks Nick and Prand, thats exactly what I needed to know. Can start browsing ebay properly now. Anywhere else I should look for a second hand road bike - had a brief look at BikeRadar forum at lunchtime and there seems to be a fair few bikes on there.
Anyways, carry on with your MTB v Roady debate.... who really is coolest?!
Anyways, carry on with your MTB v Roady debate.... who really is coolest?!
prand said:
Personally - unless you are going to get into time trials, triathlons etc, I would get a lightweight hybrid/flat handlebar road bike. They are more comfortable to ride and usually a bit more robust than an out and out racer. They are great for fitness training, and you can put good mudguards on them for winter/wet use, and the bigger, slimmer wheels make for faster riding. You can often take them on dryish trails too.
All the major manufacturers, Specialized, Marin etc make them now.
Damn you. I didn't want to spend money on a new bike.All the major manufacturers, Specialized, Marin etc make them now.
http://www.marin.co.uk/2008/bikedetail.php?ModNo=3...
I ride both MTB and road, and i manage to get adrenaline from both! If you're not getting an adrenaline hit on a road bike, you're not going fast enough!
Its simply about purpose, what would you rather do, expend more time and energy on commuting or get there faster and be home faster ready for a ride on the mtb?
Also, i vote for the Giant SCR3.0. A mate bought one earlier this year and he's done well over 2500 on it since march with no problems. It managed LEJOG with absolutely no problems.
Its simply about purpose, what would you rather do, expend more time and energy on commuting or get there faster and be home faster ready for a ride on the mtb?
Also, i vote for the Giant SCR3.0. A mate bought one earlier this year and he's done well over 2500 on it since march with no problems. It managed LEJOG with absolutely no problems.
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