Bicycle Fans - official thread for people who love riding th
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Can anyone give me some tips? This is really dumb... I recently upgraded to my first road bike, from riding a hybrid for approx 15 months. The only thing is, I've noticed that I wobble really badly now when I'm signalling to turn left or right - which I didn't on my hybrid. The steering on my Scott Contessa (her name is Blue LOL) is much more twitchy than my Specialized Ariel. Is it just something I'll get used to???
Heehee I'm already finding longer routes to/from work so I can ride my baby Blue for longer - she's great! :happy:
Actually have to say I'm really embarrased. :frown: I thought I was getting a bit fitter/better/faster on my bike(s) - but my average speed is totallly rubbish compared to most people on this thread!! The lady who's only been riding a couple of weeks (Whiskey?) has a much higher average speed than me! :sad: How can I improve it? There are sections of my ride where I'm bowling along much faster and then I'll hit a hill and that stuffs me right up. I'd like to join a club of some sort but would be worried that I'm too slow... :frown:
A road bike is much twitchier, moving from my Tourer to my Road bike last month was mad, first corner and I had forgotten how much easier it is to turn, first bump and I realised I had forgotten how much it can move. A couple of rides and I'm used to it again. Other problem is it's a change from a front disc brake to rim callipers = not as quick at stopping, scared a couple of the neighbours at a pinch point :-$
Only way to improve is to keep going, that goes for speed as well as hill climbing ability.
And the lighter you are the easier climbing is; what better an incentive to lose weight?
Just aim somewhere between Rasmussen (Disgustingly skinny) and Ulrich (Was actually a normal weight for his height but considered fat) ... and without the doping.0 -
I took 3 mins and 10 seconds off my ride home time tonight :happy:
12.74 miles at an average of 17.43 mph...
I'm one very happy chap :bigsmile:
Nice going, what's your terrain and wind like?
I beat my time again tonight
I rode part of the journey home with a much more seasoned cyclist & if I'm honest, was taught a bit of a lesson by him...
My 12.8 mile journey took me 42.05 mins at an average of 18.29mph
The terrain in fairly flat; my CycleMeter App says I had an ascent of 144ft, yes it is undulating but not bad...
I was knackered when I get back but very pleased :bigsmile:0 -
Hello, excited to find this thread. Love to bike though I am older than most on this thread but retirement gives me the opportunity to do 30 to 40 mile rides at least a few times a week now that the weather is more tolerable.. Have a road bike and a hybrid bot enjoy the road bike more... have enjoyed the hills more as the weight has dropped.0
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A road bike is much twitchier, moving from my Tourer to my Road bike last month was mad, first corner and I had forgotten how much easier it is to turn, first bump and I realised I had forgotten how much it can move. A couple of rides and I'm used to it again. Other problem is it's a change from a front disc brake to rim callipers = not as quick at stopping, scared a couple of the neighbours at a pinch point :-$
Only way to improve is to keep going, that goes for speed as well as hill climbing ability.
And the lighter you are the easier climbing is; what better an incentive to lose weight?
Just aim somewhere between Rasmussen (Disgustingly skinny) and Ulrich (Was actually a normal weight for his height but considered fat) ... and without the doping.
I'm getting a bit better. I spent some time in an empty car park yesterday, just practising keeping the bike steady while I stuck my arms out. Probably looked a bit daft but hey! :laugh:
Re the improvement thing, I'm much better than I used to be. There are 2 or 3 hills that even 3 months ago I couldn't get up without stopping. Now I can. :bigsmile: My heart feels like it's going to explode at the top, mind!! For me the problem is that I get out of breath very very quickly and the more I spin (ie lower gears?) the worse it is. My legs aren't usually too bad but it's the breathing that's the problem.
My average speed coming in this morning was 13.3mph - I came the "long" route. Still pretty slow compared to some - 3.5 miles took me 15 mins 40 sec, and there's one hill. The worst bit is the road that in a car *appears" to be flat but actually is on a slight incline all the way.... Still I'm getting there, slowly but surely.
I was talking to a cyclist in my local shop and he told me that the riding doesn't get easier, you just get faster!!!
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I'm a bike fan too!
I used to have a mountain bike only but when I joined MFP I bought myself a second hand road bike to exercise on. Exercise has now turned to "just for fun" and now also includes me commuting to work once a week (40kms to work and back).
I absolutely love it!!!
I try to ride at least 50Km per week and I also swim 1.2kms and jog 7km per week
I have an Apollo Giro RACELINE - Fastest speed I've reaching is 60km/h and when I train (20km) I try to maintain a speed of 27km/h
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/Daniel_d1981/Push Bikes/ApolloGiroRaceline.jpg?t=1304595097
I've also made myself a fixie from an old repco road bike. It stays down at the beach house and gets used to ride to the shops etc and the occasional exercise ride.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/Daniel_d1981/Push Bikes/Repco5.jpg
(sorry photos aren't loading from PB)0 -
Nice to find another thread on cycling!! :bigsmile:
Daniel, to put pics up here you need to use the lowercase IMG tags
will not work, but if you change the tags to "img" it will
and also the pics have to be fairly small, I find a max width of 450 pixels is about best.
Oh I see that did not work either, the reason why, in my experience, is the name of the folder you are using at PB must not have any spaces in it, your urls is http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/Daniel_d1981/Push Bikes/ApolloGiroRaceline.jpg but the folder is "Push Bikes" and in the URL that you end up with the space is filled in with "%20" this for some reason the software here does NOT like this.....?:sick:
Here is your pic......
That is one sweet looking bike :happy:
Cheers!0 -
Ok, have yet another question for all of you road bike people. I'm getting serious about upgrading to something, but I don't have a lot to spend. Live in Kansas City, so craigslist is actually a pretty good option for me to find a bike, as long as I do my research and know what I'm looking for!
I found a late 90s Specialized Crossroads on there today..... don't know a whole lot about it... It looks good, price seems to be decent, if it's true that it's been rarely used, BUT, and here's the issue, and where my ignorance comes in. It's an 18 speed. My dirt bike is 21 speed. There are a few decent sized hills on the bike trail I ride... I have no idea the grade, but a couple of the hills I climb are a good half mile to 3/4 mile long hills. And a couple are shorter, but a bit steeper. I have to drop my gears on the dirt bike down to 1st gear in front and 3rd or 4th on the back to get up them without standing up and grinding up the hill.
I wonder if the 18 gears on a road bike are different than the 21 gears on a dirt bike? I don't want to get a road bike that will have a harder time getting up the hills!
here are the specs that I *think* the bike has, based on the age the craigslist ad said it was (late 90s) and the picture at Bikepedia looks the same
1999 Specialized Crossroads Sport
Front Derailleur Shimano Alivio top-swing, clamp-on 31.8mm
Rear Derailleur Shimano Alivio
Crankset Specialized StrongArm, 24/34/42 teeth
Pedals Specialized platform, steel
Bottom Bracket Specialized Sport, 122.5mm spindle
BB Shell Width 68mm English
Rear Cogs 7-speed, 11 - 32 teeth
it's got 700 X 38c wheels, which I've read are good road size tires...
It could be this one: this is a 1998 Specialized Crossroads
Shimano Alivio top-swing, bottom-pull/clamp-on 28.6mm
Rear Derailleur Shimano Alivio
Crankset SR/Suntour XR25, 24/34/42 teeth
Pedals Resin
Bottom Bracket Unspecified
BB Shell Width 68mm English
Rear Cogs 7-speed, 11 - 28 teeth
both pictures look similar to the one on craigslist, but that one is a red color and neither of the bikes on bikepedia say it came in red...so I'm not 100% positive!
At any rate, I'm wondering if the gears would be ok for the terrain I'm in. the issue I'm having right now is that my knees are starting to ache after rides, and I KNOW that is not right. Something is wrong...not fitting me, or something.
I am going to haul my bike to a bike shop and see if they can 'fit' me better or whether I'm going to have to suck it up and buy another bike. I'm riding a man's bike. It's a good quality bike, but was never supposed to be mine, it was supposed to be my husband's bike.
I am enjoying biking WAY too much to give it up over achy knees!!
THIS is what my bike is...a 1996 Specialized Rockhopper Comp A1.....my husband bought it for around $650 it's a 15.5" frame, I'm pretty sure.
Front Derailleur Shimano STX, bottom-pull
Rear Derailleur Shimano STX
Crankset Specialized Son of Strongarm, 20/32/42 teeth
Pedals HTI steel/resin w/clips & straps
Bottom Bracket Shimano BB-LP26, 107 mm spindle
BB Shell Width 73mm English
Rear Cogs 8-speed, 11 - 28 teeth
the issue is that I don't know how to decipher all this! Don't know if any else will.0 -
Ok, have yet another question for all of you road bike people. I'm getting serious about upgrading to something, but I don't have a lot to spend. Live in Kansas City, so craigslist is actually a pretty good option for me to find a bike, as long as I do my research and know what I'm looking for!
I found a late 90s Specialized Crossroads on there today..... don't know a whole lot about it... It looks good, price seems to be decent, if it's true that it's been rarely used, BUT, and here's the issue, and where my ignorance comes in. It's an 18 speed. My dirt bike is 21 speed. There are a few decent sized hills on the bike trail I ride... I have no idea the grade, but a couple of the hills I climb are a good half mile to 3/4 mile long hills. And a couple are shorter, but a bit steeper. I have to drop my gears on the dirt bike down to 1st gear in front and 3rd or 4th on the back to get up them without standing up and grinding up the hill.
I wonder if the 18 gears on a road bike are different than the 21 gears on a dirt bike? I don't want to get a road bike that will have a harder time getting up the hills!
here are the specs that I *think* the bike has, based on the age the craigslist ad said it was (late 90s) and the picture at Bikepedia looks the same
1999 Specialized Crossroads Sport
Front Derailleur Shimano Alivio top-swing, clamp-on 31.8mm
Rear Derailleur Shimano Alivio
Crankset Specialized StrongArm, 24/34/42 teeth
Pedals Specialized platform, steel
Bottom Bracket Specialized Sport, 122.5mm spindle
BB Shell Width 68mm English
Rear Cogs 7-speed, 11 - 32 teeth
it's got 700 X 38c wheels, which I've read are good road size tires...
It could be this one: this is a 1998 Specialized Crossroads
Shimano Alivio top-swing, bottom-pull/clamp-on 28.6mm
Rear Derailleur Shimano Alivio
Crankset SR/Suntour XR25, 24/34/42 teeth
Pedals Resin
Bottom Bracket Unspecified
BB Shell Width 68mm English
Rear Cogs 7-speed, 11 - 28 teeth
both pictures look similar to the one on craigslist, but that one is a red color and neither of the bikes on bikepedia say it came in red...so I'm not 100% positive!
At any rate, I'm wondering if the gears would be ok for the terrain I'm in. the issue I'm having right now is that my knees are starting to ache after rides, and I KNOW that is not right. Something is wrong...not fitting me, or something.
I am going to haul my bike to a bike shop and see if they can 'fit' me better or whether I'm going to have to suck it up and buy another bike. I'm riding a man's bike. It's a good quality bike, but was never supposed to be mine, it was supposed to be my husband's bike.
I am enjoying biking WAY too much to give it up over achy knees!!
THIS is what my bike is...a 1996 Specialized Rockhopper Comp A1.....my husband bought it for around $650 it's a 15.5" frame, I'm pretty sure.
Front Derailleur Shimano STX, bottom-pull
Rear Derailleur Shimano STX
Crankset Specialized Son of Strongarm, 20/32/42 teeth
Pedals HTI steel/resin w/clips & straps
Bottom Bracket Shimano BB-LP26, 107 mm spindle
BB Shell Width 73mm English
Rear Cogs 8-speed, 11 - 28 teeth
the issue is that I don't know how to decipher all this! Don't know if any else will.
Lots of questions there
The 18 speed means 3 chain wheels up front and 6 out back, this is certainly a bit older, but that does not mean it is trash, the rear cassette (gears) have a good range, 32 - 11, but maybe I'm misreading this, but I think you said it had 3 up front and 7 out back, that would be 21 gears....? More gear just means less of a change in how hard or easy you have to pedal between each gear. Most road only bikes have two chainwheels up front and 7, 8, 9 or 10 out back, unless it is a touring bike or a Hybrid, they usually don't need the extra granny gear up front (but it sure is nice to have if you live in a hilly area!!)
Bike fit, boy that is a very long winded sometimes confusing subject, but I tell you what, go read this article.......
http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm
.... some of the best no nonsense info I've yet to find on the net, yes it is long and yes it is a bit involved, print it out and read it several times, it is not rocket science you can figure this stuff out.
Usually sore knees are from the saddle being too high or too low, most people have their saddles too low.
If you sit on the bike with both feet on the pedals, (get someone to hold the bike for you) put the heel of your foot (in your cycling shoes) on the pedal, with the crank arm inline with the seat tube, and your foot being level to the ground, your leg should be fully extended, then with the ball of your foot over the spindle of the pedal, in the same position, your leg should have a slight bend in the knee.
Also measure your "Pelvic Bone Height" PBH, this is explained in the page above, then you can also measure from the flat part of your saddle to the center of your bottom bracket to get a good ball park idea of where your saddle height should be. That will put you in the ball park, then you will, over time, tweak your settings. moving the saddle up or down, once in said ball park, should be done in 1/4" increments at a time, or even less, once you get the settings close, a 1/4" up or down can be quite a large change.
If you can find a good bike shop, they should be able to help you with this, but remember, they are running a business, and their time is not free.
If you want to go roadie, then you would need to change the bars to drops and this would mean changing the shifters, brake levers (called brifters), this can be complicated or easy, and it will cost extra. If you want a road bike, get a road bike.
There are sometimes real advantages to getting a ladies bike, but often it is only certain things that are different. The largest single thing you can do for yourself in this regard is to get a lady's saddle, they are wider than mens saddles, as ladies generally have wider pelvises, so they need a wider saddle.
Sorry that is all I have right now, it's almost 2:30AM here in Tokyo! Time for bed!
I hope this helped, keep asking questions!0 -
Ok, have yet another question for all of you road bike people. I'm getting serious about upgrading to something, but I don't have a lot to spend. Live in Kansas City, so craigslist is actually a pretty good option for me to find a bike, as long as I do my research and know what I'm looking for!
There's no problems with buying a used bike for the right price, as long as:
a. It isn't stolen!
b. It's in reasonable condition.
Have a good look over the bike before you part with any money, then before you ride it anywhere get a Local Bike Shop (LBS) to give it a once over just to make sure (unless of course you are a competent bike mechanic?)I found a late 90s Specialized Crossroads on there today..... don't know a whole lot about it... It looks good, price seems to be decent, if it's true that it's been rarely used, BUT, and here's the issue, and where my ignorance comes in. It's an 18 speed. My dirt bike is 21 speed. There are a few decent sized hills on the bike trail I ride... I have no idea the grade, but a couple of the hills I climb are a good half mile to 3/4 mile long hills. And a couple are shorter, but a bit steeper. I have to drop my gears on the dirt bike down to 1st gear in front and 3rd or 4th on the back to get up them without standing up and grinding up the hill.
I wonder if the 18 gears on a road bike are different than the 21 gears on a dirt bike? I don't want to get a road bike that will have a harder time getting up the hills!
here are the specs that I *think* the bike has, based on the age the craigslist ad said it was (late 90s) and the picture at Bikepedia looks the same
1999 Specialized Crossroads Sport
Front Derailleur Shimano Alivio top-swing, clamp-on 31.8mm
Rear Derailleur Shimano Alivio
Crankset Specialized StrongArm, 24/34/42 teeth
Pedals Specialized platform, steel
Bottom Bracket Specialized Sport, 122.5mm spindle
BB Shell Width 68mm English
Rear Cogs 7-speed, 11 - 32 teeth
it's got 700 X 38c wheels, which I've read are good road size tires...
It could be this one: this is a 1998 Specialized Crossroads
Shimano Alivio top-swing, bottom-pull/clamp-on 28.6mm
Rear Derailleur Shimano Alivio
Crankset SR/Suntour XR25, 24/34/42 teeth
Pedals Resin
Bottom Bracket Unspecified
BB Shell Width 68mm English
Rear Cogs 7-speed, 11 - 28 teeth
both pictures look similar to the one on craigslist, but that one is a red color and neither of the bikes on bikepedia say it came in red...so I'm not 100% positive!
I've just Googled 1998 Specialized Crossroads and it came up with this
Is this the right one?
If so, it looks more like a 'Hybrid.'
Shimano Alivio Derailleurs are quality bits of kit!At any rate, I'm wondering if the gears would be ok for the terrain I'm in. the issue I'm having right now is that my knees are starting to ache after rides, and I KNOW that is not right. Something is wrong...not fitting me, or something.
I am going to haul my bike to a bike shop and see if they can 'fit' me better or whether I'm going to have to suck it up and buy another bike. I'm riding a man's bike. It's a good quality bike, but was never supposed to be mine, it was supposed to be my husband's bike.
This sounds like an issue with the bike fitting you. Again your LBS will be able to help you set your bike up of optimum performance!I am enjoying biking WAY too much to give it up over achy knees!!
THIS is what my bike is...a 1996 Specialized Rockhopper Comp A1.....my husband bought it for around $650 it's a 15.5" frame, I'm pretty sure.
Front Derailleur Shimano STX, bottom-pull
Rear Derailleur Shimano STX
Crankset Specialized Son of Strongarm, 20/32/42 teeth
Pedals HTI steel/resin w/clips & straps
Bottom Bracket Shimano BB-LP26, 107 mm spindle
BB Shell Width 73mm English
Rear Cogs 8-speed, 11 - 28 teeth
the issue is that I don't know how to decipher all this! Don't know if any else will.
Don't forget, the lighter the bike, the easier it will be going up hills!
There are some far more specific Hybrid bikes out there that will fit the bill better IMHO
Something like this would be better!0 -
Popping in on this thread. I've been wanting to get a bike - and we live on a road where we get HUNDREDS of bikes per day going by (when it's nice out). It seems silly to sit here watching them. That and having the Natchez Trace makes it almost impossible NOT to want to ride. Unfortunately, money is an issue right now, so we're having to wait. :sad:0
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I love riding. I go 10-15 miles every weekend around lower Manhattan. I'm a lifelong BMX biker, looking to get my first road bike this month. Doing the 70 mile Montauk bike ride in June!0
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I finally have a picture of my bike. She a Trek 2.1 with all upgraded Shimano Ultegra components. I love her. She is my Sexy B!tch. She was a gift from my mom and dad when they got their new Madones. The weather is FINALLY nice enough for a long tough ride this weekend. Can't wait! I'm on my third week of spinning class and I am very curious to see how I do with the new bike and spinning.
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she's a pretty bike, Amy! Very pretty! 0
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Still I'm getting there, slowly but surely.
I was talking to a cyclist in my local shop and he told me that the riding doesn't get easier, you just get faster!!!
:-)
And Yes, so true!I love riding. I go 10-15 miles every weekend around lower Manhattan. I'm a lifelong BMX biker, looking to get my first road bike this month. Doing the 70 mile Montauk bike ride in June!
You can do that on a BMX easy...
Well, I saw some kids doing the 50 miles between Edinburgh and Glasgow on them pass me while I was fixing a puncture.0 -
Windi I don't know what your budget is, but eBay could be worth looking at...
See item No's.
320692845678
130516141510
etc...
I don't know where you are so narrowing the search down to nearer to you could help...0 -
Its all gone a bit quiet... :yawn:0
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Its all gone a bit quiet... :yawn:
LOL everyone's out to play on their bikes!! :laugh:0 -
I rode to work every day this week, racking up 111.53 miles over the last 5 days. That is probably a new record for me, but I can't be sure as I didn't have the GPS recording in the distant past. Today was the hardest, though, as my legs started off a bit tired and I had to ride against a steady 15 mph wind the entire way there. If I can keep this up during the rainy season I can keep 5000 miles off my car.0
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I rode to work every day this week, racking up 111.53 miles over the last 5 days. That is probably a new record for me, but I can't be sure as I didn't have the GPS recording in the distant past. Today was the hardest, though, as my legs started off a bit tired and I had to ride against a steady 15 mph wind the entire way there. If I can keep this up during the rainy season I can keep 5000 miles off my car.
Good effort that!
If I commute 'to and from' every day, that is 128 miles. But I haven't managed that yet, but as my fitness improves I will get there!0 -
What are people's thoughts about riding with headphones/music? Bad idea (safety-wise)? I'm heading out for a little ride soon and very tempted to bring music with me.0
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Tas, Get a speaker system unless you're on a dedicated bike path.
_______________________________
edit to say"tas"0 -
Cool thread! I just came home from a 40 mile ride and found this as I was posting calories. I was thinking how much I love riding. I burned 2600+ calories doing what I love on a beautiful spring day. what could be better?
I've been riding both road and mountain the last 20 years or so with a few breaks here and there. For me, it's my "happy place".
Take care everyone!
PS: "On your left!"0 -
What are people's thoughts about riding with headphones/music? Bad idea (safety-wise)? I'm heading out for a little ride soon and very tempted to bring music with me.
I've ridden with music once and really didn't like but the time schedule was tough over those 2 days and 230km.
When you are on the road you know what's behind you from sound more than sight, same with side roads.
Although you lose hearing once the speeds up.
So no it's not recommended.0 -
What are people's thoughts about riding with headphones/music? Bad idea (safety-wise)? I'm heading out for a little ride soon and very tempted to bring music with me.
Very bad idea IMHO!0 -
What are people's thoughts about riding with headphones/music? Bad idea (safety-wise)? I'm heading out for a little ride soon and very tempted to bring music with me.
I ride with one headphone in my right ear. I can still hear cars and other riders passing me. I would have a very hard time riding without music.
Editied to say that I hardly ever just ride on the roads. I am lucky enough to live in a city that has an abundance of paths. I would rethink my music if I was going all road.0 -
I rode 33 miles yeaterday with some pretty great hills. The spinning classes have really paid off. I can also tell a huge difference with my new bike. My Trek 7.5fx was great but the roadie is so much better. I felt fantastic on those hills.0
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Love my Fuji CrossComp, cant wait for cyclocross next winter! I live in a VERY hilly town and my commute to school and back is 300 feet of elevation change in 2 miles. There is a 10 mile route down into the valley that is 1000 feet drop and gain in 10 miles... Have yet to actually get that one done...it is intense.0
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Just bought a Lovely Kona Cinder Cone for riding the downs.... it is fantastic. Am debating riding up to Uni tomorrow, and now after reading all the posts, I feel I have to!!! the only problem is the very busy dual carriage way.... I will need to map a different route tomorrow.
Claire0 -
What are people's thoughts about riding with headphones/music? Bad idea (safety-wise)? I'm heading out for a little ride soon and very tempted to bring music with me.
Safety-wise its a bad idea. I usually ride with one ear-bud in listening to my pace (endomondo app on my phone) no music though. I do think that if you're riding on a trail/path rather than the road it might be ok, but I'm the type to always like to be aware of what's going on around me as there are a lot of riders that don't pay attention and I end up having to pay twice as much attention to avoid accidents.0 -
I usualy have my Ipod with me, but like many others I only ride with one headphone in, so I can hear what's going on. It gives me a beat to pedal to, especially going uphill LOL but having one ear "free" means you can still hear cars etc.
Dreadful weather here this weekend so no riding for me. Plus which I played rounders on Thursday, lots of running, and cannot believe that my legs have seized up LOL!!!!0
This discussion has been closed.
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