Originally Posted by
BikeCycling
I am an amateur. I have only been cycling seriously for a couple years.
I've gotten pretty into it and have been pushing myself harder lately, with goals of being competitive this year. I have an older, steel-frame road bike that I bought for about $250. Since I've been training harder and riding with teams/group rides, I've found myself getting faster and stronger! Lately I've been able to hold 17-20 on longer rides and can even push above 20 for a bit. I'm proud of myself!
My friend has a really nice, newer model aluminum road bike. She only rides socially for fun. She said I need to borrow her bike for the next fast group ride I do because I'll go even faster. I feel like I've been getting stronger and faster on my bike, so this isn't necessary...but I was thinking, at what point does the bike start to hold me back? At what point is it time to upgrade to a nicer, lighter bike?
...the answer depends on why you are riding in the first place. If your goal is to compete (like in racing), yes, you are at a disadvantage. If your goals run more toward fitness and exercise, and you're having a good time on your steel bike, maybe it's fine for you. What happens at speeds of 20MPH and up is that air resistance becomes more important as a factor. Some of the aero improvements in wheels would make you faster. But is faster your real goal here ?
This topic will doubtless go 14 pages, so I thought I'd get in relatively early and then just
.