Road Cycling Essentials

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[DOD]Asprilla;24916245 said:
For £600 you can get the B'Twin Triban 7 which has a Tiagra groupset. That's the next one up from Sora.
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My girlfriend recently got one of those. I am thoroughly unimpressed. For a start, because it was a small-ish frame size, it came with 650c wheels, which they don't advertise. The wheels themselves are also rep try crap, as are the tyres on them. The frame is also pretty poor in my opinion. I've not weighed the bike, but it seems pretty heavy too. The only thing going for it is the group set.

Berger said:
Idly browsing online tonight, has anyone seen a BMC being ridden!? Only ever see them on TV. See plenty of Giants, Treks, Cervelos, Oreba, Cube, Csnnondale etc etc and many more but never BMC. Wondering if its because their pricing is just insane for no reason!
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My mum has a 2011 roadracer with Ultegra group set and nice DT Swiss wheels (the front is lighter than my fulcrum 5s at least). She got it in about February this year for an absolute bargain price of £1400.

If you're a small frame size, previous years' BMCs are available for really good prices in Evans.
 
booyaka said:
Need to get shot of the average tyres (Schwalbe Lugano 23mm) that came on my Cannondale CAAD8. Seem quite skittish and not particularly grippy.

Looking around Continental Grand Prix 4 Season (GP4000s) seem to be well rated for general riding etc - Any better options? Also thinking going for 25mm ones this time.

Any thoughts?
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I recently put the 25mm versions of these on for winter. Easy to get on, light (215g each), great reviews for puncture resistance. Pricey but you can buy a pair with tubes from wiggle for< £65 so not outrageous.
 
Just picked up my hire bike ready to do the Coll de Soller tomorrow as part of a 120km round trip. Also saw a cyclist who hit and smashed the windscreen of a Fiat 500 today so wish me luck!
 
uniQ said:
Why does supporting local bike shops have to be so expensive? Wanted a new chain. Bike shop price for Ultegra 6600 chain £36 online price £18. Negotiated them to £25 and they seemed reluctant to sell at that.

Not much incentive if you're not in a rush :(
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They pay more than £18 most likely? Barely any reason to sell it at £25 too. We were doing the same with 6700 cassettes when CRC had them at £44 I think it was.

#Chri5# said:
Yes. My Planet-X came with Luganos and they got ditched after getting two punctures on my first long ride (Liverpool > Chester > Liverpool). They are still hanging in the garage...

I replaced them with Conti GP 4 Seasons (note the GP4000s is a different tyre altogether). Very happy with them. Can't remember when I got them (maybe 3 years ago) but I've had one puncture with them which was this year (which isn't bad in 1200km). That was a pinch puncture after a short off-road section back in July.
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I run GP4000s when possible as it is such a smooth ride and they grip like ****! The GP 4 season is more like a grippy gatorskin than full on race tyre I'd say.

I keep playing with my position and I feel I'm getting there with it. Managed to spin at higher cadence smoother than I could before I feel.

Stole a few KOMs from customers so I'm happy :p
 
touch said:
Good luck, what route have you got planned?
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Staying in Puerto Pollenca so literally just going to the climb via the MA-10, reach the summit and then back again. That's 120km on its own and looks like too far out to go back a different way.

This was the car from earlier today on the descent from Formentor, cyclist is on the floor on the right behind the gorpers. Ouch.

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Jonny ///M said:
They pay more than £18 most likely? Barely any reason to sell it at £25 too. We were doing the same with 6700 cassettes when CRC had them at £44 I think it was.
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My quibble is if you advertise a price match offer then you price match. Don't make a fuss when you get asked to and try and make out like you're doing me a favour when you sell it me for more lol. It doesn't build rapport.

Another shop that prices matches near my old house they do it no questions asked. I would go there regularly and gladly paid RRP for bits I needed for the customer service they provided. They became my first port of call for everything bike related before I considered online.
 
daveski said:
So I think I can also do this with my Forerunner 310. I've just plotted a route on ridewithgps but do I have to be a premium member to export as a TCX file?
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No.

The Darkness said:
I recently put the 25mm versions of these on for winter. Easy to get on, light (215g each), great reviews for puncture resistance. Pricey but you can buy a pair with tubes from wiggle for< £65 so not outrageous.
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Which ones are 215g in 25c?
 
My recent tyre weights:
Attack/Force = 188/195
4000s 25mm = 212/213g
4000s 23mm = 203/205g
Panaracer Type-A 23mm = 207/211g
 
uniQ said:
My recent tyre weights:
Attack/Force = 188/195
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Mine were 190/204.
There is going to be some discrepancy with the scales though.

Thinking of changing to 25c GP4000S for winter (dry) use as the Force/Attack arent really the right tyres for winter!
Cant decide if a 23c front is worth it instead of a 25c, minimal weight difference.
 
uniQ said:
My quibble is if you advertise a price match offer then you price match. Don't make a fuss when you get asked to and try and make out like you're doing me a favour when you sell it me for more lol. It doesn't build rapport.

Another shop that prices matches near my old house they do it no questions asked. I would go there regularly and gladly paid RRP for bits I needed for the customer service they provided. They became my first port of call for everything bike related before I considered online.
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Ah sorry, didn't realise they advertised a price match.

Fair enough then as evens do it at any price if it's in stock I believe?

If someone wants something cheap I'll google it and see what it's going for, check my trade and work out the price I'd be happy doing. Depends also if they use the shop a lot or not. Some of the deals people get are pretty good :o

How can you not like the shape of Ultegra, it's utilitarian. Campag on the other hand is the devil.
 
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Russinating said:
Staying in Puerto Pollenca so literally just going to the climb via the MA-10, reach the summit and then back again. That's 120km on its own and looks like too far out to go back a different way.
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That's probably the best route to get in most of the big climbs. The views from that side are much nicer as well so it's worth going back the same way anyway.
Coll de Soller is actually the easiest climb you'll do but it's a lot of fun because it's just a string of hairpins all the way up.
Puig Major is the real big climb. You'll go down it on the way out. It's a good one for practising your descending skills. Its not too technical - all the corners are wide, sweeping turns rather than tight turns. Surface is very good as well.
It's crazy to climb back up though. 9 miles of continuous climbing. Easily a full hour of uphill. There's nothing to compare it to if you havnt ridden outside the UK before.
Then you get the final descent back to Pollenca, which is the best descent on the island IMO.

Have fun, you'll love it :D
 
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