Road Cycling Essentials

[DOD]Asprilla · 14 Sep 2014 at 19:57

oli collett said:
Whyte Suffolk - pretty sure it's got 35mm clearance. Bang on £1200, road geometry, 105 11 speed (2015 version that's just out) and ticks all the other boxes:
http://www.cyclesurgery.com/pws/UniqueProductKey.ice?ProductID=CWHY0252EE

I'm getting one as my winter/commuter when I have the monies in.

It's just not as pretty, in my eyes, as the Plug.

lordrobs · 14 Sep 2014 at 20:17

Just had a look on the Charge page and it says something about a brake recall? Could that throw a spanner in the works?

grudas · 14 Sep 2014 at 20:17

I agree! The plug looks great.. But I'd go for whyte due to kit.

[DOD]Asprilla · 14 Sep 2014 at 20:30

lordrobs said:
Just had a look on the Charge page and it says something about a brake recall? Could that throw a spanner in the works?

The recall was in April. The fault has been corrected and new units are now being used. It's just in case there is someone out there with the original brakes.

Sram had to recall all of their hydraulic brakes.

grudas said:
I agree! The plug looks great.. But I'd go for whyte due to kit.

Why? The Plug is Sram Rival with full hydraulic brakes whilst the Whyte is a mix of 105 / Tiagra / FSA Gossamer with cable pulled hydraulics.

FrenchTart · 14 Sep 2014 at 20:54

Do you know if the Plug 5 has the exact same frame as the 4? I know I've said it before but the 4 at least has a bit of a sluggish feel to it from what I've heard (housemate got one..haven't ridden it myself but if *he* describes it as sluggish then it's really really sluggish). Obviously if you're not bothered about racing/really pushing the speed on it then that isn't an issue though.

[DOD]Asprilla · 14 Sep 2014 at 21:15

Oh, new contender......

http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/products/bikes/road/cross-bike/pro-dx-cross/

The only problem is the brakes, but I might swap them out for HyRds. That's a compromise I would do......

Edit; the Plug 4 and 5 are the same frame. The biggest issue, apparently, is the wheels and tyres. Wheels are heavy and the tyres are terrible.

grudas · 14 Sep 2014 at 21:55

[DOD]Asprilla;26899536 said:
The recall was in April. The fault has been corrected and new units are now being used. It's just in case there is someone out there with the original brakes.

Sram had to recall all of their hydraulic brakes.

Why? The Plug is Sram Rival with full hydraulic brakes whilst the Whyte is a mix of 105 / Tiagra / FSA Gossamer with cable pulled hydraulics.

I've got rival on my current bike.. Not the same year but I'm still 50/50 on it.. It shifts well etc its ergonomics that I'm still unsure.. Compared to shimano! Have you riden properly on SRAM hoods?

SoliD · 14 Sep 2014 at 22:12

Rode my mates Di2 Scott Foil today to give it a go, only a brief half mile or so, but I need electric in my life!

[DOD]Asprilla · 14 Sep 2014 at 22:19

grudas said:
I've got rival on my current bike.. Not the same year but I'm still 50/50 on it.. It shifts well etc its ergonomics that I'm still unsure.. Compared to shimano! Have you riden properly on SRAM hoods?

About 15,000 miles. I've just sold two bikes with Sram and I've still got S500 levers on my SS. I love Sram.

Vonhelmet · 14 Sep 2014 at 22:32

SoliD said:
Rode my mates Di2 Scott Foil today to give it a go, only a brief half mile or so, but I need electric in my life!

Sell the 911, then you'll be able to afford it

SoliD · 14 Sep 2014 at 22:37

Vonhelmet said:
Sell the 911, then you'll be able to afford it

Just have both. No point compromising!

Jimbeam3678 · 14 Sep 2014 at 23:06

My new bike arrives tomorrow I would say I can't wait but the fact I cant ride it yet puts a downer on things :-(

grudas · 14 Sep 2014 at 23:17

[DOD]Asprilla;26900021 said:
About 15,000 miles. I've just sold two bikes with Sram and I've still got S500 levers on my SS. I love Sram.

It's the bump on the hood that bothered me the most.. Got rid of it but hoods still feel "short" compared to shimano.. Then again the new SRAM hoods look very different!

Jonny ///M · 14 Sep 2014 at 23:21

tedmaul said:
The problem i found with the pro4s was that it's quite a soft compound so it cuts up really easily. Not in terms of getting more punctures or anything, but i found the tyre started looking pretty worn after only a few months - lots of little cuts and nicks all over it. Then finally after i had a wee rear wheel lockup one day coming into the narrow bridge on that back road into EK i noticed it had taken the whole surface layer of the tyre off.

Shame, as they ride brilliantly. Really comfy and incredibly grippy in all conditions.

Have gone back to 25mm GP4000s for the time being. Slightly updated version from the last time i had them, so will see how they last.

I see the same description on most of the top tyres from Conti, Michelin and Schwalbe. Par for the course I guess.

I've mainly used a combination of gatorskin/GP4000s and I like it.

Going by strava you are going pretty well! Pace of the last douglas was impressive.

Vonhelmet · 15 Sep 2014 at 00:26

I wonder what all the armchair directeurs sportif who whined about Sky not sending Wiggo to France make of the fact that he couldn't quite muster a win in the tour of Britain...

touch · 15 Sep 2014 at 01:08

Take all the riders that did the tour of Britain and put them up a real climb, Wiggo comes out on top. The ToB is not hard enough for a proper split in the times hence it was won by a rider who got in a lucky break.

Vonhelmet · 15 Sep 2014 at 07:28

touch said:
Take all the riders that did the tour of Britain and put them up a real climb, Wiggo comes out on top. The ToB is not hard enough for a proper split in the times hence it was won by a rider who got in a lucky break.

True. I guess I was just trying to make a point about the talismanic attachment to wiggins, as though he is some sort of invincible rider who can't lose.

Maybe it's just le tour that people think he can't lose

[DOD]Asprilla · 15 Sep 2014 at 07:29

grudas said:
It's the bump on the hood that bothered me the most.. Got rid of it but hoods still feel "short" compared to shimano.. Then again the new SRAM hoods look very different!

Works well for me as I've got small hands. Shimano always feel a little long. The cam lever reach adjustment on the Sram is also great.

oli collett · 15 Sep 2014 at 07:41

Vonhelmet said:
I wonder what all the armchair directeurs sportif who whined about Sky not sending Wiggo to France make of the fact that he couldn't quite muster a win in the tour of Britain...

The same ones who watched him win the Tour of California before he added weight for the track? Plus the ToB is an entirely different ride - I doubt Contador would have won this year had he been in it.

Calpol · 15 Sep 2014 at 08:42

touch said:
Take all the riders that did the tour of Britain and put them up a real climb, Wiggo comes out on top. The ToB is not hard enough for a proper split in the times hence it was won by a rider who got in a lucky break.

I can't say I agree with you on this. You can only race the parcour and whilst the UK doesn't sport any alpine esque climbs it looked a very challenging week for the riders. I certainly didn't see too much piano. Racing with only 6 in the team and no radios also means that its much more difficult to control the race as we saw when the GC leader was changing so often.

Personally I thought it was a very tough weeks racing. Its not a race that would be targeted by the GC contenders at World Tour level as they generally look to make time when it goes uphill but I reckon anyone would have found the intensity of the racing a real challenge. As Wiggo said at the end, it was a hard week and certainly not like the old days when they would be in the pub after a stage!

Anyway, I enjoyed it roll on next year.