Bicycle Enthusiasts
 

I don't really know the first thing ~ but I live in a great area for some backroads riding and it's such an awesome summer sport, that I'm thinking about getting a bike for my birthday. Hell, I even live close enough to work that I can ditch the car payments and peddle my way every day.

There must be a few of you out there that really know your equiptment (BICYCLE I mean) ~ are there any tips you can give me? (on a BICYCLE I mean)

Thanks :thumbsup

Hi What do you need to know. I've done a few centuries.

Currently riding

Lemond zuric

Derosa merak


Lickmymonster:thumbsup

Yeah, I don't know what any of that means.


This would be my first bike without a baseball card clipped to the wheel spokes... Hoping I can hit some high road dirt with it too.

Right on, we share the same hobby.

Just to share what I've learned... make sure you put on Vitamin E skin cream before you go biking. Prolonged sunlight exposure causes skin collagen to break down and speed up aging.

Ooh, there's some realtime advise. So more than just sunblock, Vitamin E antioxidant as well.

Gottcha :thumbsup

Are you looking into MTBs?

Sunblock is good but it just minimizes the exposure but doesn't do much for collagen breakdown. Doing the combo will probably work the best. I am 35 and bike/hike a lot and people I meet tell me I look 25. Its all about taking care of yourself while you have a good time and explore. :thumbsup

I know quite a bit about road bikes.

First thing you want is a reputable bike shop which knows how to fit a bike properly for a recreational, female cyclist. Fit really is everthing with a bike you're gonna be spending some time on. You probably want to ask around Sacramento womens cycling clubs, like http://ophirmilan.com/ They'll be able to point you in the right direction.

Second, buy the best bike you can afford. There are no differences that would matter to a recreational/fitness cyclist between a $3000 bike and a $5500 bike, but there are alot between a $500 bike and $1200 one.

Third, cycling uses very specific muscle groups which take a while to train. Watching someone who's been at it for even a year spinning their way up a low angle hill makes it look much easier than it will feel at the start. Most people who quit cycling do it in the first few months for that reason.

Ralieghs are reasonable starter bikes. They hold up pretty well and don't kill the purse so if you decide you don't like it, you're not out alot until you can sell it.

Cannondales are higher but are more suitable for the more serious minded. You can get just about anything you want with a Cannondale.

Stay away from the ones we remember as kids, Shwinn (sp?) etc. lol Been too many years since I had to spell that one.

If you are going offroad, automatically look into the wheels designed for it. Both of the above have good stock wheels but dirt paths will wear them out, so if you opt for the more expensive wheel to start you'll save in the long run.

If you decide on a model of Cannondale, let me know, and we can price it thru a friend of ours Bike Shop. He sales short... :winkwink: I mean he sells all over the country to the larger name racers and gives pretty good prices even when you add the shipping. :)

Here's my bike.... thinking of putting baseball cards in the spokes too.

<img src="http://www.drguile.com/pic/moto2.jpg" border="0">

Yamaha doesn't come stock with the deck of cards and clothespin anymore??! :winkwink: :Graucho

Awesome! This is very helpfull!

I'm thinking it might make sense for me to start using bike instead of a car, so it sounds like I'd need two sets of wheels ~ one for commuting and one for off roading.

I take a cycling class at my gym, so I know it's no joke when you're working hills up and down ~ I threw up after my first intro class.
There's a reason cyclists have such tight asses.

Talk to T-Bone. When he isn't healing in the ICU from his last 40 ft vert drop on his bike, he actually knows his shit.

The most important thing is to get the proper sized frame.

Your knee should be bent to about a 10 degree angle at the bottom of the pedal stroke. Go to a good bicycle shop and ask
to be fitted. Look for last years model. They are discounted this time of year. Goto several shops till you find one you like.


Be sure to take it slow when you first start riding. 15 min is enough. Do a little more each day. It takes about 5 min for your knees to loosen up. Always spin the pedals. It should feel like you are one gear to low. Practise using your brakes.


If you want a bike to ride both on and off road your chioces may be limited to Trek or Cannodale. Both company's make beginner to
highend bikes.

Expect to pay at least 500-600 for an entry level bike.

Centuries are 100 mile road rides

Lickmymonster:thumbsup

Cannondales rock. Also, if you're an ambitious street biker, the OCLV frames by Trek are the shit. No wonder Mr. Tour de France L. Armstrong loves them... :2 cents:

Talking about Gemini ...

http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/03/images/vg1000_03.jpg


:winkwink:

I have a three thousand dollar single speed and you bet your ass there's a card clipped to the spokes, bicycling should be fun, above everything else.

In fact, playing cards work better which is why I was so happy to get that pack of Adult Centro cards in the mail this week.

There isn't a lot to know about buying a bike: it's half like buying a car and half like buying clothes: it should fit, be comfortable and have the features and quality you want.

Always wear your helmet :thumbsup

Move to San Francisco and I will buy you a Awesome BIKE....!!!

no, this one came with a dead battery and faulty electrics ;p

Chesire, ICQ me... my "sig. other" owns a bike shop as well as being in the nationals several times, etc. I'm sure he would love to give any advice. ....or you can post the questions on here and I'll relay the answer. :)

Thanks angeleyes ~ I don't have icq and I don't really know what questions to ask. What people have posted here is the limit of my knowledge of bikes, but I'm learning.

I guess I'll be getting rid of my car and opting for two wheels as soon as the rainy season stops. But more than that I want to find adventure off the beaten track too.

Those are my goals.

That is a sweet ride. Gotta love those monster fucking shocks. My minelli has monster shocks on it too. It scares small children when I go through the parks.

biking chicks.. mmm

tons of trails around me here, including canyons and valleys with leading into a nice small waterfall, ive hiked that area quite a few times, fun stuff, you can either do it by foot or bike, some even ride horses, because the valleys winds in many directions, they have awesome horse riding trails there too, ive never did the horse thing or biked it though.

feet only.

A buddy of mine is an avid mountain biker, crazy moffo, has more bikes than brains.... and trashes em like crazy..... also thinks nothing of spending 5k on a "backup". http://www.anarkist.cjb.net/ is one of his sites. Lots of good information on bikes.

Ok, you can email me then at [email protected] If you tell me the price range you are looking at, I can tell you what kind of bike to expect.

Also, what is more important to you?
Weight of the Bike?
Comfort for Long Rides?
Speed?
Smooth Ride or harsher shocks capable of taking on serious "off road landscapes"

Finally, a thread I can make a valuable contribution to. lol

Cheshire...just fyi...canyonfails (cannondales) suck...if you're looking into a mountain bike let me know...I did a bit of riding...as someone mentioned the fit is on of the most important things to get right...and when you're ready let me know...my uncle designs helmets for giro...so I can get you a good helmet cheap or free...

Also...stay away from suspension bikes...you probably won't be needing suspension...it can sap energy on long rides and you can get a much nicer bike too...

Same as my BF... custom built his bike and it's worth 17,000---double the value of MY CAR. lol (Well, it didn't cost HIM that much because he owns the shop, but you get the drift).

Arrrgh you don't know shit! Freeridin with 5 inches of smooth shox front & back, pulling 15 ft airs is like xmas and birthday at the same time... [IMG]http://***********/thebirdman.gif[/IMG]

what does he ride?

It's not possible to build a $17,ooo bike. Period. It's simply not. You'd be extremely hard pressed to spend five figures on a bike.

Bikes are like cars in more ways than one too... the minute that receipt tics out their value drops. Alot. So if you aren't reallllll sure, never go top dollar, high end to begin with. I can only imagine thats true even more so given the number of bikes in Cali.

------------

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Eq, the guys at the shop know my nick and where I 'came from' as well as what we do, so I hear no end to their joking around. And Howie lets them tease to their hearts content. :1orglaugh Only one guy keeps his mouth shut. :( But I'm taller than all of them so I eventually stare them down. :winkwink: And where do ya think they got that model name eh? I know the local Cannondale salesman. lol

I used to live in Colorado, Utah and Northern California, the birthplace of mountain biking. I also do a fair amount of road biking as well. All that said, you are obviously new to all of this. You can spend as much as you want but the reality is that you will probably do light off road riding and some around town riding. Your best bet is probably a nice hybrid that can go in the dirt but will be good on pavement as well. As a few have said, the most important thing is to be sized properly. Go to a good local shop and ask them how they will fit you for the right bike. Listen to them. You should be able to tell if they know their shit. Also, you will need to spend at least $600-700 and should probably spend around 8-900 if you can. At that point there is a diminishing return on an entry level bike and you really need to jump up to $1500+ to get a lot more. You don't need that now. Ride your hybrid all summer and if you are hooked sell it and move up. Have fun.

Its a known fact that suspension saps power from every stroke of the pedals...that's all I'm sayin...BTW you gonna be in the xgames soon?

My four inches of smoothly damped Rock Shox Psylo has a lock out knob, heh heh.

It's not possible to build a $17,ooo bike...

For the regular person, thats true... but not for a pro. I didn't believe it either, but I have seen them being built. The hubby has helped them a couple of times to do it. :winkwink:

Fred and Lynne Ricart think nothing of spending 10k on bikes and don't even ride very often. :1orglaugh (Almost every year they get new ones)

I wouldn't lie about it. He pieced it together with the most expensive crap he could find. Not that I want to start an argument, but I would be happy to get a list of all the parts, their going retail rate in the US and post them tomorrow. (I'll need to get with him on this... I'm not the expert-he is). When you custom a bike and piece it together, it can get that expensive. I'll try to find a link in the meantime.

You can buy both bikes Lance Armstrong won the TdF on.. the Trek 5900 OCLV (lightest frame in the world) and the TT bike.. for about 8k at retail.

When monocoque carbon frames were new it was possible to drop 10k on one, but that was in the early 90's.

If you needed a better bike than Lance Armstrong, people would be paying you to ride it rather than the other way around :winkwink:

I'm sure you don't think you are lying but depending on how you count there are really only like 20 components on a bike and the best of the best in some categories are relatively inexpensive.

The finest Chris King headset is $125 or so, the best Ti railed saddle you can buy is like $150 tops.

An entire XTR or Dura Ace group is like $1500.

Unless the frame is custom layed up carbon fiber it's simply not possible.

True, and you can buy a custom fit Litespeed Blade Time trialer with the Dura Ace time trial group for around that.

I don't have that kind of money


I'm kinda thinking this was a bad idea.

Tell me how much you got and I'll tell you what to buy. In my humble opinion...

When's your B-Day Ches? And how young will you be? :)

GB, you're talking factory frames... I'm talking custom frames from a local company. I don't know all that much about them to know what all the pro's ride. Only what I have seen with my own eyes. Guess it all depends on what goes on them just like anything else you buy.

*I* wouldn't pay even 300 for a bile. lol Then again I probably would ride it once a year. I walked until I was 22 even though I had a car and license.

a few hundred Jimmy?



I'll be 26 the day after the SF bay to breakers.

$17,000 seems a little exaggerated for me as well ... unless you got custom made parts. Although ... some custom Litespeed or Titus or fill-in-name frame with custom rear derailleur (sp?) and such might push the limit towards $10k...


Hoax - I know it's been proven before, I just love the feeling of fullies. :thumbsup And no, no XGames for me.

Nahhh Cheshire. You can get a good one for 350. Thats not alot when you add up how much gas you use in a 3 month period. :thumbsup

I thought about it, but in this area, a bike just makes you an easier target that moves. lol

hey Gem - I still got those shotglasses fer ya... :Graucho

The Monticello (sp) made by a company that starts with a "P" (I'm drawing a blank) is a 20,000 bike. Like I said... this is a friendly thread that isn't war related, so I'll scan the info and post it tomorrow just to I don't look like a flaming idiot. :thumbsup

You'd be better off spending more than less.

Go to www.supergo.com and look for clearance bikes, after you go to a few local shops and try some out so you have an idea where to go, I guess.

So wait: Mike gets a Viper and you can only spend a few hundred on a bike? Something is rotten in Rocklin...

Anyway here's my baby, Gary Fisher Paragon, stripped down to run one gear, Rock Show Psylo, Mavic 517's with Hope titanium spokes and the Easton EA 70 group.

http://www.pickupgirlsnow.com/single.jpg

$2800 out the door.