I’m considering getting a road bike for a bit of winter riding, I don’t know the first thing about road bikes… it would be under the cycle to work scheme.. I ride mountain bikes so would want something that’s not to unfamiliar, but drops I think.

I like the look of skinny tubed 80’s style road bikes, reminds me of my old Eddy Merckx silver racer in the 80’s. Charge Bikes look interesting,

So what should I be looking for ? Is weight important ? Obviously below £1000 and ideally around £750.

ta

You’ll need a small one. Bike weight is not that big a deal at all, much less so on a road bike than on a mountain bike imo (overall rider + bike weight is more of a deal once the road points upwards).

Genesis Equilibrium is worth a look

Jusy buy a cheap 5hitter out the snips, its a winter hack after all.

Winter=mudguards
Personaly I would look at Ridley Eos or Kinesis racelight t2

Equilibrium looks really nice Matt, has that style of the old “racers”..

Steve obviously doesn’t know Simon very well, lol

fit is more important on road bikes as you tend to be in one position for longer.

def have a try on a few.

Giant, Specialized and Trek have good ranges all with styles that are more ‘racy’ and slightly more upright

boardman bikes are very good value as well they do one with SRAM Apex which give a very wide range of gear ratios

Steve obviously doesn’t know Simon very well, lol

lol. Hey if somethings worth doing…

I’d get a boardman or a canyon. Get something light and fast, if you’re gonna do it, do it properly!

http://simoncinitelaibiciclette.blogspot.com/
I was looking at the stainless ones,bit heavy at 1.5kg,but it would make a nice winter frame with fender eyelets.
stainless berthoud fenders,long reach brakes.32mm tyres.

Boardman but also have a look at their cyclocross bike, it’s got discs and fatter tyres so can also be ridden off road. You could ride mixed road/forestry track routes and fit mudguards and even a rack for a short tour.

If you like the retro look, take a look at Singular. Not cheap but look great.

I’d go for a new Specialized Tricross with disc brakes on it. You get tons of clearance for mudguards, a very wide range of gears, much more powerful brakes than a standard road bike, and you can stick knobbly tyres on for the 3 Peaks Cyclo Cross once a year!

If you like skinny-tubed steel things, have a look at the Soma Double Cross DC cross bike – Keep Pedalling in Manchester sell ’em, so not too far for you. Disc compatibility is nice. Almost as quick as a road bike, particularly if you fit slicks, but gives you the option of a bit of off-roading too, kind of win/win. Mine looks like this:

http://badlywiredblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/soma.html

BWD – what bars are they?

If you like the retro look, take a look at Singular

<hijack>
Mine’s for sale….

Singular_brown by ir_bandito, on Flickr
</hijack>

Charge Bikes look interesting

I got a Juicer as a winter trainer last year, did the job very well.

You notice the weight when you pick it up compared with a carbon race frame, but it’s great for getting the miles in. Only fault was the stock brake pads… which were terrifyingly rubbish 😯

I’d go for a new Specialized Tricross with disc brakes on it

I wouldn’t, they weigh a ton and have horrible geometry IMO. I hated mine, it weighed about 24lbs. Weight may not matter that much, but it was still a real slog.

BWD – what bars are they?

Just the most basic FSA compact drops, about 30 quid. They look odd in that image from the angle I think and because the bike was lashed together at that point and I was still messing about with stems. Compact drops are ace, mean that it’s far easier to ride on the drops, which in turn means that you actually use them instead of riding on the hoods all the time. Hardcore roadies will, of course, regard you as some sort of dilletante fraud, but who gives a flying…

LOL, it that £750 like that cheap Titus frame you got? You are clearly going to need a carbon frame to get over those hills on the way to work.

some nice options.. BWd’s soma and the Singular are very nice looking…

Genesis Equilibrium is worth a look

and after going around the houses a bit.. came back to your original recommendation Matt 🙂

Nice init.

I think that is a jolly good choice

Ohh a chance to show my winter road bike again! Also purchased under cycle to work…

Boardman Team Carbon, no mudguards. So what if you arse gets wet? I’m more worried about the ice in my bottle.

If you like the way old steel bikes look that Genesis is a good choice – nice

I fecked around for ages building up an old 531 bike – only cost £80 cash – but if I charged my time at my hourly rate £££

Boardmans are great fast light vfm but lack panache even though the man himself had loads

just need to buy some time to ride now.. anyone know a good shop for that ?

I have an Equilibrium – I’m really pleased with it.

Thin steel tubes look cool and are fast – just takes a bit longer to get there 🙂

Arse luxury makes up for the lack of acceleration

I love my old steely – just make sure you grease your seatpost once in a while if you’re using ally

Get a cyclocross bike. Disc brakes, fatter tyres for comfort, can take mudguards, makes a great all-purpose winter trainer and tourer with a rack fitted. Bring on the winter!

Here:

Audax bikes make excellent winter rides – relaxed geometry, room for mudguards, but still reasonably light. You can also fit a rack and panniers for a spot of touring or commuting. I have a Thorn Audax – bought the frame off Ebay for less than £100, and built it up with 105/ ultegra etc, for a total cost of about £600. The frame is lugged 531c so has the old school look you like.

The main thing is that it fits properly, so if you buy new, go to a proper shop and try a few. Don’t me taken in by descriptions such as “sportive geometry” – my best bike (a Wilier) is supposedly a pure race bike, but I find it very comfortable on long day rides.

Here she is:

I bought a Fuji Roubaix off here that will be my winter bike alongside the new hardtail. Absolute bargain (under 400 quid delivered) and has awakened an enjoyment for road biking in me. So yes, 2nd hand cheap doesn’t have to mean tatty and low-quality.

a pure race bike, but I find it very comfortable on long day rides.

Have you looked at the position most pro roadies contort themselves into for hours on end, day after day? Racey doesn’t necessarily mean uncomfortable, it’s all personal. I commute on an Allez, which is like a shopping bike. It came with 40mm of spacers, even with a 17 degree stem, slammed, it’s still higher at the front than my Trek Madone. Feels horrible. I die a bit inside every time I switch to it in the autumn. Conversely my Madone just feels ‘right’ and I can happily sit on it for 6+ hours without a single complaint.

Cross bikes definitely fall into the ‘jack of all trades, master of none’ category for me, I had 3, never really got into the ‘you can dive off road if you fancy’ philosophy, just found it harder work than an equivalent road bike was, with no advantages!

Have you looked at the position most pro roadies contort themselves into for hours on end, day after day? Racey doesn’t necessarily mean uncomfortable, it’s all personal

That was my point! I’m a casual road rider, which might suggest (from advertising guff) that a sportive bike would be ideal. Yet I find my supposedly pure race bike to be very comfortable, even on a century ride (which takes a lot more out of me than more committed road riders)

Yes, I think we’re saying the same thing, I was just supporting it by saying that the right people find a more aggressive position comfortable for very long periods of time, and that my experience of even a slightly more relaxed geometry is that it’s awful!

simon – nice bike!

there’s loads of room to fit mudguards and bigger/comfy/sturdy tyres.

but it’s a lovely frame, almost too nice to be taken out when it’s proper nasty. You’ll soon realise you need another road bike – what you’ve got there is definitely for sunday-best…

here’s mine: