UKH

After 4 years with a MTB, I’m looking at getting a road bike now. I’m looking for something that is more set up for sportives than racing, comfortable, and reasonably light. This one popped up as a contender- anyone out there had experience of it? Would it be a reasonable choice given what I’m looking for?

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

Looks a decent frame but I haven't seen one in the flesh....at that price point though there is a lot of competition and you should be getting something like an Ultegra groupset and some decent wheels!

Its always worth a trip to a local bike shop and seeing what type of frame suits you and the type of ride position suits the frame etc....

Have you got mates who ride road bikes to advise you or maybe there is a local club?

I'll have a look at the geometry of the frame online and post back...

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

I have a Giant Defy 2 (now renamed to Contend). The Defy has a more relaxed geometry than your average racer I have found it fine on long rides. There are various models in the range, with different gear sets and things like disc brakes. Don't know anything about the Trek, but would suggest that you also look at the Giant range.

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

Just had a google browse.....

It.looks good....for an aluminium frame the weld technology looks very advanced and its slick looking!

It has the H2 geometry which id describe as a bit in between sportive setup and race style so depending on your stem length you could be comfy on it either way. 

I'd definitely have a good look around though....I'm not sure I would want an ally frame for that money and there are good deals around at the moment.

The usual places are worth looking at; 

Planet X, Dolan, Ribble will get you a lot of bike in that price range.

I have an older ally frame bike I used to race on....I still love it, its quick, rigid and a pleasure to ride for 2-3 hour rides but after that the amount of road buzz starts to be a bit tiring so I'm virtually always on the carbon frame instead.

Somebody will be along soon I'm sure to give a more informed opinion on the Trek....

Glad you are getting a roadie!

In reply to abr1966:

Thanks- price point a little lower than it looks as can get a 2018 one for under a grand. Does it look a good deal for that? Are there any worthwhile carbon frame alternatives at that price?

In reply to wilkesley:

Yes spotted that one - none in sale at my size though... will keep looking!

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

Check out the Road CC and Cycling Weekly reviews for bikes for a grand.....although they tend to focus on certain brands! A guy in our club has just bought a Ribble R872 for just over a grand and its really good...he got it with 105 and decent wheels....it looks very comfy and he's an experienced guy who did his homework and spent some proper time looking and trying them out.

The Planet X RT58 is good value for a.more relaxed position.....you'll see some mixed comments about planet x but I've had 3 frames from them which have all been excellent.....I ride the RT57 currently.

If you keep the thread bumped there are other roadies on here who will give good advice.....I'm off for a ride now!!

In reply to abr1966:

Yeah I've got a Planet X pro carbon, does the job for me and the new ones out now too.

In reply to Lord_ash2000:

I had one of those as a hire bike for a couple of days and found it lacking in stiffness - back end seemed to be all over the place. Someone in my club has one and agrees it's not the stiffest.

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

I'd second the suggestion of getting properly measured/fitted for a road bike - that will tell you the correct size of frame, geometry and all adjustments for you to be comfortable. Of course, you can still fine tune it from there - I prefer my saddle slightly higher than suggested, for example - but better than starting out on completely the wrong thing.

Costs around £100 - most bike shops will then knock that off the purchase price if you buy from them.

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

I'd have a look at Canyon if you're happy to buy online. I've got a carbon endurace that is really light, comfy and feels great to ride. A lot of bike for the money, and I went for a cosmetic second which meant I got the next model up for the same money.

In reply to LastBoyScout:

It being my first road bike I've little to make a comparison from but I haven't noticed it seeming overly flexy. 

Out of curiosity what bikes would you recommend in the £1000-£1200 price range? 

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs: It's worth keeping in mind that Trek frames are really well made and they have an excellent warranty too.

 

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

Are you in a hurry? Every early summer Cyclist magazine runs an open day at three different road circuits around the UK where you can test bikes from a lot of manufacturers, although not usually Trek. My BIL joined us at York last year as a committed old-school steel bike rider, tried a Specialized Rouaix and was blown away by it and bought one. 

A serious contender for a first road bike must also be a Specialized Allez, they are excellent.

Trek's bikes are all good but try a few others before you buy. If you plan to ride all year round, choose disc brakes and a bike that can take mudguards.

In reply to LastBoyScout:

They get called Planet Flex for a reason! My old TT bike was a Planet X and felt less stiff than my current road bike (Canyon Ultimate).

In reply to the thread:

 

thanks for the comments everyone, food for thought...

i wouldn’t feel comfortable getting from an on line seller at present, would prefer to have a local shop to deal with as I’m less sure of what I’m doing... I think the likes of Planet X are on line, unless I’m missing something...?

the specialised allez and giant contend seem to come in at around £600 for the 2019 version- a lot less than the Emonda. I don’t want to spend money just for the sake of it, so what is the extra 400 quid for the emonda buying me? And as a novice road cyclist, looking more at sportive rather than racing use, will I get any benefit from it? If not, then happy not to spend it; but if it saves a couple of kilos off the weight, or gives a performance improvement even I would see, then that would be worth it.

A bit of a concern though- is the Emonda more of a racing setup? The trek domane write up make it look like that’s Trek’s sportive bike line, but I can’t find as good a deal for it. I don’t want to end up needing Pilates lessons to need to ride it without discomfort....

And - I’ve even found the carbon frame Emonda with 30% off in my size, I think... worth the extra 200 pounds over the aluminium frame or not?

 

In reply to Lord_ash2000 and NMSE:

My first road bike was almost a Specialized Allez, but in the end I was lucky enough to get a heck of a deal on a slightly used Trek that would otherwise have been way out of budget,

Cannondale get good reviews around that price and don't discount a Boardman - these articles might help:

https://road.cc/content/buyers-guide/217215-15-best-2018-2019-road-bikes-un...

https://road.cc/content/buyers-guide/211855-13-best-2018-2019-ps1000-ps1500...

As always, tests are subjective, but are a good start point. You might be best of getting down to somewhere like Evans or a good local bike shop for a chat. I'm afraid I'm a bit off the boil on current options.

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

If you manage to get something under the £1k threshold, are you able to use the bike to work scheme? Pretty sure it also applies to sale bikes now.

In reply to no_more_scotch_eggs:

Hi - I've got the 2016 or 2017 ALR version (not sure which it is now) and used it quite a lot now. I don't particularly like carbon fibre for various reasons but wanted a lighter road bike than steel. I think it's a really good bike and a good compromise. Mine has the ultegra groupset which is great. I think the frame is plenty stiff enough and the bike is light enough. I guess they're saved some money on some of the components here and there but that's the nature of things unless you spend thousands, which I'm not going to do. It's a good frame and groupset so upgrading things like wheels would make it even better. That sort of thing doesn't worry me though as I work on the basis that it's more important to be fit and lose weight rather than worry about shaving a few pounds here and there off the bike. The handling is fine and it's comfortable enough for longer rides. I recommend one if you don't want carbon fibre.

In reply to jpicksley:

 

thanks- and will look into the bike to work scheme

 

In reply to LastBoyScout:

I work as a teacher for Herefordshire council and their Cycle to Work Scheme is amazing. £4k limit, any bike plus accessories and most suppliers give an instant 10% discount before C to W discounts are applied. I bought a 2019 Trek Remedy through the scheme. I filled in a salary sacrifice form, found a bike, the bike shop emailed a proforma invoice to the council and they paid the money direct to the shop. Really easy and simple. Also, they have a final payment which is set out before you start and means you own the bike at the end.  Can't recommend their scheme enough. There must be other schemes like this I'm sure. 

In reply to blackmountainbiker:

That sounds pretty good, but that's hardly a commuter bike My wife did pretty well out of her old company scheme and I've heard a few stories of blatant abuse of less generous schemes - someone I know got a full-on downhilling bike that you'd never ride to work in a million years!

I'm in the market for a cyclocross/adventure bike to replace my commuting hack (ideas welcome) and we have a cycle to work scheme - not sure if I'm going to be with this company long enough to make it worthwhile, though.

In reply to LastBoyScout:

I can't really argue with that,  though I do ride it to work off road sometimes and I run a mountain bike club at school and take the children out to trail centres riding so I justify it that way! The Whyte gravel bikes look good and I'm fond of the Genesis bikes too.