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First Bike – Commuting and more – Please Help!

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  • January 27, 2016 at 11:54 am #25306
    Zoolaunder

    Hi everyone,

    I’m sure this has been posted many a time, so, sorry about that. I am really lost and confused and need some advice, hopefully you can help. I am wanting to cycle to work as a 3 mile walk in very boring and long. I then want to try do 5 – 10 miles home each day for fitness and then build up my fitness and stamina over the weekends. So, I first looked at a hybrid bike but got told that they are’nt any good for longer rides and the position you sit in is not ideal – I have had lower back problems through sport. (one person said a road bike puts me in a better position)

     

    Now, I scrapped that idea and looked at road bikes. Oh god, too many to choose from and look at and even understand all the differences. I am a novice to cycling but not in sport. I do believe in paying for good gear. But that being said – budget is circa £500 maybe more. I then read about these road bikes that have a more relaxed seating position but still a good fitness bike and with room for decent sized tyres and mudguards etc.

    Also, in terms of drop bars and changing gears, is this a simple thing? It just seems awkward?

     

    I have looked at Mango and they seem nice but once all the add ons and bits are added I was looking at over £600. Sitting on the fence there.  Then looked at Giant and I have now got into a position of total confusion.

    I would like something fairly comfy but something that I can learn to cycle properly on. I am 6’2″ and 16st (looking to get back to 15 but I am quite broad) so I dont know if this makes a difference too? I am also wanting some advice on pedals – the thought of being a novice with my feet clamped in makes me nervous, but I like the fact that you get the upward power too – how easily do your feet clip in and out and is this doable for commuting in stop start traffic? What saddles are the the best and comfiest for a starter too?

     

    If theres any advice you can share on what would be an option that would be great. I am hoping to have a shortlist of 3 – 5 bikes I can look at or choose from. In my mind, these are what I want –

     

    1. Comfortable but sporty

    2. Versitle for commuting and weekend rides (room for mudguards etc)

    3. Easy to ride

    4. Not Garish

    5. Ideally sub £500

    6. Pedals?

     

    I hope you can all shed some light on this for me and make this easier. I am wary of going to a shop and speaking to some lemon that knows as much as I do and just wants to sell me a bike that he’ll make the most money from. That said, Cycle in Richmond have a brilliant guy there whom was impartial and just gave me some decent advice. But their bikes start at £700…

     

    Thanks in advance,

    Jason

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  • January 27, 2016 at 8:40 pm #866081
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    Zoolaunder
    Comrade wrote:
    For info, when I used the “cycle to work” scheme, the shops I enquired at all wanted to charge their full ticket price for the voucher. They said they could not use the bargain prices on some of the sales prices of the actual displayed price. Anyway this was ages ago so I’m not sure how it works today. The last bike I bought was not on the scheme, for this reason. Good luck.

     

    I have the work thing all sorted – I work in a small company and doing it through the business. So no vouchers or anything. Just salary sacrifice

    January 27, 2016 at 6:28 pm #866079
    0
    Dr. Ko

    I think the important step is

    I think the important step is to define your needs and the related features. Back in my storage I have so called race bikes as well as touring/commuter bikes. The commuter bikes are for riding to/through town. I can change my daily commute between 8 and almost 20 miles one direction.

    – tyres 25 to 28 mm wide, you’re still in town so 28 mm is totally enough, Schwalbe Marathon are a good option

    – ass savers

    – saddle for a more relaxed position e.g. Brooks sometimes combined with a Caradice saddle back. 

    These commuter bikes are usually based on a used steel frame and used 10 speed Shimano Ultegra parts. Here a example with a new aluminium frame and a low budget: Budget bike of course for London it needs some add-ons London extras.

    I must admit building your bike is an unlikely option for you, but I wanted to give you ideas for a commuter bike. A friend had almost the same situation, he opted for a second hand bike.

    Final idea: If you want to convert your commuter bike for weekend fun, get a second set of wheels like Fulcrum 3 with lighter racing tyres like Conti GP 4000 II, while your working day wheels will be 3 kg including tyres, these weekend wheels are about 2 kg a major difference.

    Good luck!

    Dr. Ko

    January 27, 2016 at 6:10 pm #866077
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    Sniffer
    Comrade wrote:
    For info, when I used the “cycle to work” scheme, the shops I enquired at all wanted to charge their full ticket price for the voucher. They said they could not use the bargain prices on some of the sales prices of the actual displayed price. Anyway this was ages ago so I’m not sure how it works today. The last bike I bought was not on the scheme, for this reason. Good luck.

    I have sympathy with the retailer on this.  They pay the scheme a percentage so the cost to them of the bike is higher.  Hence your potential ‘discount’ goes to the scheme provider.

    Though, depending, on your tax position the scheme can be attractive.  No upfront costs and tax incentives can make it very worthwhile even if you pay RRP.

     

     

    January 27, 2016 at 5:41 pm #866075
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    Comrade

    For info, when I used the

    For info, when I used the “cycle to work” scheme, the shops I enquired at all wanted to charge their full ticket price for the voucher. They said they could not use the bargain prices on some of the sales prices of the actual displayed price. Anyway this was ages ago so I’m not sure how it works today. The last bike I bought was not on the scheme, for this reason. Good luck.

    January 27, 2016 at 4:26 pm #866073
    0
    Zoolaunder
    . . wrote:
    I assume you have ridden a bike at some point in your life, so understand the basics of balance and steering?  And traffic! (You mention Richmond. Does this mean commuting in London?)

    With your back problems, I’m not sure whether a road or hybrid bike would be better.  Do you have any trails nearby where you could rent a hybrid or basic mountain bike at the weekend and see how you get on with it?

    The process of changing gear on a road bike is really simple.  You may change in the wrong direction occasionally to start with, but no damage is done and you’ll get the hang of it pretty quickly.

    Definitely flat pedals to start with.  Pulling up on pedals is a bit of a myth.  If you try it with flat pedals, it’s impossible to lift your foot off on the upstroke.

     

    Yeah yeah, have ridden before. But it has been a while. My commute is short – Chiswick to Richmond. But I have not really played in traffic before, but my route is bike friendly with wide paths and cycle lanes.

    Ok. so thats pedals sorted.. Boom.

    The guys in Richmond have quite top range bikes and the Canondale Synapse (spelling?) is their entry level and then theres pedals and they also do a fitting which is more etc.

    I think theres a place in Sheen but I do have an Evans in Chiswick which I’ll pop into and hopefully they’ll help. Im basically at a crossroads of not wanting to buy something cheap that I wont like or wont ride well and I will give up on the idea and equally dont want to shell out 1k and not need it. I was told that these hybrid bikes arent good for 10 mile plus cycles etc cause of the position you’re in and that they arent efficient. The fitness side to me is what I want as an end game. To have a bike I can blitz to work in on a 20 min ride and then one I can go out for 2 hours on.

    I spoke to someone online from Mango and they were not helpful in the slightest – I guess I was expecting someone to ask for a breakdown and give me a full debrief on whats what.

    …..

    January 27, 2016 at 4:11 pm #866071
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    davel

    You’ve done some research

    You’ve done some research already so you’re not far off.

    http://road.cc/content/buyers-guide/176682-best-road-bike-bargains-under-%C2%A3500 – also see the comment at the bottom about Merlin…

    ‘adventure’ or ‘gravel’ bikes tend to have more room for mudguards and bigger tyres, so are more versatile than ‘straight’ road bikes: http://road.cc/content/buyers-guide/174720-buyer%E2%80%99s-guide-gravel-and-adventure-bikes-plus-16-best – they’ll tend to be a more relaxed geometry (what I think you mean by ‘comfortable but sporty’).

    Get used to flat pedals first – the benefits you’ll get from being clipped in come into their own on longer rides, so they can wait til you’ve got the hang of the bike and shorter rides.

    But the best advice is find an independent local bike shop. Go and sit on some, try some out. Talk to the experienced guys there. You’ll get more personal advice in person. If you don’t want to (potentially) waste the time of a LBS, go to an Evans – IME generally helpful, knowledgeable-ish staff and a good range of bikes. 

    January 27, 2016 at 3:59 pm #866069
    0
    . .

    I assume you have ridden a

    I assume you have ridden a bike at some point in your life, so understand the basics of balance and steering?  And traffic! (You mention Richmond. Does this mean commuting in London?)

    With your back problems, I’m not sure whether a road or hybrid bike would be better.  Do you have any trails nearby where you could rent a hybrid or basic mountain bike at the weekend and see how you get on with it?

    The process of changing gear on a road bike is really simple.  You may change in the wrong direction occasionally to start with, but no damage is done and you’ll get the hang of it pretty quickly.

    Definitely flat pedals to start with.  Pulling up on pedals is a bit of a myth.  If you try it with flat pedals, it’s impossible to lift your foot off on the upstroke.

    January 27, 2016 at 2:51 pm #866067
    0
    Zoolaunder
    danielosman wrote:
    I would firstly say that it would be worht checking with your employer if the do or will do the cycle to work scheme essentially you get the bike tax free paid through sallery sacrifice .

    what you would need to do is try them out the boardman range of bikes are not terrible, my Dad has recently picked one up and he seems to enjoy it.

    my wife has a Giant Defy which is a really nice bike,

    also with that budget it might be worth looking at a second hand bike.

     

    as with the posistion only sittin on one and doing a few laps of the car park, changing gear is really easy and very intuitive.

     

    pedals i would stick with flats untill you get used to the bike you will rarely pull up on the pedal they do help make a better transfer but your power stroke is around half of a stroke maybe a little more.

     

    Thanks for the note – I think work can help with the salary sacrifice, but ive read that its not all that glitters online. But I did go speak to some guys and because I am in a small company he said that I should be able to do it for 12 months and then not have a fee to pay like using a third party.

     

    I guess budget wise that opens the door a little bit. I have just moved and will look at finance/work scheme to pay off so second hand is not an option as I would like it sooner rather than later.

     

    I dont like the look of the Boardman if I’m honest. It does need to work for me in the looks department. Less is more me. The Mango Point R in black is a bike that I think looks great but just not sure about them as a company.

     

    I wish this was easy…. (easier than I’m making it)

    January 27, 2016 at 2:26 pm #866065
    0
    danielosman

    I would firstly say that it

    I would firstly say that it would be worht checking with your employer if the do or will do the cycle to work scheme essentially you get the bike tax free paid through sallery sacrifice .

    what you would need to do is try them out the boardman range of bikes are not terrible, my Dad has recently picked one up and he seems to enjoy it.

    my wife has a Giant Defy which is a really nice bike,

    also with that budget it might be worth looking at a second hand bike.

     

    as with the posistion only sittin on one and doing a few laps of the car park, changing gear is really easy and very intuitive.

     

    pedals i would stick with flats untill you get used to the bike you will rarely pull up on the pedal they do help make a better transfer but your power stroke is around half of a stroke maybe a little more.

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