The Official DMF Bicycle Thread

[fastwin]

That's centimeters not inches. Just saying.

That's my size too.

[Monster Dave]

That's centimeters not inches. Just saying.

That's my size too.

Thanks - I corrected it!! See what happens when you don't proof read your posts before hitting "post". 

[fastwin]

I knew you meant cms. I used to ride 55s but the way they measure frames now has changed a little over the decades and now I'm a 54 kinda guy. Probably could use a 53 but they aren't as common as 54s. I'm always amazed at the amount of seat post showing on some people's bikes. It's like they are 6 foot plus and they are riding on my 54cm size frame. Again, I'm ancient and followed Merckx and Poulidor! What does that tell you? Guess I need to wave my cane and yell at those kids on my lawn!!!

[bryant8]

hah, fastwin... i still want the 996S but that is on hold until i reach my 140.6 goal.

dave, i'll ask around some of the TNT folks in the DFW area about bikes for sale.  there is always somebody selling their current ride for the newest shiny ride (just like in the moto world).  54cm i'll keep that in mind when i hear about for sales

sidebar... almost bit the bullet on aero wheels tonight.  they cost almost as much as my trek 4.5 madone did brand new

[fastwin]

sidebar... almost bit the bullet on aero wheels tonight.  they cost almost as much as my trek 4.5 madone did brand new

Just what I was talking about! And I thought my motorcycle habit was wallet draining! I have no faith in anything with the word "aero" attached to it. None of it ever made me faster. Personally, I think "aero" is the cycling equivalent to male sexual "enhancement" products. Shovel all your money at it in hopes it will make you perform better!

[Monster Dave]

I knew you meant cms. I used to ride 55s but the way they measure frames now has changed a little over the decades and now I'm a 54 kinda guy. Probably could use a 53 but they aren't as common as 54s. I'm always amazed at the amount of seat post showing on some people's bikes. It's like they are 6 foot plus and they are riding on my 54cm size frame. Again, I'm ancient and followed Merckx and Poulidor! What does that tell you? Guess I need to wave my cane and yell at those kids on my lawn!!!

My problem is that I have a longer torso and shorter legs, so once I get a frame that fit me, I had to make length adjustments so accommodate my longer torso and wider shoulders.

Bryant,

I do appreciate that. Thing is, I do think that I want to buy a bike that's both new and new to me. Hopefully this year I'll find one that I really like. It's just taking time to save the $$ and prioritize my goals to get one. I had a 2010 Felt F3 picked as my choice of bike but just as I was getting serious about it, the 2010 models were no longer being produced. What really sucks is that the price for the newly designed 2011 F3 jumped almost a full 2k. Boo on that.  

[sbrguy]

when it comes to the new carbon aero wheels the performance does live up to the hype.  as much as a 3k dollar bike is an improvment over a $250 walmart special, the new carbon rims that are 2600$ are that much of an improvment for racing purposes as a well made set of mavic open pros for $300.

but how much will a 6k$ bike get you over 3k$ bike is debatable as is $4k wheels over $2.5k wheels.

[sbrguy]

I keep telling myself that at least for the time being, it's making me stronger!

I fit a 54cm frame. Thanks for keeping a ear to the ground for me!  

don't worry just keep looking on craigslist or the local triathlon forum boards trust me you can pick up a 2-3 year old bike that was oroginally $4k or more for easily 50% off, bicycles as you know depreciate even worse than motorcycles.  a 5 year old bicycle is practically 1-2 generations old by the time 5 years rolls around.

[cokey]

I want a new bike.. my 200 R union is short I believe. I dnt knw the size nor do I kbw how it affects riding.   A good shop shld be able to determine ?  Ill still keep mines, its 9 yrs old now.. I'm fast on it, well us to be...  ill get a pic once I take it out of storage.  My aunt has an 8k bike and a 3k bike.. She does triathlons though.  This year I'm going in hard on some more riding.

On lunch, was just in a bike shop.. was looking at a giant for 1200.. seems pretty good.. any info on these?

[bryant8]

I'm looking a aero wheels from a few years back and take advantage of those that are looking for the latest/greatest. I'm mainly looking for my Iron distance gear.

Dave I know what you mean. I was happy to get my 4.5 brand new. I was lucky and got the last last year's model on closeout and save a few hundred.  Just keep an eye out for the one you want. Lots of closeouta going on right now. 

Cokey, a good shop will be able to help you find the proper size bike. Giant makes great bikes from what I hear, ive never ridden one so no FHE.

[triangleforge]

I'll state up front that I'm a hopeless cheapskate, so take anything I say with that in mind.

I adore all the new high tech that's come into bike frames & components over the last few years, but can't ever imagine paying for it as a recreational cyclist or amateur racer. If you're fast enough for someone to subsidize/give/pay you to ride their gear, that's a different story. If it makes you happy to have a $7,000+ bicycle, and you can afford it without your kids going shoeless, then enjoy, and I'll be the first to drool over it. But realize that every $1,000 additional you spend makes less and less difference in your actual performance, quickly reaching a point where it's impossible to claim it's actually making you faster.

My road race bike was built around a Quattro Assi frame bought on closeout from Bill Lewis at Wm. Lewis Imports http://www.quattroassicycles.com/index.html Looks like he's got some of his basic frames (much improved from the one I got six or seven years ago) on closeout for about the $300 I paid. Half the fun was talking to Bill directly, and listening to him explain in a Brazos River-thick Texas drawl  that "This here's a frame that'll be as fast as you are, but when you put 'er down in some industrial park crit, you'll check to see if you're OK before you look at yer bike."

I built it with Ultegra components; I'd wager that some judicious shopping on Ebay and elsewhere could score unused, new in the box 9-speed Shimano Dura Ace/Ultegra gear or the Campy equivalents for great prices. With all the money you save, splurge on wheels; I could never bring myself to spend the money on carbon fiber, deep section wheels even though I know from experience they're faster -- wheels are the most vulnerable parts of a bike in a crash, and you WILL crash. If you have the stomach to write off a $500-$1,000+ wheel when you or someone near you makes a small mistake in tight quarters, then go for it.

The bike you wind up with will cost a whole lot less than the $3-$4 K that people seem to think constitutes an "entry level" race bike these days but won't slow you down a bit -- and if you're fast enough that it might make a difference, you'll know it, because there will be those aforementioned folks waving gear, dollars & contracts at you to ride their stuff. Special bonus: if you build it yourself, you'll be quite a bit ahead with knowledge when it comes to fixing what breaks.

Way, way, WAY more important than the size of your credit limit & willingness to exhaust it on a bicycle are fit and training. It sounds like you've got some special fit issues, Dave, so it's probably worth asking around for who's got a great reputation in Tucson for bike fit, and pay for a session. Then follow that advice -- no matter how much you save on a bike that doesn't fit, that's wasted money. I also put in the "fit" category gear like clothing, saddle & shoes -- you're going to be spending serious time in the saddle, and your training will be much more effective if you're not adding to the excruciating pain of it all with ill-fitting shoes or worse than average saddle sores. Spend the money on good shoes, good clothing (several sets), and a saddle that fits you.

It's also worth investing in gear that will help you train smart, both because it will boost the results you get from a given amount of time you put into the sport, and because (with me at least) it helped at least a little bit to motivate me to do structured training when I'd really have rather been just puttering around or not riding at all. I did mostly heart-rate based training, but power-output based training seems to be pretty effective and the way most folks are going these days.

So in a nutshell, I'd advise you to save A LOT of money on the frame & components, and spend instead on race wheels (train on good old, rugged clinchers), getting the right fit, and training aids.

[Monster Dave]

Good advice. 

[stateprez]

Personally, I wish I would have bought a power meter three years ago over carbon wheels. 

It's night and day over training with a HRM alone.

[Monster Dave]

Personally, I wish I would have bought a power meter three years ago over carbon wheels. 

It's night and day over training with a HRM alone.

Really? I've not yet bought one, but heard all good things about them. My HRM has been a big help to this point though.

[stateprez]

Really? I've not yet bought one, but heard all good things about them. My HRM has been a big help to this point though.

I did zones off of lactate threshold heart rate (HRM), before the powertap.  Then, I started doing my normal heart rate intervals with the meter, just watching the watts- I was all over the place.

It's really improved my stroke under power and helped me dial in my most efficient cadence.  I've only been working with it a couple of weeks on the trainer, but I really wish I'd bought one a couple seasons ago.

Try googling local CompuTrainer classes- they use your bike on a meter equipped trainer.  You can get an idea of the advantages before you spend the money.