Which Hybrid

[Mark Samuels]

Long time lurker, and sorry for the dull first post.
Torn between Cannondale Bad Boy 700 2008/2009 and Felt QX85. I can get the Felt cheaper (through Wiggle), but should I stop being so tight?
Pretty certain I want a hybrid with no suspension and 700 rims. Just back to cycling with 6 mile commute, none of which is flat. Do these 2 sound any good, or should I buy something else?

[littleandy0410]

Have you considered the Boardman Hybrid? Halfords (the only supplier) have 10% off everything at the moment. I have one of their road bikes, and they are very good spec for the money.

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...

[PhilLL]

There's a couple of badboys on ebay worth looking at possibly?

[beanbag]

I bought a Specialized Sirrus back in May and I haven't looked back.

It's a superb bike! Very nimble, fast and very light plus it looks great. It's also a lot cheaper than the Cannondale (which I also tried and they're great bikes), but they are very very expensive for what you get.

Either way, try as many as you can and just pick what you're comfortable with and whatever you can afford.

[Mark Samuels]

Thanks for the response so far.
I have been watching Ebay and they seem to go for about £400 used. I can organise a 'ride to work' scheme through the company so I will buy new (safe in the knowledge that it will sell well 12 months down the line).
Looked at the Boardman range at Halfords but was put off by the whole Halfords experience.
Glad to hear about your good experience of the Sirrus. Saw one at Evans and liked the look of it. I didn't ride one, but did ride the Cannondale and liked it. I suppose I need to hear from someone who has bought either the Felt or the Cannondale that they are ok.

[Sarkmeister]

I bought a Genesis Day 01 last year, cant fault it. Its closer to to road bike than most hybrids though, so isnt much use if you intend doing some mild off road.

[Sarkmeister]

I bought a Genesis Day 01 last year, cant fault it. Its closer to to road bike than most hybrids though, so isnt much use if you intend doing some mild off road.

[beanbag]

Sarkmeister said:

I bought a Genesis Day 01 last year, cant fault it. Its closer to to road bike than most hybrids though, so isnt much use if you intend doing some mild off road.

I think most good hybrids are too close to road bikes for any off-road use. My Sirrus uses 28c's and I think the biggest I saw were the Treks using 38c's.

I've also got zero suspension on my Sirrus and the gearing is designed for road use so in a nutshell, it would be suicide off-road!

[snotrag]

beanbag said:

I think most good hybrids are too close to road bikes for any off-road use. My Sirrus uses 28c's and I think the biggest I saw were the Treks using 38c's.

On the Contrary, something like a Marin Muirwoods or Cannondale Badboy could be rather well suited to light offroad use, and they are both very good bikes.

[Sarkmeister]

snotrag said:

beanbag said:

I think most good hybrids are too close to road bikes for any off-road use. My Sirrus uses 28c's and I think the biggest I saw were the Treks using 38c's.

On the Contrary, something like a Marin Muirwoods or Cannondale Badboy could be rather well suited to light offroad use, and they are both very good bikes.

I agree. I didnt intend going off road when I bought my Day 01. I bought the hybrid instead of a road bike simply for the flat bars, which would be better for heavy traffic IMO. The variety of bikes that go under the term "hybrid" is immense. If you intend going on tow-paths etc id edge towards the mountain bike end of the range....

[Mark Samuels]

The only off road section of my commute is through a large park with a proper gravel type path - hardly intrepid! I think the narrow road tyres will be more use because I won't go through the park in winter(too dark and muddy), and the rest of the journey is either climbing or descending on normal roads.
Thanks for all your comments so far,

[beanbag]

Mark Samuels said:

The only off road section of my commute is through a large park with a proper gravel type path - hardly intrepid! I think the narrow road tyres will be more use because I won't go through the park in winter(too dark and muddy), and the rest of the journey is either climbing or descending on normal roads.
Thanks for all your comments so far,

Gravel is fine on 28c's. Just don't go near soggy grass....you sink like a rock....(from personal experience).

[Sarkmeister]

beanbag said:

Mark Samuels said:

The only off road section of my commute is through a large park with a proper gravel type path - hardly intrepid! I think the narrow road tyres will be more use because I won't go through the park in winter(too dark and muddy), and the rest of the journey is either climbing or descending on normal roads.
Thanks for all your comments so far,

Gravel is fine on 28c's. Just don't go near soggy grass....you sink like a rock....(from personal experience).

Or sand. I once accidentally road through a thin layer of sand on a road once, ended up on my arse straight away....

[Kuroblack350]

Interesting thread, I'm in the same boat having decided (15 years after my last one!) to get a bike again. Mainly as an enjoyment thing, but also for the occasional 9 mile commute to work.

I've been browsing the hybrids as ideally I'd like it to be more than a road bike.

Just wondering, without hijacking the thread too much, what's the best way to build up my knowledge before starting to look around?

We have a cycle to work scheme here, so my budget is perhaps £750-£1000. I recognise some of the brands, but wouldn't have any clue of good from bad

Thanks all

[jacobyte]

I bought mrs 'byte a Trek 7.5. It's great on road and on flat gravel footpaths. It came with 28C tyres, but for wet weather I've fitted 32C semi-chuny tyres They just about fit between the chainstays and are very sure-footed.

[snotrag]

Kuroblack350 said:

Just wondering, without hijacking the thread too much, what's the best way to build up my knowledge before starting to look around?

Find a couple of reputable local bike shops, go in and see them. If there any good, they'll be friendly, you'll get lots of advice, you can pull a load of different style bikes out and try them, see and feel the differences. Its the only way.

I can stand and talk to a customer about why (for instance) the longer headtube on Bike A makes it more suited to them than Bike B, because it will put less pressure on their dodgy lower back, for hours and they will look at me with that glazed over face...

Until I can finally persuade them to take them for a lap of the carpark, and lo, suddenly its so obvious!

Theres a lot more to a good bicycle than the sum of its parts. Its about how it suits your needs, how it fits, and how it feels.

[beanbag]

snotrag said:

Theres a lot more to a good bicycle than the sum of its parts. Its about how it suits your needs, how it fits, and how it feels.

I couldn't have put it better. So many go on about how great their component set is yet their frame is a pile of crap because they chose some obscure bike manufacturer skimping on the frame geometry and design.

A great example of this is Canyon bikes: http://www.canyon.com/

Their bikes offer a superb component set, but I've ridden three different models of their bikes and they're a load of crap in terms of handling.

Even in the biking world, you pay for what you get. Bike design has evolved over many years and modern frame design follows ground breaking research and development.