Home› Chat› General Chat

My 1st Road Bike!

maccn05maccn05 Posts: 3
in General Chat
Hi can anybody help me i'm looking to buy my first road bike a i start my training for a triathlon



I have a budget of £800 can anyone recommend any quality bikes...



Any help would be appreciated!



Cheers...

Comments

  • treefrogtreefrog Posts: 1,242
    Firstly better to buy from a local bike shop - they get abike with the correct fit, also they will give you invaluable advice, and they will service your bike. It may be more than an internet buke but in the long run it is far better. £800 is a good budget - in general you should be looking for a bike with a 105 groupset (or mirage). £800 is a bit low for a quality carbon fibre frame, but it will get you an excellent aluminium (alloy) frame. Aluminium/carbon frames are also availabel but I would avoid them. The most important thing of all is tyhat the bike is the correct fit - as no matter how good it is if it does not fit you it will be useless. As far as a reccommendation goes I would say to you get another £99 and buy a CAAD 9 Cannondale (I think the £899 version is Tiagra equipped). This is the best alloy frame there is available and even as it stands the whole bike is quite light and raceable, it will also give you a bit of credability! More importantly it is very upgradable - so as parts wear out or as you get more money you can replace the part in question with a lighter/smoother/ better part. Don't worry about accessories - get the best bike and then go for cheapo (Aldi,Halfords, sale bin) accessories
  • armstrong_jackarmstrong_jack Posts: 82
    I got my bike from Planet X (just do a search) and they do an amazing value £999 bike - either road or Tri specific.



    Its priced at that to come in under the £1000 "cycle to work" scheme that the government run - its well worth checking with your employer to see if they can offer anything similar (lots of people get 50% off). Even if you have to pay the full wack yourself, still very much worth doing and spending the couple of extra hundred as you get the full carbon spec frame.



    Also i'm no cycle expert but I got the advice of some friends who are and the bike comes out very highly in their regards. The Planet X staff are also very knowledgeable and helpful when they custom build it for you - although they don't have a shop unfortunately...



  • maccn05maccn05 Posts: 3
    Thanks Treefrog & Jack



    Yeah i'm buying my bike through Evans on the Ride2work scheme... it's the only way i can afford it :-) so i can't use Planet X but will take a look around!



    They have the Cannondale so i'll take a look at it!



    Anyone have an opinion on the Pinnacle range?



    Thanks for your help... much appreciated!

  • treefrogtreefrog Posts: 1,242
    Pinnacle are Evans own brand range. Probably Alloy (7005 tubing) and Shimano Tiagra or 105 groupset. They won't be bad in fact they are probably quite good ..but there are better bikes and (brace yourself for unbridalled snobbery) they don't have much credability amongst cyclists and serious triathletes, but thats' just a kudos thing. A nugget of advice is buy above your budget and you won't regret it and you'll always find a way to get the money! A short story ... I have a mate who asked about Specialized Allez, I told him much the same and advised him to go for the Cannondale CAAD5, which was 200 quid more expensive, he bought the Allez, but now every time he wants to go on a fast or long cycle he phones up looking for a lend of one of my bikes!
  • disasterpdisasterp Posts: 1
    Hello.



    I am fairly new to this and therefore probably not as knowable on this sort of thing as treefrog, but I have to say after having got my Spec Allez Elite through the cycle2work scheme and after getting it set up properly (which is probably the key no matter what bike you get and how much you spend on it) I find it suits my needs very well, even after being on 3 hour rides.



    One thing I would add is that you would need to cost in the price of some decent pedals. I got Look Keo Carbons. After reading and getting reviews from various people, the Look Keo range are pretty good, I have found them great.



    Best thing to do I suppose is get down to Evans and have a good chat to them about your needs and see what they have to offer.



  • maccn05maccn05 Posts: 3
    Thanks for all your help... I loved the look of the Cannondale but couldn't afford it... Damm



    In the end i've gone for an 07 Pinnacle Espelands for £800 reduced from £1200 so with the ride to work scheme it's worked out pretty cheap... lets hope i've made the right choice. It arrives on Thursday can't wait to get riding it!



    Much appreciated on all the feedback and comments, really useful!
  • treefrogtreefrog Posts: 1,242
    Disasterp you are quite right the Allez is a good bike, but try riding a real race bike. I don't mean a million $ special, but a good Canondale or its ilk - it will be completely different to the Allez. The bike I leant my mate is a hotch potch of internet specials I built up but it cost me 50 quid more than his Allez but in his words it goes 50 miles faster. I appreciate this is unfair as I am a bike freak but my point is that it is possible with a bit of knowledge to get a very fast bike for the cost of a good bike. Anyway try a race bike worth more than yours and report back!

































  • TommiTriTommiTri Posts: 879
    I don't know that much about bikes, I'll admit that. But one thing my father once told me (in relation to tools..He was a career DIYer!) is that you should push your budget as much as you can, simply because in the bike word (much like the tool world) more money often means more quality. In the long run, you wont regret it.



    And listen to treefrog..on his recommendation Im going to get the cannondale carbon slice - and it got an excellent review in the new 220 issue. so i guess he knows his stuff!
Sign In or Register to comment.