Looking to buy first road bike, any advice?

[Paddyboy]

Hi guys and girls,
I have been commuting to work now for the last 6 months on my Trek mountain bike and I ride around 80-100kms a week. I want to go faster and have built up confidence and fitness to move up a level on my bike.
I have never owned a road bike due to usually doing mountain bike riding, but now I want to get one.
Problem is I have no idea what to look for, whats good gearing? good frame size? good brand? what should I look for?
I am 6"2 and weight around 100kgs (heavier then average) and Im after a bike that is quick, reliable and good brand with good reputation.
My budget is around $2 grand.
If you guys could recomend some stuff for me to try out then I can narrow it down and see what I like.

any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[WolfCreekPsycho]

Hi guys and girls,
I have been commuting to work now for the last 6 months on my Trek mountain bike and I ride around 80-100kms a week. I want to go faster and have built up confidence and fitness to move up a level on my bike.
I have never owned a road bike due to usually doing mountain bike riding, but now I want to get one.
Problem is I have no idea what to look for, whats good gearing? good frame size? good brand? what should I look for?
I am 6"2 and weight around 100kgs (heavier then average) and Im after a bike that is quick, reliable and good brand with good reputation.
My budget is around $2 grand.
If you guys could recomend some stuff for me to try out then I can narrow it down and see what I like.

any help would be greatly appreciated.

... I was in the exact situation with same budget and lack of knowledge on the weekend... there are a fair few threads here with people asking the same questions and a lot of good info if you search back a few pages.

For what its worth I bought http://www.fujibikes.com/Road/Performance/Roubaix-ACR-1-0.aspx for $2200 from my LBS.. Couldnt find it elsewhere for close to that price.


Good luck
WCP

 

[Mr Green]

If you can stretch your budget a bit get one of these...

 

[Paddyboy]

That one looks a bit full on for me. The fuji looks good though.
Ive been doing a bit of research over the last hour and cyclo-cross bikes are appealing to me as they might suit me better.

 

[Pizzaz]

Kona Jake the Snake cyclocross... Bullet proof Shimano 105 Drivetrain (MTB SLX equiv)... decent wheels... nice all rounder that'll do a bit of everything. Stick some 700*28 slicks on it and its a really comfy roadie... or some 700*23's and smash it up with the road boys or best yet some nice fast rolling cross tyres and ride it everywhere. All for less than 2K

Of course I'm a little biased...

 

[Paddyboy]

I have found a jake the snake in melbourne at bike shop for $2229. Is this reasonable? can I find one for less then 2 grand?
also why are you biased? do you own one? They look fantastic!

 

[Mad Hatter]

Kona Jake the Snake cyclocross... Bullet proof Shimano 105 Drivetrain (MTB SLX equiv)... decent wheels... nice all rounder that'll do a bit of everything. Stick some 700*28 slicks on it and its a really comfy roadie... or some 700*23's and smash it up with the road boys or best yet some nice fast rolling cross tyres and ride it everywhere. All for less than 2K

Of course I'm a little biased...

Second the vote for the cyclocross. Comfy comuter and you don`t have to feel like you`ve crossed to the dark side completely.

 

[flyracing]

Can't go past the Giant Defy range for entry level and up road bikes, great value, great reputation and all round great bikes.

 

[gregb]

Can't go past the Giant Defy range for entry level and up road bikes, great value, great reputation and all round great bikes.

I've had a Giant OCR1, the Defy's predecessor, for a few years now and have been very happy.

 

[dresch]

Can't go past the Giant Defy range for entry level and up road bikes, great value, great reputation and all round great bikes.

Just bought a Defy 0 from 2009 and man it is sweet.

 

[pink]

Giant are good value for money, and don't compromise on quality either.

For a frame size, make sure the bike shop you go into actually measure you up properly! I know where people have had their size 'guessed' by people in shops and have ended up with the wrong size. Choose a bike shop that want to measure you and fit it properly, and not just try and sell you that 'last one left' sitting on the floor at a cheap price!

 

[Paddyboy]

I just went to Bike Now in sth melb today to look at the Kona Jake the snake cyclecross.

Absolutely loved it, it was the 56cm one so I felt a little cramped and will order the 58cm frame but the bike itself feels so strong and rugged for a roadie. good componentry, good looks.
I also test rode the Kona Honky inc (roadie wheels and tyres but has disc brakes) it was ok.
also rode Kona dew drop and it was good too but had terrible mech disc brakes and the deore componentry which I didnt think was as good.

I had a look at the Giant defy range and they look great! But I think I might go cyclecross as it suits what I want more and ill move into a full roadie when im fitter and skinnier haha.

Any other cyclecross bikes I should look at?

 

[pink]

Cannondale make cyclocross bikes... Bike Now will have those... but they will be more expensive than Kona.

 

[Pizzaz]

I have found a jake the snake in melbourne at bike shop for $2229. Is this reasonable? can I find one for less then 2 grand?
also why are you biased? do you own one? They look fantastic!

Sure do, had it for about 4 years now (which is a record for me and bikes!) of course I think the only original parts on it are the frame and fork... the 2006 version had a great colour (fluro green) but crap wheels.. brakes... bars... and the 105 drive train was awesome but 20,000km of training & daily commuting and shockingly poor maintenance took its toll so it now runs SRAM Rival...

List on them is usually about $2200 but generally you can bargain down to sub 2K. My mate liked mine so much he bought a 2008... much better brakes and fork (the EC 70CX looks nice but weights about as much as a steel one and still judders like a bast*rd).

I just reckon theres room in everyone's garage for a CX bike (even if you have dedicated road and mountain bikes).

 

[Pizzaz]

Cannondale make cyclocross bikes... Bike Now will have those... but they will be more expensive than Kona.

Surly... Salsa... both have a CX (or CX style) bike in their lineup... although not sure what Salsa are doing now as they've now got a Ti Crosser in their line up.

Specialised TriCross might be another option. Most of the major brands _make_ a CX but its getting one at the pricepoint which is the challenge. Cannondale cross bikes are lovely (basically a CAAD9 frame with a higher Bottom Bracket!) but cost $$$

 

[Pizzaz]

I just went to Bike Now in sth melb today to look at the Kona Jake the snake cyclecross.

I had a look at the Giant defy range and they look great! But I think I might go cyclecross as it suits what I want more and ill move into a full roadie when im fitter and skinnier haha.

Did the same thing