Too many options
558
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1395 days
vanjames posted 1 year ago.
Road bike with clip on aerobars will be fine and should you decide to go longer will get you right thru to an Ironman if you choose. oou will have the most flexiility with this set up to expand your racing and training.
As for your bikes I'm sure the are all comparable, Check out Specialized and Giant bikes if they are around your shops as well. They have some great entry bikes in your range that offer alot of performance. As for the "comfort geometry" - compact geometry is used by many bike manufacturers to make the bike stiffer and more responsive but at the same time allow for a more upright position that newbie road riders will appreciate.
Make sure you get correctly fit to a bike before you commit - if your LBS won't or doesn't know how - go to another one.
2455
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1331 days
Triguy98 posted 1 year ago.
Road bikes are just fine for tris if you are not looking to be competitive. You can go ahead and add aerobars to the bike if you want, but make sure they are compatible both with you and the bike's geometry.
I would stay away from the comfort or relaxed geometries. You might not be competitive, but you're still racing. The higher head tubes of the comfort geometries are not conductive to getting aero.
For $1500 (are you including clipless pedals and shoes in this budget?) I would go with the Trek 1500, Specialized Allez Elite, Giant TCR A1, or Fuji Roubaix Pro. Ride em all and get the one that speaks to you the most.
Life is short. Play hard and get dirty doing it.
287
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1338 days
kevinb421 posted 1 year ago.
I agree that for the $1500 dollar price range I would recommend you stay away from the comfort bikes. Since you said you won't be doing many group rides or doing much over 50 miles then there is no reason for you to get a bike designed to make long rides comfortable. Your going to want something a little more aggressive in order to be able to put on aero bars. I know you said you won't be competitive, but if you really get into the sport then your going to want aero bars.
Out of all the bikes you listed I recommend staying away from the pilot. those bikes are made for people who do a lot of miles at a conversation pace. Great bikes and are very comfortable but not all that fast. I have always like cannondale but I recommend you ask the LBS's for a few different brands in a "race geometry" bike and test ride them all in your price range and find the one you like the best. Since this is your first road bike make sure you find out if they include a fit for free or how much extra it is. That is going to be crucial to your success and comfort.
I edited this post because I remembered a friend of mine who rides a Cannondale Ironman that he purchased for around your price. It is a tri bike that has more of a road geometry. See if your cannondale shop has any that you can ride and compare the difference between a tri bike and a road bike.
"If your not going to win, make the fellow in front of you break a record."
217
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540 days
big 3 posted 1 year ago.
I didn't mention I already have Crank Bros Quattros and shimano shoes. So I'm covered there.
So following up on adding aero bars to a road bike. I was talking with a guy that does cyclocross and he felt that adding aero bars no a non tri geometry bike really isn't a good idea because the weight distribution is off. Also when you are "Fit" to the bike you will really only be comfortable on whichever position you decide to be fit into.
Yet I see bikes like the Trek's Equinox 5 which looks to me to be tri geometry with both drop and aero bars.
Cannondale has the Sprint CAAD9 Optimo 4.
Fuji has the Aloha 2.0.
I don't know the prices of these 3 bikes. Do you guys think I will be happier long term with these bikes because of the geometry?
Also something I've been curious about is the components.
Fuji Aloha 2.0 Front is Tiagra, Rear is 105
Trek Equinox 5 is 105 front and back
Cannondale Sprint CAAD9 Optimo 4 is 105 front and back.
I've been reading the posts here as to what is the most important thing in looking for a bike. And everyone says fit. The bike shops I've been going to are going to fit me into whatever bike I buy. The one guy even has the computer setup. Maybe I'm being naive here in thinking that they can make any bike fit me....
Anyhow, Good Fit aside, should I be concerning myself more with the ride of the frame or quality of the rest of the components?
Thanks for the feedback everyone.
54
Member
655 days
Dan Smith posted 1 year ago.
Triguy98;70118 wrote:
Road bikes are just fine for tris if you are not looking to be competitive.I would go with the Trek 1500
I have a Trek 1500 I am very happy with.
4496
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1644 days
kylie posted 1 year ago.
not every bike can be fit to you. It will depend on how high or low you are comfortable and if the bike can go to that position, for one. If you can get a fit done on a generic bike to get an idea of where you want to be, it will help you pick what bike, since you'll then be able to say "bikes x y and z can get to the setup I want".
I'm looking to buy a bike. Currently I have a mountain/hybrid.
I'm new to Triathlons but I expect all I'll ever do is Sprint and International Distance.
So I've been visiting my Local Bike Shops and asking for advice there as well. Basically it just brought up more questions. So here goes.
My budget is $1500. Which I feel will get me a decent bike. I'm not going to be competitive, at the same time I was a nice ride.
I don't see myself doing many group rides.
The guys at the bike shop said if I'm not going to be doing 50+ mile rides. They say a regular road bike would probably be better than a Tribike with aero bars. They also didn't recommend areobars on a road geometry bike because of the lack of control.
So question 1: Do you agree with them that I would do just fine with a road bike because of the "shorter" races I'm doing? Or am I really doing myself a disservice by not buying a Tri Geometry bike?
Question 2: Many of the shops were trying to sell me. Cannondale Synapse 1, Cannondale Synapse 2, Fuji Newest 1.0, Fuji Roubaix Pro, Trek 1600, Trek Pilot 2.1... Many of these have sloped top tube and have "comfort geometry". I understand the geometry issues involved here. I guess my question is $1500 or less what opinions do you folks have for me regarding these bikes?
The Pilot 2.1 has carbon fork and carbon seat stays 105 front, ultegra Rear. Carbon Seat post. Bontrager Select Wheels
Cannondale synapse 1: carbon fork S.A.V.E ultra, 105 front and Rear, Carbon wrapped seat post, Shimano WH-R500 Wheels.
Roubaix Pro: Carbon Fork, Carbon seat Stays, 105 front, Ultegra Rear, Alloy seat post, Alex ALX-200 Wheels
Please feel free to offer other suggested bikes. Without spending a ton of time riding all of these bikes. I feel I'm not going to know how successful their designs translate to that "great ride". Meaning the cannondale synapse doesn't have carbon seat stays but maybe their frame design doesn't need it?
Looking forward to your responses/opinions.