GO SPECIALIZED!
I am not biased and I say:
Get a stupid Focus or a f***ton canyon bike
German precision at its best
Not the fat big and ugly bikes of America etc. or the stuff like Bianchi which are heavy because Ullrich had to sit down on the bike and the bike shouldn´t break into 2 pieces or the cheap asian bikes, they aren´t worth the money
Or get a Den Beste Sykkel
Team Bianchi - 2012 Man-Game ProContinental Tour Champions
Levi4life wrote:
I'm starting to look into a new bike for next year. Thing is I don't want Specialized, Trek or Cervelo, as it seems everyone in this area either has a Specialized, trek or cervelo.
I'm thinking Ridley, Kuota, Giant, Willier, Colnago etc etc.
Any other suggestions? I wanna build a bike that I think looks particularly sexy. I'm considering racing unnatached next season.
I just decided to get a new bike and i had a pretty liberal budget so i really had most options opened to me but after all the bikes i looked at and read into i fell in love with the BMC Race Master frameset with SRAM Force/Red combo on a set of Easton EC90s, that is totally from the standpoint of a crit/sprint rider because it's admittedly not the lightest bike around but i think it seems to be one of the best sprinter bikes out there not to mention it's kind of gorgeous with it's semi-integrated seat post and it's oversized tubing and i think the joints looks pretty awesome too and it comes with a nice fork stock as well. So that's always something to look into.
P.S. now that you've done more testing you better be able to tell me what your max wattage is lol i hear everyone talk like their really strong sprinters which is good but i rarely hear anything that is close to my watt/kg max (somewhere around 21.4) you can message me or reply here but i wanna know! lol
Cool deal man we should meet up and go for a ride or something on one of the off days, i think the TT crit and RR are not on consecutive days for the Men 17-18. shoot me a message if you'd be interested and i'll give you my cell number
I will probabaly skip the TT. We should deffinilty get together and ride a bit.
Also, my team has a shoe exchange for parents who don't want to buy new shoes for fast growing kids. My brother got a pair of Shimano Shoes. The name written on the bag in black Sharpie? Lucas Euser.
Lucas is from Napa, 40 minutes drive away. He donated a bunch of his old stuff to the team, including a 2006 Slipstream-Chipotle kit that my teammate wears on some rides.
I'm going to take my current frame (a Trek 2 Series with carbon seatstays and a carbon fork) and take all the components off of it. Then I'm going to buy my buddy's Rival (I'll need a new chain, cassette, and BB, but otherwise its in mint condition) and put it on to my bike, with a 3t cockpit (Arx Pro stem and Ergonova Pro Handlebar), Easton EA 70 wheels, an Easton EC70 Seatpost, and Selle Italia Flite saddle, and some Ultegra pedals and Michelin Krylion tires.
I'd then take my current Tiagra and Bontrager shit and stick it on a Surly Pacer frame to use as a commuter and bad weather training bike.
I'll either do it now or right after my next race on July 18th.
Did a race today. The Davis Criterium. Started with the juniors at 9, Teammate started the leadout too early and when he began fading I went with a lap to go. I was hoping I could catch some guys out, but no dice. I was 14th.
I did my elite race at 4 (long day, very hot) and finished top 20 ish. very technical course and with the wind and 60 riders there was only one place to move up, the finishing straight. I followed a wheel all the way to the front then attacked for a Preme (which was a pair of Rudy Project glasses)
Just got back from the Ras de Cymru. A 5 day stage race in Wales. My team took 3rd overall, and 2nd in the team GC. I was 4th overall in the sprints competition, whilst the guy who came 3rd was leading it for 2 days, we lost it today, but worse things happen in life. My other 2 team mates took 11th and 14th overall. I finished down in 47th place, over 12 minutes down in GC. Mainly due to being dropped in the team time trial (not having an aero bike was a bit of a mistake).
On the hardest stage, I took off after 2 miles, with 2 others, and after 15 miles we caught the 2 guys ahead of us. One lap later, we were down to 4, another lap later, I was caught on the 1 mile, 18% climb by a counter break, and on the descent, the peloton. I sat in for the last lap and finished a couple minutes down again (the race finished on the climb). All in all a great day off the front, 50 miles in the break, and a max lead of about 4 minutes at one point.
Today I led out the intermediate sprint, where the 3rd-placed-GC guy took 3rd, securing second place, which was awesome for him.
Great race, and having a team around you that not once stopped laughing and joking was a bonus, and one that I'd recommend to anyone doing a stage race. Makes a world of difference.
rjc_43 wrote:
Just got back from the Ras de Cymru. A 5 day stage race in Wales. My team took 3rd overall, and 2nd in the team GC. I was 4th overall in the sprints competition, whilst the guy who came 3rd was leading it for 2 days, we lost it today, but worse things happen in life. My other 2 team mates took 11th and 14th overall. I finished down in 47th place, over 12 minutes down in GC. Mainly due to being dropped in the team time trial (not having an aero bike was a bit of a mistake).
On the hardest stage, I took off after 2 miles, with 2 others, and after 15 miles we caught the 2 guys ahead of us. One lap later, we were down to 4, another lap later, I was caught on the 1 mile, 18% climb by a counter break, and on the descent, the peloton. I sat in for the last lap and finished a couple minutes down again (the race finished on the climb). All in all a great day off the front, 50 miles in the break, and a max lead of about 4 minutes at one point.
Today I led out the intermediate sprint, where the 3rd-placed-GC guy took 3rd, securing second place, which was awesome for him.
Great race, and having a team around you that not once stopped laughing and joking was a bonus, and one that I'd recommend to anyone doing a stage race. Makes a world of difference.
6 Stages, a lot of pain, and a lot of fun.
I'm doing it next year mate, if I'm stuck for options team-wise, could you offer me a ride?
Certainly. I'm thinking about doing a composite team anyway, just under some wierd name. That's if I do it anyway. I'm not a climber in anyway, shape or form so the whole race doesn't suit me that well.
rjc_43 wrote:
Certainly. I'm thinking about doing a composite team anyway, just under some wierd name. That's if I do it anyway. I'm not a climber in anyway, shape or form so the whole race doesn't suit me that well.
Sounds good, if you do one, I'm a 99% yes for doing it.
The climbs sound lovely, I have no idea if I can Time Trial because I havn't done one .
I'm doing the ras next year too, if i haven't got my 1st cat by july (which is unlikely unless I start doing big road races)
Edited by tomzk111 on 11-07-2009 15:59
I have gone off the boil slightly with cycling, I really enjoy it and probably up to the age of around 15 I was quite good, a real good climber but all I did was ride with my dad and as you know people get older..
The trouble is none of my mates a) have an interest in cycling or b) have a bike so i'm forced to ride alone which can be very good but I mostly find it extremely dull and so I don't ride half as much as I used to and have lost quite a bit of my fitness. Shame really.
Now i'm looking into getting back out there, has anyone got anytips for making riding alone more fun?
I have quite a good mountain bike but thats more suited to the rugged trails of north yorkshire which I don't go to anymore. I am looking into getting a road bike can anyone reccommend any which are good for the begginner rider?
Levi4life wrote:
I'm starting to look into a new bike for next year. Thing is I don't want Specialized, Trek or Cervelo, as it seems everyone in this area either has a Specialized, trek or cervelo.
I'm thinking Ridley, Kuota, Giant, Willier, Colnago etc etc.
Any other suggestions? I wanna build a bike that I think looks particularly sexy. I'm considering racing unnatached next season.
Dezzy wrote:
I have gone off the boil slightly with cycling, I really enjoy it and probably up to the age of around 15 I was quite good, a real good climber but all I did was ride with my dad and as you know people get older..
The trouble is none of my mates a) have an interest in cycling or b) have a bike so i'm forced to ride alone which can be very good but I mostly find it extremely dull and so I don't ride half as much as I used to and have lost quite a bit of my fitness. Shame really.
Now i'm looking into getting back out there, has anyone got anytips for making riding alone more fun?
I have quite a good mountain bike but thats more suited to the rugged trails of north yorkshire which I don't go to anymore. I am looking into getting a road bike can anyone reccommend any which are good for the begginner rider?
To be honest any of the second hand bikes you can pick up from your local bike shop(s) would be a great place to begin. They usually give them a full service before selling them on, and will be a darn sight cheaper than buying one first hand. Failing that, I started on a 500 quid bike (a nice giant), and that got me fit enough and interested enough to progress a bit further. Now I'm looking to buy a 2K bike, preferably for less than 1K (I will manage to "persuade" a shop owner to sell me one sooner or later...)
As to riding, most of the time we all train alone, there's no way to avoid it really. The only way I can say to make it interesting is to listen to music. A lot. Or go out, ride and get lost somewhere. That's always interesting. Usually makes you do more miles than you meant to, and keeps you interested as you haven't a clue where you are. Obviously don't get too lost, as that'd be kinda shit.
Check out local bike clubs via the internet to see when and where they meet, and try and get out on rides with them at the weekends and evenings. Through those rides you meet plenty of guys who'll often do mid-week rides as well, and are always looking to ride with others.
My personal tip is to always find someone stronger than you to train with. Means that you're never waiting for anyone, and you get the harder workout.
Wow thanks rjc! I'll let you know as soon as I manage to pick up a decent bike, get my ipod sorted out etc. I'll also rack my brains to find someone stronger than me to ride with for a bit until I feel strong enough to join a club, again, thanks a lot rjc.
biased and I say:
.
