Chris Boardman Vs Track or other

Dr House

Dr House

Dr House

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Hi

I would like to buy my first proper bike, I have a budget of £400 to £700.


I know nothing about bikes, I live in the country (sheffield lol) so I thought I would get a MTB.

So I was thinking about a Chris Boardman bike, Maybe a Track 4300 (maybe 4900) with some new forks, or a Kona Fire Mountain???

Or I am open to suggestions.

Do Halfords ever have a sale on the Chris Boardman bikes?

EDIT: that should read Trek
 
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do you actually need a mtb bike? will you be doing any proper off roading ?
boardman bikes go on sale every few months seemingly , for example the mxrace is 499 right now and was 600 when I bought one a few months ago

do you count flat gravel/dusty paths as mtb terrain because they are not
 
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I dont think I will do proper off roading but to be honest I dont know, I am 32 and have not owned a bike for 15 years.

What are your thoughts? Maybe Trak 8.4D?
 
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Dr House said:
I dont think I will do proper off roading but to be honest I dont know, I am 32 and have not owned a bike for 15 years.

What are your thoughts?
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I am 32 and had not rode a bike in around 18 years until I got my boardman mx race hybrid (looks like a mtb , has 700c roadbike wheels with tyres similar to a CX bike. (about half the width of some mtb tyres the slimmer the tyres the faster you will go because of less rolling resistance)

I bought it because I thought going straight to a road bike would be to big a jump and with the riding position being less relaxed it would cause more aches and pains before i would adjust to the bike.

It's something I regret very much and I will be buying a proper road bike next year during the sales most likely.


Something about MTB style bikes just made them seem safer for someone who had not been on a bike in years and yes I was very unfit when I started (close to 17stone at one point and 14stone now although im 6"3.5 so not overly fat)

10miles was a hard ride and my hamstring would start to ache fairly badly.
A few weeks later I was able to go 20miles before my hamstring would start to ache, a few weeks later I was able to do 30miles in one go.

I'd imagine I'd have had more pain with the road bike during the adjustment period but I still reckon I would have been better of going straight to a road bike..

some of the cycle paths I ride are far from perfect but I see road bikes on them all the time going around the same speed as me if not faster.

one thing you will learn to hate very much about upright riding positions if when it's windy you will feel like you are going half as fast for twice the effort.

Unless you are sure you need a MTB then IMO it would be a mistake to get a mtb/hybrid just because you think the riding position will make the transition easier.

I'm not the only one on these forums who asked for advice and then ignored it and got a hybrid anyway and so far non of the people I have witnessed do the same has claimed to have been happy with their decision still a few months later they always regret it.

also front suspension is a waste of time I'm fortunate that with mine there's a switch to lock the suspension so I ride like that 90% of the time all the front suspension does is sap your energy.

if decathlon have a store near you http://www.decathlon.co.uk/triban-3-red-road-bike-id_8274036.html (click "my store" at the top right) with the red triban 3 in stock then that would be a very good starter road bike for only £300 (the white version has worst specs for the same price)
 
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Thanks for taking the time to post, so what you are saying is got a road bike? the more I read the more I am confused.
 
Dr House said:
Thanks for taking the time to post, so what you are saying is got a road bike? the more I read the more I am confused.
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I'm saying think very carefully whether or not you actually need a MTB/hybrid because it's likely you will be the same as me and everyone else who got a mb/hybrid for our first bike since child hood and then regretted it within weeks.

what draws you to a MTB originally ? is just basically the riding position and huge tyres = safety in some bizarre way? (it won't take you more than a few miles until you get used to riding a bike again , you might be wobbly at slow speed for the first few miles but after that you adjust amazingly quickly)

as I tried to say if all your driving on is roads , cycle paths , etc

then the up right riding position just becomes another factor in how slow and how much effort you need to get anywhere especially if there's any wind
the wider tyres on a mtb/hybrid just slow you down even further and sap your energy even more.
Suspension saps your energy yet again

it all adds up to a very annoying experience when you realise the biggest thing holding you back is your choice of bike and not your fitness levels


BTW if you get a bike make sure you install strava on your mobile phone and join the ocuk group on the strava website
 
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from what I remember of Sheffield it's quite hilly (well, compared to Manchester), and I wouldn't want to be going up those hills on a 13kg tank with suspension and 2.2" tyres.

As Arknor says, evaluate your reasons for wanting a MTB, and make sure it's the right choice. I'm another rider who initially used an MTB for riding on roads, and it was a huge mistake.
 
Get a road bike or a CX (and I'd stick roadie tyres on it too). Basically the only reason I went for a CX over a road bike is that I like disc brakes as Manchester is super rainy.
 
I don't regret getting my hybrid at all! 7 years later it's still going strong. I don't use it for recreation as such, more for commuting.

Don't whatever you do get suspension unless you're really going to ride off road. Cycle paths don't count as off road either.

A hybrid with skinny road tyres is IMO a really good way to getting back into cycling and commuting. If however you're only going to be using it for longer weekend recreational runs, then seriously consider biting the bullet and buying a proper road bike. A ride more than 45 minutes starts to get sore on my wrists.
 
I had a hybrid for a year (first bike after not cycling for about 20 years) and though I liked it at the time in retrospect I regret not immediately going for a road or cx bike. Drop bars kind of worried me at first but you actually get used to them almost instantly and it feels much more natural to ride with them. Being like a foot less wide at the handlebars also means you stress out about fitting through small gaps a lot less.
 
As a roadie, I prefer road bikes. However they're not for everyone. I would get down to your nearest local bike store, talk to the staff, and take a couple of different bikes for a test ride. See what you like and go from there.
 
Thanks guys, ok so I have come to agree a MTB bike is not for me, so now I will take a look at Road bikes but I just dont know how I feel about the drop bars but I will take a look at some CX bikes also as they may fit my needs.

I did take a look at this today

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_992090_langId_-1_categoryId_165534

It looks like a good bike for the money and they guy said it would be good for road use and light off road.

I dont want anything that will tire me out or sap my energy as I know my self and I will never use the bike if that happens.

Maybe this will fit me better?
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_992074_langId_-1_categoryId_165710
 
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I'd get the comp out of those 2 but it's not for me and AFAIK halfords don't do test rides

I've got tyrago tyres on my mx race and find them to mountain bike like personally but you could always go for skinnier tyres if you find them to slow as it wouldn't look as ridiculous on a bike with drop bars as it would if I stuck narrower tyres on my hybrid

BTW get some mudguards and make the shop fit them for free and get SKS chromoplastic ones :D assuming that bike has mounting points for them being a cx bike surely it will?
***** to fit but will never have to be fiddled with again

also if you are buying multiple things haggle haggle haggle! make the throw in some free stuff at the very least!
 
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for his first bike he's better off going to a shop though where he can see what size he needs with hopefully helpful staff who know there **** so ideally not halfords as most of the people who work there won't give a **** about bikes and likely don't ride themselves
 
FrenchTart said:
Get a road bike or a CX (and I'd stick roadie tyres on it too). Basically the only reason I went for a CX over a road bike is that I like disc brakes as Manchester is super rainy.
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Super rainy what compared to the rest of the UK? :confused:

If you want to do trails/downhill/mtb get a mtb bike.

If you want to ride on the roads, cycle paths (paved) get a road bike.

Hybrids are horrible on a trail, the position is just dreadful to do anything on. I'd imagine there the same on the road. They are designed for shops to sell to people who don't really know what they want and make easy money.
 
Begbie said:
Super rainy what compared to the rest of the UK? :confused:

If you want to do trails/downhill/mtb get a mtb bike.

If you want to ride on the roads, cycle paths (paved) get a road bike.

Hybrids are horrible on a trail, the position is just dreadful to do anything on. I'd imagine there the same on the road. They are designed for shops to sell to people who don't really know what they want and make easy money.
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Yeah.. Manchester is even rainier than the rest of the UK. It's an awesome place to live if you like damp.

edit: Agreed /re hybrids.
 
FrenchTart said:
Yeah.. Manchester is even rainier than the rest of the UK. It's an awesome place to live if you like damp.
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It always feels like that. For this reason I miss living in Hull/the east of England. The clouds tend to dump out over Manchester and the Pennines and leaves East Yorkshire fairly dry.
 
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