Road Cycling Essentials

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GAC said:
least one good thing being small, you have a better choice of kit be it bikes or clothing.

im 6'3 and have a 56" chest. iv got no chance at getting anything even close to a light cycling jacket for wet days.
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56" chest? Wow.

One More Solo said:
I'm sure I read somewhere that Rapha had to tailor some of their kit to fit the Sky guys which shows you how tiny some of them are.

Edit: speaking of Cervelo R5s, that 2013 R5 frame on the BikeRadar classifieds is absolutely stunning.
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Do you mean necessarily to make them smaller than XS, or cold it just have been to make the generic sizes fit better?
 
Bit of an update on the winter bike project. totally accepted the advice on here not to ruin the Wilier by riding it through the winter so the plan evolved to

1. Source a frame such as a Caad 10 or similar and transfer groupset, bars, stem over from the Wilier and hang it up until the spring. Use my spare Fulcrum 5s for wheels.
2. Depending on finances upgrade Wilier groupo to Chorus or Athena 11 in the spring

Finding a frame I like at a reasonable cost is proving a little bit of a challenge. No Caad10 or even Caad 8s around. Have considered an Allez or a kinesis but can't quite find the right thing on Ebay or classifieds yet. So I decided to revisit the Chinese Carbon thing. Just had a quote from Dengfu for a FM029 frame. Custom painted! - Nothing fancy but I had been really quite taken by the colour of Vinokourovs Olympic winning Tarmac sl4 and Chavanel's one from this years TdF. Its a sort of lary luminous red! Anyway Dengfu have proposed the attached which looks a close match
cost is $590 delivered but always risk of some customs so I think you would have to budget £430 territory which takes you into Planet X, Ribble pricing band really albeit no custom paint colour.

FM029-YS740.jpg


So its a close call. On the one hand I am really quite tempted to have a bit of unique exotica but that has to be offset by the risk of buying such an item from a Chinese vendor.

Going to mull it over for a day or so :)
 
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Calpol said:
Bit of an update on the winter bike project. totally accepted the advice on here not to ruin the Wilier by riding it through the winter so the plan evolved to

1. Source a frame such as a Caad 10 or similar and transfer groupset, bars, stem over from the Wilier and hang it up until the spring. Use my spare Fulcrum 5s for wheels.
2. Depending on finances upgrade Wilier groupo to Chorus or Athena 11 in the spring
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What size frame are you looking for?

Do the frames you are looking at have mudguard mounts? Mudguards make the single biggest difference to your comfort in winter and Crud Racers and Race Blades are not a batch on full guards like Chromoplastics.

I'll find you something, I love looking for frames...
 
Calpol said:
Bit of an update on the winter bike project. totally accepted the advice on here not to ruin the Wilier by riding it through the winter so the plan evolved to

1. Source a frame such as a Caad 10 or similar and transfer groupset, bars, stem over from the Wilier and hang it up until the spring. Use my spare Fulcrum 5s for wheels.
2. Depending on finances upgrade Wilier groupo to Chorus or Athena 11 in the spring

Finding a frame I like at a reasonable cost is proving a little bit of a challenge. No Caad10 or even Caad 8s around. Have considered an Allez or a kinesis but can't quite find the right thing on Ebay or classifieds yet. So I decided to revisit the Chinese Carbon thing. Just had a quote from Dengfu for a FM029 frame. Custom painted! - Nothing fancy but I had been really quite taken by the colour of Vinokourovs Olympic winning Tarmac sl4 and Chavanel's one from this years TdF. Its a sort of lary luminous red! Anyway Dengfu have proposed the attached which looks a close match
cost is $590 delivered but always risk of some customs so I think you would have to budget £430 territory which takes you into Planet X, Ribble pricing band really albeit no custom paint colour.

So its a close call. On the one hand I am really quite tempted to have a bit of unique exotica but that has to be offset by the risk of buying such an item from a Chinese vendor.

Going to mull it over for a day or so :)

GsIDCaZg
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you'll ruin your groupo too :) brakes, etc will be fine but chain, cassette, bb will go through a lot.. salt on the road EATS through components
 
[DOD]Asprilla;24812300 said:
What size frame are you looking for?

Do the frames you are looking at have mudguard mounts? Mudguards make the single biggest difference to your comfort in winter and Crud Racers and Race Blades are not a batch on full guards like Chromoplastics.

I'll find you something, I love looking for frames...
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wilier is an XL, which is as per this table.

Table.jpg


Generally I find this bike very comfortable. Stem has 5mm spacer and seatpost probably has about 6" exposed. I do feel slightly stretched at times reaching the hoods with a 120mm stem and saddle fore /aft is probably moved slightly to accomodate. Ideally I would like something maybe a little racier and its easier to make a smaller frame bigger than the other way round. Height is 184cm and inseam 85cm.

So I think a 56 is where I am looking in most brands.
Mudguards - Hmmmm - got to be honest I don't think they belong on a racing bike. Would rather get a wet ar$e and ride at the back or off the front of a group. Most of my riding is solo anyway. So mudgaurd mounts is not really a requirement for me
 
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Club TTs you'd be fine.
You need a BC race license (or day licence) to compete in official TTs or road races though. Part of the paperwork you sign to get your licence is an agreement to comply with random drugs testing if required. I have heard of random tests at lower category races but never seen it myself.
 
Disco Boy said:
Calpol's post raised an eyebrow with me to... Your frame is carbon, it is the least affected component by winter roads!
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Yes but it will get dirty! and its white! Seriously though there is a lot more crappy stuff on the roads in winter and you definitely pick up more chips and damage. The drivetrain parts have 4000 miles on them so and I would look to replace them when the Wilier gets rebuilt in spring.

grudas said:
yeah only damage to the frame would be dirt/paint chips/scratches etc... so IMO calpol you're missing the point :D
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Anyway chaps enough of the logical wife like comments :p - this is n+1 justification and mans desire for new shiny things! Ask UniQ why he needs an R3 as a winter hack!!! ;)

Been quite taken by what this guy did.
http://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=101603
 
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