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Newbie with yet another bike question
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 2005-06-04 10:12 PM |
Member  35  Baton Rouge, LA |  Subject: Newbie with yet another bike questionI have been lurking around here for the past month reading all the posts I can (trying to learn as much as possible) and I have been following the 16 month beginner sprint program. Unfortunately, the only 'experience' I have in any of these sports is from swimming waaaay back when. I have, however, been consistently going to the gym for a few years now. I started with the BFL program and have stuck with some kind of weight program from then on, but I started to feel like a needed something to work towards. I went searching on the internet and found the GirlPower Tri in N.O. and thought why not, so I started training and have actually dragged a friend into it with me. Anyway, the question I am trying to get to is about bikes. I have currently been training on a MTB, but went looking at road bikes today. I was surprised to find that a couple of the local bike stores (out of only a few here) carried basically only one brand of bike. The store that I was most impressed with carried only KHS bikes. I have never read anything about this brand on this site or seen it anywhere else that I have looked on the web before I went into the store. I was wondering if anyone around here has any experience with these bikes and can fill me in on any pros or cons. Thanks, Tee |
| 2005-06-04 10:16 PM in reply to: #168779 |
New user 105 | Subject: RE: Newbie with yet another bike question Your best bet is to shop for a bike shop that can do a good job of fitting you. The bike that fits will be the fastest and most comfortable. A 500 dollar bike that fits will be much faster than a 3000 dollar bike that does not fit. Go with the shop that offers the best service and knows the most about bike fit. You won't be sorry. Mike P. |
| 2005-06-04 10:36 PM in reply to: #168779 |
Expert 773 | Subject: RE: Newbie with yet another bike question I ride a KHS Flite 300. I have had it since Christmas (a gift to myself), and other than scheduled maintenance at the LBS, I have had no problems. For the price, I think this is a very dependable bike. Of course you have your Cervelo and Trek and Felt owners who love their bikes and would not get caught dead riding anything else. That's fine for them, but since I am a public servant I am on a tight budget, and could never afford anything like that. With my bike I had to change the pedals to clipless, and added clip-on aerobars, but no other major changes. There are lighter bikes out there, but for the price I am very happy. I did a 40-plus mile group ride today, and actually hung with the other bikes until about mile thirty, but that was because of my conditioning and not because of the bike. First and foremost is the the fit. As was said before, a poor fit can make a $5000 bike worthless. Since the majority of your time will be spent on the bike, make sure you test ride any bike your considering. Take your time and do your research. Take input from everyone and consult your LBS, but ultimately the choice is yours. If you are not 100% satisfied with your bike, it makes it a lot harder to ride when you don't want to. Good luck. |
| 2005-06-05 6:08 AM in reply to: #168779 |
Resident Curmudgeon 25290 The Road Back Gold member | Subject: RE: Newbie with yet another bike question Hey Baton Rouge! Welcome to the sport, welcome to the site. There's a few of us Louisianans on here... When I was shopping for bikes, I wasn't impressed by the selection I found in Lafayette or Baton Rouge, in fact I was pretty disappointed. At least you have some knowledgeable shops on that end, which is more than what we had when I was looking. Are you finding the KHS bikes at Pedal Play? That's one of the more helpful staffs that I found. The other good place to look is The Bicycle Shop on Highland just outside of LSU. Will Cheramie is particularlly helpful and knowledgeable, and a nice guy as well. Like you said, though, they primarily carry one brand (Specialized). You can find Trek and Giant (as well as Cervélo and Felt) at Capitol Cyclery, but I found their people to be the least helpful, more of the stand-over-the-bike-OK it-fits type KHS is a well-known, respected brand of bicycle, just not as widely seen as the Trek, Specialized, Giant, etc. Here's their road bike website: http://www.khsbicycles.com/07_road_track.htm . As others have said, fit is the most important aspect in buying a bike. It may help to further educate yourself about the process, certainly these forums are a good place for questions. I've found this article to be a good primer on buying your first bicycle : http://bayoubicycles.com/site/page.cfm?PageID=63 . Coincidentally, it comes from a bike shop in New Orleans where I bought my first road bicycle. They handle Giant, Specialized and Bianchi. |
| 2005-06-05 8:43 AM in reply to: #168779 |
| New user 105 | Subject: RE: Newbie with yet another bike question Bayou Cycles is a great shop. Nice selection and the people seem helpful. There is also a shop in Lafayette, can't remember the name, it is on Johnson street across from Red's (the healthclub) (ask anyone in town whre Red's is, they will know). Anyway, the guy who runs the shop worked for John Cobb (the guy who fits Lance Armstrong on his TT bikes) for many years. The guy knows bike fit. He would be a good choice as well. Mike P. |
| 2005-06-05 9:52 AM in reply to: #168836 |
Resident Curmudgeon 25290 The Road Back Gold member | Subject: RE: Newbie with yet another bike question mprevost - 2005-06-05 7:43 AM Bayou Cycles is a great shop. Nice selection and the people seem helpful. There is also a shop in Lafayette, can't remember the name, it is on Johnson street across from Red's (the healthclub) (ask anyone in town whre Red's is, they will know). Anyway, the guy who runs the shop worked for John Cobb (the guy who fits Lance Armstrong on his TT bikes) for many years. The guy knows bike fit. He would be a good choice as well. Mike P. Precision Bike, run by Mark Miller. http://www.precisionbikes.com/ Didn't mention it 'cause I figured she wanted to stay local and entry-level, Mark is neither. Yep, he knows his stuff. I was in there Friday to get my tri-bike fit adjusted. In addition to Cobb, Mark also spent some time with Dan Empfield and is FIST certified. His shop is fairly new and, unfortunately, wasn't around when I was shopping bicycles. Edited by the bear 2005-06-05 9:52 AM |
| 2005-06-05 12:43 PM in reply to: #168816 |
Member 35 Baton Rouge, LA | Subject: RE: Newbie with yet another bike question You pegged me Bear, as I have seen you do many other times on this site. It was definitely the staff and service that impressed me at Pedal Play. And I knew the answer I would get from this site was fit, fit, fit, but I really appreciate the testimonial, John. The 300 is the bike I was looking at. I have yet to decide if I am going to buy a bike or just go with the MB I have, but I really think I like the idea of a local shop with really good service for the first year. Thanks for your input. Tee |
| 2005-06-08 8:54 AM in reply to: #168910 |
| Louisiana | Subject: RE: Newbie with yet another bike question > I have yet to decide if I am going to buy a bike or just go with the MB I have... If you haven't done a triathlon yet, you might want to wait to buy a bike. With that said, doing a triathlon on a road bike is LOTS more fun (and easier) that on a MTB. > I knew the answer I would get from this site was fit, fit, fit... The Specialized Dulce has special geometry designed for women: http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=9635 I'm loyal to The Bicycle Shop on Highland Road. I'm on my sixth bike from there, and they've always been great. After you buy the bike, they'll do a fitting. Ask for Michael. He's very precise. Pedal Play is a relatively new shop. I've never been there, but I've heard good things. Finally, there's a big difference between a $600 bike and a $1,200+ bike. If you get bitten hard by the Tri bug, you will probably end up buying a more expensive bike anyway. So if you've been training for a while and really like it, consider buying a more expensive bike. It'll hurt your wallet, but you won't end up with a second bike you never ride. Have fun, Jeff |
| 2005-06-08 10:11 AM in reply to: #168779 |
Member 16 Augusta, GA | Subject: RE: Newbie with yet another bike question Tee, Like you I am newbie and my wife and I have just entered our first Tri scheduled for 10 Sept. We both currently own MTB's and would like to use these instead of putting out a lot of money at the start. What I have been reading up on and even posted a question about it, is using what they call "slick" tires for MTB's. These tires will be faster on the road than the traditional MTB tires and give the feel of a road bike. Here is a link to that post that includes a web site that has these slick tires. http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp... I hope this helps. |
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