Anyone have a Hybrid Bike?

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ooOOooGravy
ooOOooGravy Posts: 476 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I had my heart set on one and almost talk myself out of it. I will be ording this week (hopefully) through cycle to work scheme and dont know which to choose.

I want to be able to road ride the majority of the time, but also do alittle off roading. I have a crappy old mountain bike that serves that purpose but it is old and needs renewing ideally.

So i thought what about a Hybrid, but are they actually any good, or are they half as good as a mountain bike and half as good as a road bike, and 2 halfs of nothing dont make much, are are the good on both.

Im more interested in the road side of things (speed and feel) if anyone has any insight.

cheers
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Replies

  • leilaphoenix
    leilaphoenix Posts: 839 Member
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    I have a hybrid for commuting. I love it. It is certainly more chunky than a road bike but I feel like it is sturdy and safe. I also plan to use it for some multi-day tours later in the summer and it will be able to take the weigh of my luggage. I wouldn't say it can really do off road. It can handle a bit of tow-path but my wrists hurt quite quickly when I'm not on a flat surface.
  • ooOOooGravy
    ooOOooGravy Posts: 476 Member
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    Thanks for that, Leila!

    They aernt really ideal for off road? when i do go off road its not exatly... flat, it can be quite torn up and can get seriously bumpy. Hmmmm so they are more for well beaten cycle paths?

    I think I may go for the Road Bike ready for racing, and repair my MTB for leisure rides until i can afford to replace it :)

    Thanks again
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
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    I have a Trek 7.1 Hybrid. It's ok for gravel, cinder and dirt trails. I wouldn't call it a 1/2 a mountain bike by any means. If anything it leans closer to a road bike but a little sturdier frame and tires for the trails. I mostly ride trails that are composed the way I described above so it works for me. It performs pretty well on smooth surfaces. The only disadvantage is the more upright position if it's windy. This spring I've ridden on a couple of windy days and found myself wishing I could get my body profile lower and more aerodynamic. probably be less of a factor as the warm weather moves forward.
  • wellbert
    wellbert Posts: 3,924 Member
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    Yes, they are two halves that don't equal a whole. They are still decent bikes, though.
    Get one with a solid front fork if you go that route. Don't waste your time/effort on a suspension fork.

    I have a hybrid (Trek 7300) and a road bike (Cannondale CAAD 10)
    I'll hop on the hybrid for any kind of adverse weather riding, or errands/commuting. The road bike is used only for riding for the sake of riding.

    I've had the hybrid off road a little. It's fine in light gravel or sandy walking paths, but it really suffers in rocky terrain. The road bike gets sketchy with a little dust on the road ;)

    As far as riding ease and speed? There's really no comparison. The road bike is like riding a feather and it wants to GO, and it feels like I'm luggging around the hybrid.
  • UpEarly
    UpEarly Posts: 2,555 Member
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    I love my hybrid! (Trek 7300) I use it mostly on bike paths that are gravel or dirt. It's got a bit more heft/ruggedness than a road bike, but isn't as heavy as a mountain bike. I did not get a suspension fork, it was unnecessary.
  • rjt1000
    rjt1000 Posts: 700 Member
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    Yes, they are two halves that don't equal a whole. They are still decent bikes, though.
    Get one with a solid front fork if you go that route. Don't waste your time/effort on a suspension fork.

    I have a hybrid (Trek 7300) and a road bike (Cannondale CAAD 10)
    I'll hop on the hybrid for any kind of adverse weather riding, or errands/commuting. The road bike is used only for riding for the sake of riding.

    I've had the hybrid off road a little. It's fine in light gravel or sandy walking paths, but it really suffers in rocky terrain. The road bike gets sketchy with a little dust on the road ;)

    As far as riding ease and speed? There's really no comparison. The road bike is like riding a feather and it wants to GO, and it feels like I'm luggging around the hybrid.

    What you said, double. I have a Trek hybrid. I would never try a mountain bike trail on it. Just not built for it. It's really built for road riding, good on bumps and not perfectly smooth pavement. I still ride my touring bike which I bought in 1983. it's a Motobecane that weighs less than half what the Trek weighs. And as you said, it wants to go fast. But I can't ride it on most roads around here. I've blown tires out on it a couple times. It's great for riding on a bike lane/trail that's nice and smooth.

    When i really want to unwind it, there's a 3/4 mile private road near me which has perfect pavement. It has small hill and is great for doing intervals. I can do 10 miles there on the touring bike in 3/4 of the time it takes me on the hybrid.
  • Aid_B
    Aid_B Posts: 427
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    I've just paid off my Hybrid, ( Claud Butler ) on the cycle to work scheme, On the road it's much faster / smoother / lighter and easier than my onld mountain bike.

    I wouldn't be too confident off road as i would on the mountain bike, the tyres are very thin in comparison,
  • ooOOooGravy
    ooOOooGravy Posts: 476 Member
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    Ahhh, i dont know what to do!! Thanks for replies all! I have seen both the Hybrid and Road bike i want, and there is 5 quid in the price... i am going to have to decide on the flick of a coin, i think lol
  • wellbert
    wellbert Posts: 3,924 Member
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    What road bike are you looking at? General consensus is that shimano 105 is the lowest set you want.
  • ooOOooGravy
    ooOOooGravy Posts: 476 Member
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    What road bike are you looking at? General consensus is that shimano 105 is the lowest set you want.

    what does that mean? lol
  • MattGetsMad
    MattGetsMad Posts: 429 Member
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    If you get into a lot of heavy stuff off-road, you're probably not going to love the performance of a hybrid.

    Something to consider: MTB with a front suspension that can be locked out. Then put hybrid mountain bike tires on there. That's how I rock my GT and I love it.

    Not as fast as the road guys, but I can keep up with any hybrid.

    Good luck to you in whatever you choose to go with.
  • wellbert
    wellbert Posts: 3,924 Member
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    What road bike are you looking at? General consensus is that shimano 105 is the lowest set you want.

    what does that mean? lol

    Shimano 105 is the mechanical equipment. It's entry level, but just above the cheap stuff.
    SRAM is also quite popular/good, but I don't know the equivalent model.


    FWIW, I -can- ride my hybrid as fast as my road bike. I can keep a 20mph pace on it. I bet I could go twice as far on the road bike for the same effort.

    OTOH, hybrids burn more calories. ;)


    You might also consider a cyclocross bike.
  • TylerJ76
    TylerJ76 Posts: 4,375 Member
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    I have a Trek 7.2 FX, that I love!!
  • aggiesrar05
    aggiesrar05 Posts: 335 Member
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    Yes, they are two halves that don't equal a whole. They are still decent bikes, though.
    Get one with a solid front fork if you go that route. Don't waste your time/effort on a suspension fork.

    I have a hybrid (Trek 7300) and a road bike (Cannondale CAAD 10)
    I'll hop on the hybrid for any kind of adverse weather riding, or errands/commuting. The road bike is used only for riding for the sake of riding.

    I've had the hybrid off road a little. It's fine in light gravel or sandy walking paths, but it really suffers in rocky terrain. The road bike gets sketchy with a little dust on the road ;)

    As far as riding ease and speed? There's really no comparison. The road bike is like riding a feather and it wants to GO, and it feels like I'm luggging around the hybrid.

    ^^^ This! I have the same bikes, Trek 7.2 FX and Cannondale (though the Cannondale is a little older). I ride the hybrid bike in town and or if I'm riding in a group for an in town tour. I ride the road bike (which I just got) if I'm going out and doing long rides in the country. I have ridden the hybrid on a 45mi ride in the hill country... NOT IDEAL, but it wasn't horrible either. I'm looking forward to that ride again this year on the road bike.
  • pjct
    pjct Posts: 1
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    Trek 8.3 ds.....is a great hybrid!
  • SlimsLiftingMoreThanLipstick
    SlimsLiftingMoreThanLipstick Posts: 122 Member
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    I have a Trek hybrid, I have a WSD which of course wouldn't work for you ;-) but I LOVE my hybrid. I will never go back to a road bike again. I like mine because I had some back issues and the bending on a road bike really bothered me. No issues on my Hybrid.
  • treehopper1987
    treehopper1987 Posts: 505 Member
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    What is a cyclocross bike?
  • mostaverage
    mostaverage Posts: 202 Member
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    My Marin San Rafael kick started my weight loss last summer, It's a great commuter bike, suspension seat post & front fork, adjustable handlebar stem so you can set the height as you want it. It's classed as a hybrid and you can do gentle hard pack trails but the tyres are too narrow if it's slippy, it's also slower than a dedicated road bike and really heavy on the uphills - so it's got road and trail ability, comfort and flexibility but in all honesty it excels at no one thing, a jack of all trades bike. I still love it but want a dedicated road bike to do distance work, I want my full bounce MTB fixed to do trails again and then the hybrid would get used for shopping trips or coastal paths with the mrs.

    You mention CTW so I assume you are in the Uk and are probably looking at Halfords as an option, Boardman do some lovely looking and well specced machines in Race, Cyclo-Cross & Hybrid trim - you just need to ensure that spanner jockeys in the shop properly grease the bottom bracket of new Boardman bikes, there was a load came out with no grease and caused premature failures - should be all fixed now but best safe than sorry.
  • drewbird911
    drewbird911 Posts: 120 Member
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    I had a Trek 7200 and really liked it, but it got stolen :( I got an Trek F.X 7.2 to replace it and not liked it as much... So I went and got a full suspension disc brake Mongoose and changed out the MT tires for a 'trail' tire. Like this set up for trail riding bopping around. Still haven't gotten back to commuting on a bike.
  • zoom2
    zoom2 Posts: 934 Member
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    What is a cyclocross bike?

    The bike I'm on in my avatar is a cyclocross bike. Of my 3 bikes (road, cyclocross, mtn) it's my definite favorite! My dream bike would be a titanium cyclocross bike with disc brakes and 2 sets of wheels...one beefy set for off-road with knobby tires and one sleek set with skinny tires for road riding/racing. Someday I will likely go this route, but it's a pretty pricey proposition, since it would mean going custom.

    Ditto the recommendation for Shimano 105 or better. On my CX bike I have SRAM Apex and on my road bike I have SRAM Rival components. I don't really care for Shimano (SRAM seems more intuitive to me, YMMV). I've found SRAM to be more reliable on my bikes, too. My first road bike had 105 and it was flaky. I was always dealing with dropped chains and getting stuck between gears, even with frequent tune-ups and cable adjustments.

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