Cycling (Road Bike) Thread

At 58, I'm sticking with the gym shorts.

 

I have heard force brakes are awesome.

 

And SRAM/shimano levers/brakes are compatible.

Shimano/sram levers and campy brakes are not.

Campy levers and shimano/SRAM brakes are compatible.

 

Much appreciated sir

There are some people who really should NOT need to be told not to wear certain types of clothing... so I appreciate your decision not to do so whether you could or not!

I'm not all that familiar with the SRAM components, how does the lineup go? Rival, Force, Red?

I'm running 105 brifters right now that will potentially be updated to ultegras as my buddy MAY be swapping out components but that might be a ways off.

I'll look into the SRAM goodies though!

 

I hate the term "brifters" haha STI sounds SO MUCH BRETTER.

Force is on par with ultegra.

SRAM is apex, rival, force, red

Apex is like tiagra/sora. Rival is like 105, and red is like dura ace

 

I'm running 105 STI with SRAM Rival brakes and they work great together. Rivals are black instead of silver and lighter than the 105s.

 

brifters...














brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...brifters...




I will most certainly look into the Rivals then. I prefer the look OVER the Ultegra's so that may be worth something. Maybe just throw down some cash and try them both, I mean brakes ARE only one of the most important things on a bike

 

Actually, at the time, (2011) the Rivals were the lightest brakes I could find without spending 300.00 on a set to save maybe 20-30 grams more. My aluminum frame mid level road bike not really worthy of taking things to that level.

 

20 grams is about the same weight as 4 LEGO figures...haha not worth it.


I just started riding my road bike (had it a year now ...) and I suck...haha average pace is usually 14-15 mph. Ive got some work to do if im going to ride the hotter-n-hell 100 in august.

 

http://youtu.be/G3I-7Ej8iA0

 

That's greatness!

 

A little update on my entry into road bikes. My new Kestrel arrived last week - and I had it built up. My buddy helped me fit it all up and get the final adjustments in place. I took it out for its maiden voyage on Sunday afternoon (I had done a 10k run in the morning). It was smooth as glass. I did the 19k course for the race I'm in this coming weekend (local). I wasn't going hard core - just wanted to get a feel for the bike and the course. Managed a speedy run. Even got up to 62.2 kph on one of the downhill sections. Might have gone faster if I knew the roads a bit better - and it was the first ride.

Tonight I went out and did time trials with a local club. It was literally my 2nd time riding this bike, and I managed a 34:57 for 20 kms. A bit of a hilly course - but nothing too crazy. I was extremely happy. I'm really excited about this sport, and can't wait for my Sprint Triathlon this Sunday. I'm not going to push too hard - as it's my first one. Just hoping to enjoy myself, and learn.

 

Good stuff man. Im just getting into road biking as well. Ive had my bike for a year now but Im just now starting to really ride it. I put some clipless pedals on last night and it made a big difference!
Ive got a sprint Tri in September that Im going to do.

Good luck this weekend man!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZmJtYaUTa0

 

I haven't got the clipless pedals on yet. There was just no time between getting my bike set up, and my race this Sunday, not only to find a set I'll love - but to get good at getting them off and on. So I have my buddy's backup pedals for a mountain bike on my rig right now - lol. I'm really looking forward to the extra power gain once I get a proper set.

 

I wouldn't really call it a "power gaining" thing, more like peace if mind so you don't have to worry about your foot coming off the pedal when you punch it.

I love the shimano pedals. You can find the 105 carbon pedals for 70$ with a good sale every not and then. I got my alloy 105 pedals for about 60 usd shipped. Wish I would have gone with the new carbon version, I hear they are all-round better (since the price is so close)

Shoe fit is very important though and I suggest going to a shop if you have one near you and (if youre like me) ask if they have any shoes in sale. Most if them do for decent prices.

 

Bibs or shorts?

I should have my first pair of legit perl izumi riding shorts today or tomorrow but Im wondering if bibs are worth the extra cost.

Its more than just a piece of mind. it provides a more efficient pedal stroke. you are not limited to only the down stroke anymore.

I cheaped out on pedals and bought a second set of the same ones I use for my mountain bike. Time alium pedals. This way I can use the same shoes for both bikes. They are pretty heavy though.

 

I'm rollin with eggbeaters on the road bike and have a coupla pr of candy offroads on a touring bike and a pr if I wanna use them offroad. I can see the point for road bikes but for offroad I still prefer platforms. Either way, same shoes for all of them.

 

If we had any sort of downhill at all here I would run flats on my mtn bike but our local single track is around 12 miles and has a total elevation gain around 200ft... Its super flat around here.

 

I've had my Kestrel for about 2 weeks now - and I was in my first ever Triathlon yesterday. It was a Sprint Triathlon, and I had a total blast doing it. It was the 3rd time I've been in the water all year, and 4th time ever on my bike. I placed 81st out of 201 participants overall - but notably, I was 22nd place (out of 201) on the Bike section.

This whole road biking thing is fun as hell!! I'll tolerate swimming, and I still love running - but cycling is quickly becoming a new love!!!