Best Biking Investment for a Newbie?
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Ironmom posted 1 year ago.
Personally I'd do #1 for sure. I think a good bike fitting is one of the best things you can do (if you can get a place that will do your power output, so you can tell what position is most comfortable and gives you the most power, it's even better).
After that, I'd go for #2, then #3. Clip-on aerobars are relatively inexpensive, and personally I think they make a bigger difference than a better wheelset, unless you are talking about dropping a lot of money on wheels. I have the wheels that came on my bike, which are okay, and a set of reasonable mid-range aero wheels. I notice a difference on the aero wheels, but nothing like the difference if I come off my aerobars.
Blue Skies, -Robin-
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Triguy98 posted 1 year ago.
A fit with aerobars is you best bet. IMO, road bike fit is a lot easier to pull off than tri bike fit, so you may already be set up ok. Make sure your seat isnt too high (it should be a couple mm lower than normal road fit to save your hammys a little more.)
A race wheelset is a REAL nice thing, but a decent aero position is better than a race wheel set in a non aero position. One cheap aero gain would be a disc cover for your rear wheel.
http://www.wheelbuilder.com/closeup.asp?cid=25&pid=185&offset=0
Dont ever let anyone tell you to upgrade your components. Its a waste fo money once you hit the 105 level. You wont get faster b/c of a D/A rear mech.
Good luck.
Life is short. Play hard and get dirty doing it.
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RV posted 1 year ago.
Bike fit with areobars - then a good cadence meter / bike computer. Hold off on the wheels for awhile.
RV
It takes a long time to get good. - Scott Molina
Slow is smooth; smooth is fast. - Rich Strauss
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Ironmom posted 1 year ago.
Triguy98;60872 wrote:
A race wheelset is a REAL nice thing, but a decent aero position is better than a race wheel set in a non aero position. One cheap aero gain would be a disc cover for your rear wheel.
http://www.wheelbuilder.com/closeup.asp?cid=25&pid=185&offset=0.
How well do those bolt-on aero disc covers work? I've wondered, but never tri'd one out :D I'm thinking I might get one for next season. I've never ridden with a disc though, it's often windy here, is there a wind speed cutoff? In one race in the Columbia Gorge, I saw a guy with a disc get literally picked off the ground and blown off the road. It was pretty amazing (but 20 -40 mph winds, what was he thinking riding with a disc?)
Blue Skies, -Robin-
http://ironmom.blogspot.com/
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Triguy98 posted 1 year ago.
For the disc cover, you take off your cassette, sandwich the wheel with the cover and bolt it together. Works just like a disc. The only wind speed cut off is the one you are comfortable with. I have also seen people blown off course/ several feet in a horizontal direction. But like you, I was racing in crazy winds (hurricane blew through the night before the race, and we were dealing with the after effects.)
The cool thing about the disc cover is that you can take it with you and decide that morning if you wanna use it. If its too windy for a disc, youve got your regular wheels with you anyway.
Life is short. Play hard and get dirty doing it.
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Nobody posted 1 year ago.
Well, I made the mistake of getting a bike with 105 components and there's nothing that slows you down more than a blown BB or a component that fails the morning of a long ride or a tri! Maybe a Dura Ace BB would have blown, too, but I doubt it.
I spend close to a grand on my bike thinking 105 would be enough, but now I'm regretting not spending more.
With that said, I flipped and cut my handlebars, mounted my shifter/brakes, dropped a set of Profile T2s on and that alone increased my overall mph by almost 1 above my avg. for my Sun. raoute. Was also surprisingly comfortable. I thought the difference would be miniscule, but it was anything but. Aero bars kick ass!
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catulu posted 1 year ago.
It's quite interesting hearing the two points of views on 105 components. I've been thinking of purchasing a new Scott CR1 but can't decide if it is worth it to pay an extra NZD$1000 for the upgrade from all 105 to all Ultegra. The frame is exactly the same for both bikes.
I've currently got all sora with a tiagra rear and find that the rear can be a bit stubborn at times changing gears.
Can anyone tell me from experience whether there is such a huge difference between 105 and Ultegra? Would it be worth the $1000 bump?
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Triguy98 posted 1 year ago.
No. You can get a bad batch of anything (yes, even Dura Ace.)
I've had high end off road stuff (XTR and XT) fail while my LX stuff keeps ticking, but I have also had some LX stuff fail. My tri bike is all 105, and only one thing has broken on it- the Dura Ace bar end shifters. Sorry Nobody, but ..it happens, even to DA stuff, and its just more expensive to replace when it does.
Life is short. Play hard and get dirty doing it.
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kkocan posted 1 year ago.
My road bike is full ultegra, my tri bike is 105. I think the ultegra may shift just a bit crisper, and I like the Ultegra crank with the better bottom bracket-definitely stiffer. But then I have broken 2 chains with the ultegra, so who knows. Some of the stuff below 105 is junk, but I would ride 105 any day of the week.
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Anton posted 1 year ago.
Best investment?
Time.
Time on the bike...strength,speed and being comfortable on the bike will eclipse anything you can clamp, screw or slap on.
After that: A good bike fitting.
Then maybe a few chichi parts.
Wheels, last.
"What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?" - Vincent Van Gogh
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PJT posted 1 year ago.
I'd say both 1 & 2 at the same time. Here's why: A good fitter will fit you differently depending on whether or not you have aerobars. No sense getting a great fit in a road setup only to add aerobars later and be back to square one.
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Jstyle posted 1 year ago.
On my cannondale ironman 800 I just recently swapped out all of my old 105 components to ultegra (Crank, BB, Cassette, Chain, Derailers front and rear, hubs, shifters (Dura-Ace) I even now have ultegra pedals) only because most of my 105 parts were just worn. And honestly it feels a little more crisp but the difference is neglidgible. It's not like I picked up any more speed I wouldn't have swapped out the parts unless the 105 were bad. I did bump up to a rear 10 speed cassette and I very much like that now :)
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Ironmom posted 1 year ago.
Anton;60909 wrote:
Best investment?
Time.
Time on the bike...strength,speed and being comfortable on the bike will eclipse anything you can clamp, screw or slap on.
After that: A good bike fitting.
Then maybe a few chichi parts.
Wheels, last.
Can't argue with this! Take a look at the bikes that Dave Scott, Mark Allen, et al were using in the 80's when they were going 8:09 and 8:10 Ironmans. It's impressive!
Still, I think a reasonable set of aerobars helps a lot.
Blue Skies, -Robin-
http://ironmom.blogspot.com/
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jrh1667 posted 1 year ago.
Thanks everyone for your insite. I agree time in the saddle is the best way to improve. I plan to do that.
I think I will get a proper bike fit with aerobars. I agree if you get fit w/o them then decide to switch you'll be back to squre one.
Again, thanks for the help!
Jeff
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Nobody posted 1 year ago.
Well I'm bummed to hear that Dura Ace and Ultegra fail just as often. I'm not the type who cares too much about blowing an extra 1-2K on crisp feelings. My main concern is reliability.
Not to hijack the thread...but anyone have any exp. w/FSA cranks? Is there a particular brand out there that is considered to be more bulletproof than Shimano?
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Triguy98 posted 1 year ago.
How old was the BB? Was it installed on the bike when you got it? External bearing BB?
I still havent found a system I like more than an Octalink BB. I dont personally have a FSA crank, but my riding buddy has had one for 2 years (carbon something or other) with no problems.
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runpuddrun posted 1 year ago.
I have a FSA crank on my Felt S32 w/105 throughout (front and back derailers). Not a single problem. Had it for over a year and a half now. I have Ultegra shifters, I just upgraded my cassette to a SRAM 12-26 instead of my Tiagra 12-23.
I have not changed a single thing on my tribike except for the cheap aerolites, which i switched out with the T2's (awesome) and the cassette, and i'm not even changing it per se, I just got new a semi-aero wheelset and needed a newer, better, hillier cassette. I also just ordered the wheel cover for my bike.
I continually beat people with full Durace. It makes no difference above 105. I agree with Triguy.
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Homebrewermike posted 1 year ago.
FSA Gossamer cranks came on my 05 Cervelo Dual. One of the bolts came loose 3-4 times in the middle of a ride. This caused one crank arm to become sloppy. Also when I stood up on them I could feel the flex in the BB/Crank. I'm a clydesdale. I replaced the crank/BB just recently with a stiffer Ultegra 2-piece 10 speed crank that I got off ebay for $105. The new Dual now comes with a 2-piece crank also.
Nobody;60999 wrote:
Well I'm bummed to hear that Dura Ace and Ultegra fail just as often. I'm not the type who cares too much about blowing an extra 1-2K on crisp feelings. My main concern is reliability.Not to hijack the thread...but anyone have any exp. w/FSA cranks? Is there a particular brand out there that is considered to be more bulletproof than Shimano?
I know this question has been asked in diffrent combinations, but I would like to get everyone's opinion on it combined. I have done only a few triathlon's, all of them sprints. This year, I have started to train specifically for races and would like to show some improvements.
I have a Cannondale R700 with mostly 105 components, and a Ultegra rear derailer. There are three things I am think of doing, which is most beneficial for me knowing my longest race this season may be an Oly.
1. Get a professional bike fitting? I have done my own fitting through reading articles, etc, but do not know if I have maximized this benefit.
2. Purchase clip-on aerobars? How much will this help in a short race? Will it help w/o a professional fitting?
3. Purchase a better wheel set? I have also read having a better wheel set is even more beneficial than aerobars.
I plan on training hard regardless of any of these items and know there isn't a silver bullet, but these items seem like low hanging fruit. I look forward to your replies.
Thanks,
Jeff