Finally gone to the dark side – I'm in pain….

Got myself a road bike 😀

Went to Decathlon and they had one of them red Triban 3 left from the old stock in a 54 so I bought it.

Just been out and despite looking like a right idiot in my baggies, trainers and them standard toe clip pedals, I managed an average of 16 mph top speed 32 mph 12.5 miles in 46 mins so it quicker than the MTB……

My arms are killing now and I was in pain holding the hoods. Within half a mile I realised that full finger gloves don’t quiet work on a road bike. So I’m going to get some mitts, some proper shoes and some clip in pedals on and some Lycra ( that will please my next door neighbour who flirts with me all the time )

Is this arm / hand pain normal or is it likely to be the bike not set up for me proper ?

It’s not going to take over from my MTB but for a quick blast I’m looking forward to some long rides out.

Also what kit do I need to get ? Thinking Co2 inflator, spare tubes, levers etc or any other suggestions as to essential road kit ?

Thanks

CO2 No No,

In my saddle bag, 2 tubes, multi tool, 6 patches, tyre levers x 3 O and pump in jersey pocket.

saddle bag? no no.

Fit is much more important on a road bike.

That said, when I first got mine, I wasn’t entirely comfortable. Just like when you haven’t ridden a bike in years, there is a certain element of ‘getting used to it’, I think. I’ve always liked the fit of my bike…it was just different, and did result in some discomfort of the hands for a short period.

If the fit is good your torso should be able to provide the bulk of support and you’ll be able to loosen your arms up a bit. It might be worth reading up a bit on the subject. Small changes like the tilt in your saddle can make a difference, but obviously frame size is a big one.

Also what kit do I need to get ? Thinking Co2 inflator, spare tubes, levers etc or any other suggestions as to essential road kit ?

Also allen key and chain tool. A small pump is probably lighter than CO2 stuff, and certainly more reliable.

An alternative to a saddlebag is a tool bottle that fits in one of your bottle cages. Either way jersey pockets are for a bit of food, windproof and arm warmers. Not, a load of heavy stuff that’ll hang over your arse and wobble about.

Check the tilt of your saddle it should be level. Sounds like you have too much weight on your arms. It requires core strength you may not have yet but your arms should be relaxed and your hands should just rest on the bars.

^^ good advice up there, I’m in the process of recovering from a compressed nerve and still having physio (partially, I think) due to poor set up/position on my new road bike 😥

Proceed with caution and enjoy!

I’ve got one of these which carries tyre levers, a spare tube, multi-tool, and a mini-pump.

As above, it’ll take a while to get used to the position so that could be where the aches and pains are coming from. You use a fair bit of core strength to take the weight off your hands/arms/shoulders.

Spare pair of socks to keep down front of lycra shorts.

as for fit of bike, ride past shop windows at night and check out your reflection to check for to much stretch from seat to handlebars, seat heigh , seat move forward or back, and lots more.

doesn’t stuff rattle around annoyingly in those bottle carriers?

You need one of them panniers with full tool kit and spare tyres and tubes in and some of them straight bars or even them hi rise bars for comfort

CO2 No No,

In my saddle bag…

Woah there, rule #29!!

Good job by the way! 16mph certainly sounds like a respectable first ride 🙂

Fit could be out or it could be your posture, since it’s a bit alien 🙂 When your confidence gets up a bit you might find you move around the bars a bit more while riding too.

doesn’t stuff rattle around annoyingly in those bottle carriers?

Nope.

I have one of these.

http://www.salice.co.uk/detail.php?var_id=86

If you ever need it, a frame pump will be much more use to you than most mini pumps. Little saddlebag with minitool, glueless patches, spare tube, levers, quicklink, some plastic gloves from hospital/diesel pumps to keep mucky hands off the bar tape after a repair, emergency cash.

I use a water bottle to carry two tubes, couple of patches and tyre levers. Pump on the frame and jobs a good’un. I don’t like saddle bags simply because I think they ruin the look of the bike. It’s a personal thing. Lycra comes in handy for stopping wildlife disappearing up your shorts and it also keeps the warmth close to the skin. You might look a tool but it is the tool for the job.

Lycra comes in handy for stopping wildlife disappearing up your shorts

You’ve just reminded me, randomly saw a kid holding a ferret in a village I went through tonight. He watched me go by in a children of the corn sort of way, the ferret made him much less ominous though.

Jersey pockets. CO2, mini pump, 2 tubes, multi tool with chain tool. Phone, credit card. Nothing else needed. No nasty saddle bags required!

You will get used to it, but be prepared to play with your position if the discomfort continues.

Not a fan of saddle bags either but sometimes useful to free up some space in jersey pockets.

Got a tiny Lezyne one that just about takes a tube, levers, glueless patches, spare chain links and hanger.

I go for two tubes in jersey pockets and a Thompson stem bag with C02 three cylinders, a tyre lever multi tool in it. And a mobile sorted!

Full fingers are ok for me on the road bike, but the pain isn’t good I’d look at your set up you don’t support yourself on the bars as mentioned above…oh and we all say “it won’t take over from my MTB” when we start……. 8)

Admittedly I’m riding a cross bike not a real roadie, but I find my regular MTB full finger gloves are just fine.

I tend to wear a pack anyway out of habit (‘stuff’ for work or camelbak with repair stuff offroad) and I’ve just kind of stayed with type, although I do tend to use my old Lobo on the crosser not the more cavernous Hydrapak. One/maybe two tubes, pump, 2-3 tyre levers, a glueless patch kit, multitool covering basic hex keys and a chain tool are really all you need and you might get away without the chaintool.

As for riding wear, I’m good with Hummvees+regular liner and MTB SPDs (I tend to wear flats off road on a MTB)… the ‘real’ roadies in the Peaks tend to look down their noses at you with x35 tyres and an MTB cassette so badly anyway there is no point me being image concious beyond what works for myself. Of course, not allowing anyone to pass would eliminate this 🙂

There are days when a clear back would be good, and I’m seriously considering a standard dirtbag for this.

If you’re used to cycling, the bike shouldn’t hurt. It sounds like there is a setup problem. Mine was set up by the excellent LBS (actually not very L but very excellent) I bought it from and has been tweaked substantially since. Assuming TT/ST length are correct for your body shape, you may want to look at height of seat post or bar (maybe flip stem while you get used to it). It’s also worth considering WHERE the STIs are on the bar and therefore the hood position. Given bartape this is a royal pain to play with, but if you have the tape off and it’s not quite comfy might be worth investigating. I tend to run a much lower seat position than I might on an XC bike FWIW, but you need to find the position that works best for you. As pointed out above in the thread you are likely putting too much load on your hands, so may well have the bars too low/seat too high – although there is obviously such a thing as ‘too low’ also…

Lol, what’s rule 29″

Sounds like position is off. You need to get the saddle positioned correctly relative to the pedals, so that weight is taken through pressure on the pedals. This is a neutral position in that you should be able to ride with very little weight on your arms.

As a rough start, check that the saddle is
1) Absolutely level
2) About half-way along the rails
3) Set at 80% of your inseam from the bottom bracket. Inseam is crotch to floor without shoes, measured with a book up tight and against a wall.

Then slide the saddle forward about a centimetre.

Bars will already be set high if you’ve just bought it, but they may be too far away, forcing you to lean too far forwards. Once you’ve set the saddle properly, put your hands on the hoods. There should be a good 10-15 degree bend in your elbows. If not, you will need a shorter stem, and that will put less weight on your arms. As a final check, put your hands on the hoods and bend right over into a crouch. Your elbows should now be bent to just over 90 degrees.

These tips will get you to a good starting position, then you can move the bars up and down and forwards or backwards.

Lol, what’s rule 29

The Rules

😀

Something from ‘the rules’

The Rules

Rule #29
// No European Posterior Man-Satchels.

Saddle bags have no place on a road bike, and are only acceptable on mountain bikes in extreme cases.

FWIW, Rule #30 is ‘no frame pumps’ along with some stuff about cramming the world in the back of your jersey…

I suppose there are people somewhere that take these ‘rules’ seriously… 🙄

One ‘rule’ that it would be nice to see more folowing if they’re getting quotes is

Rule #77
// Respect the earth; don’t litter.

Cycling is not an excuse to litter. Do not throw your empty gel packets, energy bar wrappers or punctured tubes on the road or in the bush. Stuff em in your jersey pockets, and repair that tube when you get home.

I see far too many discarded gels, powerade bottles etc where cyclists are obviously active, and some places inner tubes are almost scenery… Not cool.

I suppose there are people somewhere that take these ‘rules’ seriously…

There are? Just seems like a bit of fun 🙂

I use a gps computer, mountain bike pedals and shoes, refer to all distances in miles, don’t shave my legs, wear long socks etc.. break more than I adhere to tbh.

I like that Rule #40 is frequently cited on here:

Rule #40
// Tires are to be mounted with the label centered over the valve stem.

Pro mechanics do it because it makes it easier to find the valve. You do this because that’s the way pro mechanics do it.

When I first got my road bike I had quite achy hands so posted a photo up here of the bike asking for advice.

Quite a few people said the pain was probably due to the bars (and hence the shifters/brakes) being rotated too far forward. Twisting them back a few degrees sorted it completely.

Thanks for the replies.

I’ve rotated the bars upwards a bit and that seems to have helped. I’ve just been out and my hands are still a bit achy, but the elbow / arm pain has gone.

I’m either not holding the hoods correct or I will just get used to it. Seems to just be between my thumb and finger.

Rotating the bars to reduce the reach (the six shooter brake lever position) effectively means that your stem is too long (or if your stem is already short, thatthe frame is too big). Try the bent arms crouch on the hoods. Elbow angle of 90 degrees denotes correct stem length. Place your hands on the drops – and you should have an elbow bend of about 160 degrees. Stems are easy to swap and only £10 used.

And what to carry: I tend to follow the rules – saddlebags on an integrated seat post is a no-no.

So I have a Lezyne Medium Caddy Sack which holds:
1 inner tube
2 C02 cartridges with a innovations nanoflate
1 Topeak instant patch kit
1 SKS micro multitool
1 small coil helmet lock for cafe stops
1 Topeak carbon micropump – it’s cool but not a real pump!

I also have a small Caddy Sack for Jimi wallet, phone, money.
A gilet goes under the jersey and cleat covers in a pocket.

For longer rides I take an extra inner tube. If I’m ride leader I take more tools. For commuting I use a tool bottle.

And am I the only person who doesn’t rip the top right off a gel so that there is NO waste whatsoever. Suck the gel out of the hole you make, please and put all wrappers back in the food pocket. Thank you. Wasn’t impressed to see litter on the Ride 100 on Sunday.

I suffered with sore hands a little bit but I put this down to riding the bike with a different hand position. It only lasted a ride or two and now it feels fine.

I’ve not fiddled with the set up on my bike too much, just saddle angle and height. It feels pretty comfy to me although I’m sure it could be better.

With regards to kit, I use a tiny Lezyne saddle bag; spare tube, levers, patches, CO2 cartridges x 2 and a multi tool. It’s just easier in my eyes because the stuff I need is always on the bike. My jersey pockets are used for phone, cash, food and jacket if needed. I don’t like having loads of stuff in them if I’m honest.

I have also embraced lycra which is something that I never thought I would but it does work well on a road bike. Start Cycles have been an ace find because I’ve got loads of good quality stuff for not much outlay. The Scott clothing is amazing quality.

I carry:
1 tube
1 lezyne thing with tyre levers, patches and speedlinks
Pump (tiny dual CO2/pump jobby)
1 CO2
Multitool
credit card/50e cash/phone/keys
For a longer ride I’ll usually take a gel/energy bar or two just in case
If the weather isn’t great I’ll often have a gilet or raincoat in the pocket too

As for no saddlebags, people seem to have forgotten to tell the pro riders. A small “aero” wedge pack seems acceptable for most of them when training. I have tube+co2+tools in there and the rest in my jersey.

Never really needed to take anything else. Jersey pockets will take a lot of crap

I’ve done 40 miles today with a cafe stop in the middle and its feeling a lot more comfortable. I’m finding I’m moving a lot on the bars which is weird being used to just staying still on the MTB.

I got a Topeak Road Rocket pump which I’ve put under the bottle holder, a Topeak wedge pack in which I’ve put 2 tubes, levers and a multitool.

Still using my 5:10s and baggies which is going to have to change as I managed to knock one of my water bottles off into the road with the bottom of my shorts today 😳

I also need to get a proper jersey to put phone money etc in as today I’ve just worn my Gore jacket as its been on and off with the rain so have been OK for pockets.

Off out on the MTB in a bit. I’m liking the variety the road bike is giving me 😀

The bars should be flattish on top and the brake hoods in line. The saddle should be canted up by a couple of degrees at the nose so that your weight is cupped and not thrown forwards onto the bars.

saddlebags mean that you don’t need to go searching for ride kit, it’s already on the bike, frame mounting pumps is fine it saves them falling out of your pockets

pockets are for keys, phone, cleat covers, cap, food, arm/leg warmers, gillet, shower/waterproof and most importantly food. Half of that depends on the weather but gives you the idea

getting proper road shoes and pedals will make a big difference

if you want “rules”, take up golf

What are the rules around high level storage ?
I’m thinking along the lines of one of those Aero Roof Boxes, (but scaled down, obviously).
The space above the helmet does seem somewhat wasted.

My wrists and arms hurt first time on my road bike

I bought some specialized roubaix bar tape and wore my 661 gloves next ride and it was much better

Just bought some double thickness smootape off Planet x its the nuts!

Change the tyres on the btwin and you’ll only need one spare tube. Also save a fair bit of weight. Have a look at Luganos for £14 ea at Merlins, foldable with puncture protection.
Small under seat bags are fine. Rather put keys and multitool in it rather than fall and have them go from my shirt pocket into my back for the sake of a vanity reasoning of rule 29.

What’s all that Arabic for then?

Spam. Ironic really considering you’d never be able to get Spam (the stuff in a tin) in Egypt.