I’m A Canyon fanboy and currently have one of these.

https://www.canyon.com/_en/roadbikes/bike.html?b=3292

But I know what I want. As said send him down to a fancy bike shop to get a full bike fit, bearing in mind a full pro race bike might not be the best choice for a newbie looking for a comfortable, usable bike.

I have a Cervelo R5 and it’s fantastic in every way.

However I paid nowhere near retail for it as I bought the 2011-2013 model on sale when they announced the new 2014 shape bikes.

Before that I was riding an older Giant and had no complaints with it at all, in fact it was great. That was until I rode a newer higher end bike….

I imagine any bike in the 1500-2500 will be easily enough for him, should have good spec Ultegra and reasonable wheels. I’d go for something a bit more relaxed, a Giant Defy, Specialised Rooby, etc etc. A more racy bike will just hammer his back and he won’t manage a full week on it comfortably.

4k on a first bike is a massive spend but how much have people spent on other bikes leading up to a 4k bike ?

If I’d got a “whatever it costs to get a good ‘un” budget, I’d research the shop rather than the bike, a £2000 bike set up properly for the rider will be 100x better than a £4k that doesn’t fit and is set up badly.

Where abouts in the Midlands is he? Cadence Sport owed by Adrian Timmis would be a good start if anywhere near Cannock…..

Patriotpro – sorry but get over it, is everybody’s first car a £500 banger just cause you can get one for that? Some people spend £500 some people spend £20,000 (that they don’t have).

Right it took me a while, but i’m over it now, just 😉

Anyway see above post, he was pointed in the direction of a £4k bike and was along if it was a good idea. Finally he’s family, not sure about your relationships but if someone in my family asks for help/advise I’m happy to assist.

And me mate, which is why i’d steer him well away from a £4k bike for his first one – whether he had it to spare or not.

I’d grab (another) Synapse Carbon 3 ultegra myself. Great bike, comfy for long rides and quick too.

How about a Volagi? DI2 and some hydro disc brakes would be very nice.

OP, in relation to a £4k road bike you’ve asked

how does that sound as a first road bike

can you get better value for money?

and

if it was a good idea

The answers are a bad idea, yes and no respectively.

With £4k to spend I’d be asking what bike shops do people recommend that will (a) give sound and sensible advice (b) provide a good bike fitting service (c) sell the right bike (d) give good backup. If the right bike happens to be £4k then that’s fine, but that shouldn’t be the goal.

[EDIT] I would advise him that he will be mocked by other roadies if he spends that much on a bike and is not a good road cyclist. Fact 🙂

Find a bike shop he trusts, get advice and some test rides, choose what he likes.

Don’t pay much attention to internet strangers listing off their lust-list.

I still say £4K and even £2K is daft for a first bike though.

^yes, good point Al. I forgot the test ride. Important and not many bike shops offer it other than on a turbo trainer

If I’d got a “whatever it costs to get a good ‘un” budget, I’d research the shop rather than the bike, a £2000 bike set up properly for the rider will be 100x better than a £4k that doesn’t fit and is set up badly.

Where abouts in the Midlands is he? Cadence Sport owed by Adrian Timmis would be a good start if anywhere near Cannock…..

Frankly they’re amature at bike setup*, compared to Mercian up the road (A38).

If you’ve got £4k for a suit you don’t go to the high street, you go to Paul Smith. If you’ve got £4k for a bike you don’t go to any old bike shop you go to where Paul Smith gets his bike!

Homepage

*why have a new stem an tweak the seatpost when for £4k you could get a custom build?

Maybe ask on a road bike forum? Clearly this ain’t the right place!
Or a road bike shop.

I would advise him that he will be mocked by other roadies if he spends that much on a bike and is not a good road cyclist. Fact

Well, other ‘stuck-up-elitist’ road riders maybe : ) Others don’t believe all that crp about having to earn your right to a top-end bike and think it’s great that people value bikes as aspirational-luxury products in the same way as a watch or a car.

A good point made above.. a custom Mercian, Rourke or a Shand. That’s where my money would go. Odd choice maybe as a first bike from no reference point but no better/worse an idea than a 4k off-the-peg bike.

Well, other ‘stuck-up-elitist’ road riders maybe : )

Who will actually secretly relish the opportunity to overtake him and boast about it later.

I’d still go with a £2k bike myself though, looking for Ksyrium Elite wheels and Ultegra groupo.

Or even a decent £1k bike so that I could later enjoy the benefits of upgrading, which as we all know is one of cycling’s greatest pleasures.

If he wants to be taken seriously 4K is simply not enough.

Get the tight bugger to put his hand in his pocket and spring for one of these.

An absolute steal at 12K.
❗ ❗ ➡ 8) 😯
He’d certainly command respect on this ‘stead’.

Oh and don’t forget the Rpaha

If he wants to spend £4k then he’s not going to get a duff bike whichever one he buys. Tell him to have a look at bikes and pic the one that looks nicest. Value isn’t an issue.

The only ‘problem’ with going straight to a £4k is that you miss the pleasure you get when you go from a cheap okay bike to a very good one. That ‘wow’ factor is hard to beat.

Maybe he’d be better buying a £1k just now for training through winter then buy a new one for the start of summer?

Just look at that Specialized… 12K and the saddle isn’t even level, someone’s forgotten to cut the steerer and it’s only got 404s 😆

Is he after something flash and boutique? If not I’d get him down a shop that does Giants and get a Propel, TCR or Defy (whichever feels best, not that he’ll have any basis for comparison I suppose.) If he’s still got cash to burn then he can get some fancy wheels for it (Zipps maybe.)

Whatever he gets, advise him to put a good amount of cash into some decent shoes, helmet, shorts, jerseys and gloves, along with buying himself a repair kit for when out and about, a computer perhaps etc, it all adds up….

Good point. Budget a grand and a half for some SRM cranks 🙂

IIRC that Majorca ride is 300km plus so he’s going to want something comfortable. For example (looking at one of the ‘big’ brands a Giant Defy rather than a TCR or Propel)

Agree with some of the others who have posted already that he should be able to get a decent ‘first’ bike for £1500/2000 (higher spec carbon frame and at least Ultegra group).

Nothing against custom, he would end up with something that he would have the satisfaction of knowing is perfectly sized for him. But, i’m not convinced the £4000 would get a custom bike that could compare in spec at least to a properly fitted off the peg bike. Plus, the wait for some of the bikes mentioned (Mercian etc.) is long.

Go for something with proven comfort and handling (there are enough tests that can be found online to draw up a shortlist) and a spend half as much again on decent wheels and a proper bike fit. I spent £1500 on my (second) road bike and spent the next 12 months wondering if I should have spent more until I invested in a set of decent wheels (Fulcrum Racing 1) and realised that the bike is now as good as it needs to be.

Whatever he ends up with if the Majorca ride is the one i’m thinking of it’s a decent chunk of training that will be just as important as choosing the bike that’s right for him.

Bike fit is a good point. If he’s got cash to splash then something like an up front retul fit may help. I think retul have a database of bike fits and can recommend makes and models that would be a good fit based on a fit on their jig. May help narrow down his search and at least he’ll end up with something that should fit him (difficult to tell otherwise if he’s not use to riding road bikes.)

Saw a Time Fluidity S the other day, looked lush, expensive.

Actually, I reckon Gary M has it. ^^^^

£1k now on a decent winter bike, and start riding straight away, then the other £3k in the spring.

Most sensible idea by far if he had that sort of money to spend.

My Time RX Instinct is a beautiful bike to ride. Would cost £4.5k as it currently stands.

BUT. Being a fit and strong rider IMHO brings more pleasure than riding an expensive bike. The Time would be a total waste if all I did was bimble around slowly on it, like driving a Ferrari around a city at 12mph instead of the open road or a race track…

The idea above about getting a cheap winter bike to build fitness and then a nicer summer bike will bring him more pleasure and get him fitter IMO

High end racing bikes are a bad idea for a novice cyclist cos they’ll be flippin uncomfortable, he needs something more ‘sportivey’, unless he wants to spend the second week of his holiday in traction. Could still spend a fortune on it though

nwill1

Tell him you’ve found a great deal on a 4k bike – take his money then buy him a Halfords special.

He’ll still believe he’s gods gift but wont look quite such a prat wobbling along with his beer gut hanging out….. and you can pocket the difference.

Win Win

As has been said a few times, it may well be that a £4k bike is worse for him than a cheaper one.

My suggestion would be to get a £1k bike now from a good shop that can get him fitted up properly. He can then do some decent miles, work on getting used to the position (and working towards a more racy, efficient position than the airbrake one he’ll be able to manage if he’s just starting out) and then buy a new bike if he really must once he’s used to riding on the road and has a bit more of an idea of what actually works for him or what causes him problems.

Or otherwise, I’d say £2k is more than enough to spend to get all the performance he needs (again with proper fit, etc) though in itself, I see no issue with someone who can afford to buying a £4k bike. It’s cheap in comparison to the vanity cars people spend silly money on.

Actually, I reckon Gary M has it. ^^^^

£1k now on a decent winter bike, and start riding straight away, then the other £3k in the spring.

Most sensible idea by far if he had that sort of money to spend.

Taking the OP at face value, we’re talking about someone who’s decided they want to ride arround an island, arround 300km (presumably in a day?).

They don’t have the motivation or time to pick up a copy of Cycling Plus (or other magazine) and read the inevitable £1500-£2000 bike test, and wander into a shop themselves armed with that scrap of knowlage. It’s a bit of a leap to assume they’ll do any training let alone riding over the winter.

He’ll still believe he’s gods gift but wont look quite such a prat wobbling along with his beer gut hanging out….. and you can pocket the difference.

Couple of points regarding your bitter and negative post.

Why does the guy think he’s ‘gods gift’ because he wants to spend £4k of his money on a bike?
Why would he ‘look like a prat’? or is that just what you see through your bitter tears.
Why would he be ‘wobbling along’, its a bike, if he can ride a £50 one he can ride a £4k one.
Beer gut hanging out, does he a have a beer gut? I didn’t see that mentioned and I assume you are at the pinnacle of your fitness – or at least have the correct fitness/bike value ratio.

There’s some right sad, judgmental, bitter types on here at times.

Trek Domane is the bike for your man. Comfy, and prices from £1500-£the sky.

If hes minted and 4k is small change to him then I say bash on, its what’d I’d do. Somefolks like the best equipment, reminds me when I took up tennis and splashed out on 2 brand new bats, the same ones Nadal used to win the french open unpteen times. Turned out I was gash, and I used them twice, but at least it made me happy!

I’d be looking at something from Canyon, as despite value for money not appearing to be high on the agenda, you could get a pretty much tour quality bike for that from them. Altenatively my eye is on a BMC team machine 1 from Evans, a snip at 3.8k leaving 200 quid left over for some titanium axled speedplay pedals

finally, if in 6 months he realises its not for him then I beleive my e.mail is in my profile….

🙂

Gary_M

Gary – is this thread about you? You sound very offended by something?

Update: I have managed to lay my hands on an extremely rare Fondriest Mega 04, probably the ultimatest bike ever, the only bike to have won the Tour De France without a rider. I have literally one of these left, Noramlly these retail for £4TRILLION but I’m prepared to let it go for £4K, email in profile.

If money is no object then spend the 4k or whatever on a Tri bike. That way if your friend happens to be wobbling all over the place and have questionable skills* then everyone will assume he’s a Triathlete rather than a stereotypical MAMIL/ dentist.

* He might not, but it isn’t a stretch if it is his first bike and for a one off event only

More seriosuly though, he might not care what anyone thinks in which case it makes naff all difference what he spends the 4k on so long as it fits well

I’m not offended, I just can’t be doing with people that think other people don’t deserve to spend x on a bike because they’re not an experienced cyclist. You come across as very, very bitter, whats the reason for that?

I thought “all the gear, no idea” was fair game for heckling on here!!
Its Monday for Gods sake – what else is there to do??

Worry about 9 / 10 speed compatibility?

I thought “all the gear, no idea” was fair game for heckling on here!!

I’m shocked that the idea of discussing road cycling has become so accepted on here to be honest! 😀

Worry about 9 / 10 speed compatibility?

It’s road, so just new shifters, chain andcassette needed. But for £4k I’d expect 11 speed, or a very pimp track bike.