Road vs. Tri Bike

This is a huge area of discussion among the cycling world!

Here are my thoughts which have no professional diagnosis, only my experiences.

I too needed a new bike when I got into tris and was thinking the same.  Do I buy a tri bike or a road bike.  I decided to buy the road bike.  Apparantly most triathletes train on a road bike and race on their tri bike.  I couldn't afford both, so I went with the road bike. 

I have done 4 sprints, 1 olympic, and 1 half-ironman this summer on my road bike.  I don't ride real fast (19-20mph now, I started the season at 17mph) and I think that maybe now I am just getting to the speed that could take advantage of the increased aerodynamic efficiency of a tri bike.  I think I could get more "bang for the buck" by putting a set of aero wheels on my road bike for next season.

Another factor is that racing a tri bike changes the angle of your hip/leg on the bike.  It has been said that this helps conserve strength for the run. This would be the real reason I would buy a tri bike if someone could categorically tell me that my run would be faster. 

 I have heard many people say that the course is more of a factor for choosing a tri bike than the distance is.  Hilly, technical courses seem to be better raced on a road bike.

 All this said, I am happy I went with the road bike and even though plenty of nice tri bikes scream past me at tri's, occasionally I pass one myself.  I figure once I can consistently race at 22-25mph, I will get a tri bike.

Here are some other discussions on the topic for your perusal.

And welcome to BT!!

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/search/query.asp?fid=0&action=search&searchforumid=1&keywords=road+vs+tri+bike&mode=1&subjects=1&messages=1&author=&collapsethreads=1&days=1&datemode=3&custom-start=&custom-end=

You may want to consider the Cervelo Soloist as one bike to do both. It has a reversible seat post that shifts the seat forward for use with clip on aero bars. I have read very good things about this bike if it fits you. I am going to look at one as soon as I get the money allocated. My CFO (pronounced wife) is balking at $2500.00 for a bike.

chevy57    

I think your LBS is steering you in the right direction...I am in the same boat as you and just starting to train for my first tri...I have been riding for a little over a year on a OCR3 and love it...I did put some Profile Design T2+ clip on aero bars on it for a time trial and it worked just fine...aerodynamic?...not quite...the upright seating position really affects your aero position but for shorter tri's you will have no problem...I did a 10 mile TT on it averaging 20.6 mph after only 3 months of riding...

One thing...the Kenda tires suck...you will need to replace them immediately...get a good set of 23's and keep the Kendas for indoor trainer use...you might also want to get him to throw in an extra rear wheel...they usually will have a rebuilt with a cassette just lying around...this way you can keep the trainer tire on it and do a quick swap from outdoor tires to indoor when its raining...

When I upgrade it will be a TCR C1 or a Trek Madone 5.2...all Ultegra SL but still debating on if I want the triple

Let me throw a few wrench in the equation:

Training and traffic 

While I can ride for extended distances locally because of the barely wide bike lanes, the majority entails city and suburb type traffic. In this case I prefer a road bike.

If I could only have one bike, TT or road, the road bike would be my choice.

Wow, what a supportive and helpful group.  I am sure that the OCR1 is in my future.  Fortunately I am in a good financial position, so I guess I could get something more expensive like to reverseable $2500 bike, but I am also totally frugal and would have a hard time justifying it for now. 

One more thing, my current bike is a '96 Trek Antelop 850 Mtn Bike.  How much of a speed difference would there be for a couple of Sprints next year, then once I am totally addicted, I could drop the cash on a new set of wheels.  My LBS owner said he could "tune-it-up" and get me a new set of wide road tires for under $200.  Would a road bike get me an additional 5 mph from the get go, or just make me look like less of a dork next year?  (I am totally comfortable looking like a dork, it has gotten me very far in life)

Thanks for all of the help.

RD

LOTS of thoughts! 

Do you like just riding for fun? Do you like riding with groups? Some road clubs don't encourage aero bars on their group rides. If you ride a lot in traffic, you would be more stable on a road bike. But if you have the $$ get both.

If you are concerned with the agressive position and it sounds like you probably need to be, talk to an older LBS employee or expert bike fitter. I found that when shopping for bikes, the younger, racing crowd really wouldn't listen or couldn't seem to relate to the fit/use/flexibility challenges that older (say over 35) or injured riders have to pay attention to. The college-age bike racer guys could totally tell me ALL about the bikes and the differences, so that was great, but they really weren't able to translate that to fit and usability challenges. The bike-fit person could. 

You might also try some yoga classes to increase your flexibility. Tight hamstrings, calves and a non-flexibile spinal column all limit your ability to "get aero" comfortably, so if you work on that over the winter you'll be that much ahead for next season.

FWIW, I started with a Giant OCR2 new in 2002, and was very happy with it. I really like that bike. It corners well, is quite stable on a fast downhill (40mph), and the 2 was fairly light. Over the years I upgraded some components to Ultegra. 

My hubby and I each recently added a Specialized Roubaix comp to the bike stable, and I really like that one too. It's lighter than the OCR2, and more responsive. It has a less aero position, but I find I am more comfortable for a longer period of time. I pedal better/harder/more efficiently if I'm comfortable. So aero is good, but max efficiency for me personally is better.  If I'm in pain by the end of the bike, the aero position hasn't really saved me anything. But then I'm probably the least flexible person on the planet.

Hi all.  I'm very very new to all of this but I wanted to make a comment about putting slicks on a Mountain Bike.  It made a huge difference for me and was well worth the $25 I spent.  It sped me up by about 5 mph going uphill and it scares me to death going downhill.  I'm very happy I did it.

As a frugal person also with dork-like tendencies, I would get the OCR1, and make sure that the clipless pedals match the ones on your mountain bike. Then you can ride both bikes with the same shoes.  This saves you a bit of $$ as you won't have to buy roadie shoes too. I rode with a pair of extremely dorky mountain bike shoes on my road bike from 2000 until um...last month.

Also, the speed increase bang for the $$$ is better going from mtn bike to OCR2 than it is from mtn bike now to mtn bike with road tires to OCR1. You know you're gonna get the OCR anyway. That $200 extra you can just save for when you want race wheels later.

Besides, the smugness factor of passing someone on a tri-bike with zipps while wearing dorky shoes and riding a road bike is absolutely priceless.

Davidson3,

I would not put $200 into a Trek Antelope for the reasons that follow:

A) It is a $300 bike to start with. You will have a $500 bike that gets you half way to nowhere.

B) You will end up with a mountain bike that cannot be ridden off road and still less than efficient on the road.

May I recommend that you take a look at some of the entry level road bikes that are available? I know you can buy a brand new Trek Pilot for $700 (I have been riding one for 3 years). I think Cannondale, Schwinn, Specialized and Jamis have offering in the same range. This way you get an efficient road bike and you still have a mountain bike for off road riding. Then next year when you get really hooked you can buy the Cervelo P3.

chevy57      

An OCR is a "road touring" geometry and is not all that conducive to tri events.  It is designed more for the recreational road rider.

As such, if you decide to put on aero bars and try to make it into a more "tri" geometry you will end up being very stretched out on the top tube and your fit will never be right.  It isn;t helped by the fact that the Giant frames are designed as "compact" geometry which means they have an inherintly longer top tube in proportion to the seat tube length.

If you are planning to buy a road bike and not a tri bike, then I would look for one of the "compromise" frames like a Cervelo Soloist.  You typically want something that allows you to get into a good aero position which usually means slightly steeper seat angle (75+ degrees) and a shorter top tube.  Most manufacturers will make the top tube as long or longer than the seat tube measurement so if you are like me and 6'-1" riding a 58 frame then the top tube will be 58 - 59 in length.  Great for road riding, terrible for aerodynamics and comfort in the aero position.  You'll also want something with a slightly slack head tube angle so it is not twitchy in the corners when you are aero.  The OCR does have that going for it however.

Giant did use to offer a normal dropped bar bike with more tri geometry, but perusing the '08 line they do not have it anymore.

I started out using a entry MTB for 1.5 years, then bought a used entry level RB ($500) and added aerobars, 1 year later I bought a $2k tri-bike. I was able to get the MTB speed up to mid-high 17 mph for a Sprint and Oly ride the last year with it.  The same courses with the RB were in the high 19's - low 20's.  Tri bike on the same sprint course was in the mid to high 20's and aiming for 21 on the oly this fall.  It's all in the human engine!

I have old injuries that affects my L4 & L5 as well as C6 & C7 in my neck.  The position on a MTB/RB/TB is such that the hip angles are all nearly the same at 90 degrees.  The frame geometry dictates how you are positioned on the frame.  I'm equally comfortable on my TB as I was on my RB long term.

To understand the frame differences read this.

Here's some good reading about the positioning on the different geometry's. 

I liked the way I went with MTB-RB-TB.  I don't see how 4-6 MPH is goign to be gained going from one geometry to another, no way.  I do wish I had a RB right now, but a lightweight high-end full suspension MTB is in my near term future instead for my rides to work and back as I will not ride on roads here without bike lanes and my back needs the dampening.

Personally, I would not bother spending any money on converting the mountain bike.  If you are frugal you will eventually realize that you should have just got a road bike to start and then you waisted that $200. 

Get a road bike and put clip on or as suggested the Cervelo that can be both.  If you get just a road bike and later want a tri bike, you could recoup some of your $ by selling your road bike or if you are addicted to triathlon and riding, you will likely want both.  Many of us just use a road bike with clipons since we don't have the cash, space or maybe desire to deal with 2 bikes. 

Well I road tested some bikes, and I am not quite ready for the extreme Aero position.  I rode a Giant OCR Composite C3 and I loved the ride with the Carbon bike versus the Aliminium.  That made a huge difference on my back.  The carbon seemed to absorb the road noise much better.

I also realized that I need a 58cm bike, and my MTB is a 51cm, so fitting on that for any long rides would be very challenging.

So...I am going to buy the OCR C3 (at a good price) and start my cycling journey there.  I am sure that it will not be my last, but I envision it lasting me through at least 3 seasons of Sprints and OLYs.  Once I break the top 10% in the standings, I will worry about more speed.

Thanks again to all.  This has been a very positive forum and the support and insight is greatly appreciated.  

Now to learn how to properly swim.