I'm starting to rethink buying a really nice bike
05-02-06, 01:46 PM
#26
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Originally Posted by H1449-6
Corrected to read 98% the legs, lungs and heart (aka will) and 2% the bike.
The poseurs on this forum who like to match their bar tape to the sidewalls on their tires don't understand this.
The poseurs on this forum who like to match their bar tape to the sidewalls on their tires don't understand this.
Hallelujah!
05-02-06, 04:34 PM
#27
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When I first started racing crits, I was afraid of messing up my Kestrel Talon, so I raced my Trek 1200 thinking that "it's not about the bike." The eye-opening day for me was when I raced my Trek in a crit on Saturday and my Kestrel in a RR on Sunday.
Wow, what a difference - especially in sprinting. The Trek's lack of bottom bracket stiffness is really noticable in a hard sprint or hard climb. The Kestrel is much more lively when you really get on it hard.
So yes, it's not all about the bike, but the bike does play a part. Now I ride my Kestrel all the time and the Trek is relegated to the stationary trainer and commuting.
Wow, what a difference - especially in sprinting. The Trek's lack of bottom bracket stiffness is really noticable in a hard sprint or hard climb. The Kestrel is much more lively when you really get on it hard.
So yes, it's not all about the bike, but the bike does play a part. Now I ride my Kestrel all the time and the Trek is relegated to the stationary trainer and commuting.
05-02-06, 05:28 PM
#28
Used to be a climber..
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Originally Posted by urbanknight
So wait, are you saying you'll ride in a crit on a cheap aluminum frame to save your carbon bike but without medical insurance is no problem? I never understood that "flesh heels, bikes don't" mentality. It's a bike! An inanimate object that can be replaced, and to the best of my knowledge doesn't feel pain. Anyway, whatever you want to do, more power to you.
And I WOULDN'T race without medical insurance. Broken bones can be expensive. Not sure how it got misconstrued the other way.
05-04-06, 09:23 PM
#29
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One problem with this philosophy (which I actually find to be completely understandable as I did this with a really nice bike and a favorite beater years ago) is that you will find that when you want to upgrade, you've hardly ridden your "nice" bike. It's been not much more than an ornament, and then you want to move onto something else without really having had any pleasure from it. Though a poor analogy, it's a bit like people who buy really fancy clothes that they are afraid to wear, and then find that they are out of season (my mom did this all the time) when they finally put them on years later.
05-05-06, 06:48 PM
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it's all about the bike, If Lance rode a huffy, he wouln't win a single TDF. It's all about the bike, that's why Lance even installed a downtube shifter to make it lighter. It's all about the bike, that's why they ride TT bikes for TT event to get the all the advantages they can get.
When you train the best you could, then the bike is the only thing you can improve.
Oh, I can beat Lance easily with my steel bike if he rides my kid's bike. So, it's all about the bike
j/k
When you train the best you could, then the bike is the only thing you can improve.
Oh, I can beat Lance easily with my steel bike if he rides my kid's bike. So, it's all about the bike
j/k
05-05-06, 09:46 PM
#31
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..rethinking a bike
furiousferret,
Bikes are like computers when you're looking. There are soooo many choices. My wife has had her Litespeed for about four years now and had been "looking" for about two years on her "next" bike. She did a lot of research and finally decided to get a Titus Exogrid...its still weeks away, but I'm sure it will be worth it. I guess it really doesn't matter what you get as long as it fits, makes you want to ride and you enjoy it.
~Apollo
Bikes are like computers when you're looking. There are soooo many choices. My wife has had her Litespeed for about four years now and had been "looking" for about two years on her "next" bike. She did a lot of research and finally decided to get a Titus Exogrid...its still weeks away, but I'm sure it will be worth it. I guess it really doesn't matter what you get as long as it fits, makes you want to ride and you enjoy it.
~Apollo
05-05-06, 10:03 PM
#32
Aluminium Crusader :-)
Originally Posted by rapidcarbon
it's all about the bike, If Lance rode a huffy, he wouln't win a single TDF. It's all about the bike, that's why Lance even installed a downtube shifter to make it lighter.
What if he was riding his Caloi? 
Armstrong was obviously one of the best climbers we've ever seen, but even he didn't beat Tony Rominger's time up the 7.5km Col de Madrone until 2000, but Rominger set his record on a steel Colnago.......I think
What Indurain was still riding these bikes?
Last edited by 531Aussie; 05-05-06 at 10:50 PM.
05-05-06, 10:12 PM
#33
Aluminium Crusader :-)
I know it's fun to have nice stuff, and if, for eg, someone is buying new wheels, then why not have the 1500g set instead of the 1900g set?! But, we all know that some of us secretly believe that our newest piece of stuff will make us 3mph faster!! I reckon we'd all be better off obsessing over our training or our position on the bike, rather than equipment
I reckon we'd all be better off obsessing over our training or our position on the bike, rather than equipment
05-05-06, 10:55 PM
#34
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Seriously I built my 2nd bike not to long ago and the parts are all scratched up. My shifters have taken 2 directs hits from crashes and now I don't even have the little bezel covers on them anymore. LOL, I remember when I used to be careful leaning the bike up against something because I wanted the shifters to always look pristine. I haven't even had this current bike a year and now I don't care.
LOL.....It still looks good a few feet away though.
LOL.....It still looks good a few feet away though.
05-05-06, 11:00 PM
#35
Aluminium Crusader :-)
Originally Posted by 53-11_alltheway
LOL.....It still looks good a few feet away though.
05-05-06, 11:12 PM
#36
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Originally Posted by H1449-6
The poseurs on this forum who like to match their bar tape to the sidewalls on their tires don't understand this.
05-05-06, 11:19 PM
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Originally Posted by H1449-6
The poseurs on this forum who like to match their bar tape to the sidewalls on their tires don't understand this.
loledit: forgot to mention I matched one of my kits to the same scheme. I'm sick, somebody commit me.
Originally Posted by GuitarWizard
And I WOULDN'T race without medical insurance. Broken bones can be expensive. Not sure how it got misconstrued the other way.
05-05-06, 11:20 PM
#38
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Originally Posted by Avalanche325
Crap! I have black handlebar tape AND black sidewalls. What a poseur I am!
05-05-06, 11:23 PM
#39
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Originally Posted by ICU Doc
One problem with this philosophy (which I actually find to be completely understandable as I did this with a really nice bike and a favorite beater years ago) is that you will find that when you want to upgrade, you've hardly ridden your "nice" bike. It's been not much more than an ornament, and then you want to move onto something else without really having had any pleasure from it. Though a poor analogy, it's a bit like people who buy really fancy clothes that they are afraid to wear, and then find that they are out of season (my mom did this all the time) when they finally put them on years later.
Most bike stuff is a waste of money to be honest. Even ultegra 6600 is overkill, but to me that is still "very useable but not pedastal type stuff"
Bike stuff reminds me of fitness equipment (although I would say bikes have slightly better resale) in that they are a crappy investment unless they get used and enjoyed.
05-05-06, 11:24 PM
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Originally Posted by furiousferret
. . .From everything I've read, the best value bike seems to be around 2k (pedal force, specialized roubaix, etc) and past that there are diminishing returns.
05-06-06, 06:37 PM
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Originally Posted by cyclintom
Ferret, you're a man after my own heart. I just don't like to take out a great bike that I paid a lot of money for. That's why I wait for real steals and then grab a good bike on the cheap and build it up slowly as I get super deals on components.
For instance, my C40 I picked up for a song off of Ebay since it came up at exactly the wrong time for everyone else and I was one of the few bidders. That was a bare frame and fork. I put it together with Chorus and Kyserium SSL's that I got from a race team for half price almost used and I think that I have about $1,400 in the bike all told. About the same in my Merckx Ex titanium bike.
The Basso Loto which has to be the overwhelming nicest steel bike I've owned has about $1,200 in it.
But I paid full lick for the Eddy Merckx Corsa 0.1 - $3,600 when I bought in 1996 or so. And because of the price I never rode it much.
But check this out - my brother found a Fuji Newest frame on craigslist and bought it for me for Christmas. I put that together for about $600 and it is easily one of the best bikes I've ever ridden.
Expensive doesn't translate to great. The Colnago C40 is a really nice bike but there's nothing special about it. My old '82 Colnago Super with a new paint job and modern Campy parts on the other hand turned into a world beater when I added the carbon fiber fork. The old fork had been too stiff and the bike was transformed from a crappy riding speed wobbling POS to a GREAT, MEMORABLE ride with that one change.
And check this out - a woman in our club was having problems with her back. She had been riding a bike with too long a top tube all along and wouldn't listen to people telling her so until her back started giving her trouble as her mileage went up.
She went out to find a bike that fit her better and the only thing she could find was a new Trek 1500 which looked pretty good to me. She then transferred all of the Campy components off of her "good" bike onto the Trek and you can see the difference in her riding immediately. And she feels a lot better now as well.
So don't worry about "good bikes". There's nothing special about the frame material. I have carbon, aluminum, steel and titanium. I prefer the titanium ride but there's almost nothing in between the Merckx Ex, the Look KG141, the Basso Loto and the Fuji.
And I find myself using the Look a lot and the Fuji a lot. The others are summer bikes.
For instance, my C40 I picked up for a song off of Ebay since it came up at exactly the wrong time for everyone else and I was one of the few bidders. That was a bare frame and fork. I put it together with Chorus and Kyserium SSL's that I got from a race team for half price almost used and I think that I have about $1,400 in the bike all told. About the same in my Merckx Ex titanium bike.
The Basso Loto which has to be the overwhelming nicest steel bike I've owned has about $1,200 in it.
But I paid full lick for the Eddy Merckx Corsa 0.1 - $3,600 when I bought in 1996 or so. And because of the price I never rode it much.
But check this out - my brother found a Fuji Newest frame on craigslist and bought it for me for Christmas. I put that together for about $600 and it is easily one of the best bikes I've ever ridden.
Expensive doesn't translate to great. The Colnago C40 is a really nice bike but there's nothing special about it. My old '82 Colnago Super with a new paint job and modern Campy parts on the other hand turned into a world beater when I added the carbon fiber fork. The old fork had been too stiff and the bike was transformed from a crappy riding speed wobbling POS to a GREAT, MEMORABLE ride with that one change.
And check this out - a woman in our club was having problems with her back. She had been riding a bike with too long a top tube all along and wouldn't listen to people telling her so until her back started giving her trouble as her mileage went up.
She went out to find a bike that fit her better and the only thing she could find was a new Trek 1500 which looked pretty good to me. She then transferred all of the Campy components off of her "good" bike onto the Trek and you can see the difference in her riding immediately. And she feels a lot better now as well.
So don't worry about "good bikes". There's nothing special about the frame material. I have carbon, aluminum, steel and titanium. I prefer the titanium ride but there's almost nothing in between the Merckx Ex, the Look KG141, the Basso Loto and the Fuji.
And I find myself using the Look a lot and the Fuji a lot. The others are summer bikes.
George
