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Hybrid bikes
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 2010-06-03 3:09 PM |
New user 11 Danbury, CT area |  Subject: Hybrid bikesTalk to me about Hybrid bikes...I don't have the cash right now to buy a road bike and yes I have been doing all of my tri to date on a MT bike. I have looked at: |
| 2010-06-03 3:15 PM in reply to: #2899560 |
Expert 4631    Middle River, Maryland Silver member | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes You should be able to find a used entry-level road bike for $500 no problem. Check Craigslist and eBay. There was a Gary Fisher AR Super going for about $500 near me in MD a couple of weeks ago, and that has better than entry level components. I'm in the same boat...riding a Gary Fisher Capitola hybrid loosely converted to a road bike (road tires, flat handlebar, bar ends, and coming soon aero bars). Just can't swing the $1K I need to buy what I want right now, so making the best of it. Good luck! |
| 2010-06-03 3:17 PM in reply to: #2899560 |
Master 1681 Rural Ontario | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes |
| 2010-06-03 10:26 PM in reply to: #2899560 |
Expert 792 Leicester | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes If you have a mountainbike and you have $500, buy a road bike, don't buy a sit up and beg commuter. Nothing wrong with commuter bikes, more people should commute on bikes, but it is not for racing. If you want to ride gravel paths as well as road (hence thinking hybrid) you could use your MTB or could consider a cyclocross bike, almost as fast on the tarmac as a road bike, but designed a little tougher with space for 25+mm tires with some reasonable tread if you wanted to have 2 sets of tires. Edited by alex jb 2010-06-03 10:28 PM |
| 2010-06-04 9:30 AM in reply to: #2899560 |
Extreme Veteran 590 Sioux Falls, SD | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes I'm the commuter guy mentioned above. I have a Diamondback Insight RS hybrid that I use for commuting. It's faster than my mountain bike, but I wouldn't try to race with it. Except for racing to work. I did purchase a 1981 Panasonic Sport 10 speed for $55 that is an awesome bike for what it is. It's not quite as fast as my TT bike, but if I were to suffer a last-minute failure with my Felt I would have no qualms riding the Panasonic in a race. My biggest issue with it is that being only a 10 speed the ratios between gears are pretty steep. But I'm not complaining for as little money as I have into it. If money is tight you may want to keep your eye out for an 80s Japanese road bike like mine. Panasonic, Miyata, Fuji, Univega, Nishiki, Centurion, Lotus and Bridgestone are all solid brands to look for (I know there are others I didn't list.) It's hard to beat the performance/fun to dollar ratio some of these older bikes deliver. |
| 2010-06-04 9:50 AM in reply to: #2899560 |
Master 1240 Knightdale/Raleigh | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes Don't do it! I was in the exact same postion and bought an overpriced Trek hybrid instead of finding a deal on a road bike. In my defense, I thought I would do an occassional try, but really wanted to bike commute and tool around the neighborhood with the kids. But as it turned out, bike commuting is scary and difficult and screws up the timing for my wife to work in the evening, so I rarely do it. I tried racing the hybrid. I told myself that the point was to get in shape, so my heavy hybrid making it harder to ride was a good thing. I got a fancy computer with cadence sensor, clipless pedals, and tried to be as aero as I could holding the middle of the bars; it just isn't fun after a race or two having everyone blow by you effortlessly. Luckily, the following year we got a $900 stimulus check and I bought a used tri bike on Craig's List for $900. Now, although I ride the hybrid for errands around town, I'd rather have a road bike to complement my tri bike anyway, for longer errands, faster commutes, and group rides. If you must get a hybrid (maybe you have a bad back and will just do one tri a year) you can spend less than $500 and get something as light as possible with more road like tires. But I think I saw a road bike with a bunch of extras in the classifieds on here for $500. |
| 2010-06-04 2:14 PM in reply to: #2899560 |
Pro 6767 the Alabama part of Pennsylvania | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes Get a knowledgable friend or friendly bike shop guru to help you find something from Craigslist or in used stock (or even an older bike at the shop that never sold). My one buddy scored two very nice road bikes last spring for a total of under $1k for the pair. The one bike needed a couple of spokes, the other needed some truing of the wheels, but he got some great deals overall. Way better than going for a hybrid, which will be only marginally better for the tri. |
| 2010-06-05 12:44 PM in reply to: #2899560 |
Master 2094 | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes mookie0326 - 2010-06-03 4:09 PM Talk to me about Hybrid bikes...I don't have the cash right now to buy a road bike and yes I have been doing all of my tri to date on a MT bike. I have looked at: I have always considered a Hybrid bike to be a misnomer. It is supposed to be a bike you can ride off-road and on road. In reality they are not very practical for anything off road that is even slightly technical nor are you going to keep up with a group of roadies. If you already have a decent mountain bike I would look at a used road bike or bikedirect. E-bay is also a good place for a cheap new bike if you know what you are looking for. |
| 2010-06-05 11:52 PM in reply to: #2899560 |
Master 1890 Cypress, CA | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes I think hybrids have their place, but I don't think it's for you. Put some slicks on your MTB and save up for a good road or tri bike. |
| 2010-06-06 10:04 PM in reply to: #2902518 |
Extreme Veteran 590 Sioux Falls, SD | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes pschriver - 2010-06-05 12:44 PM I have always considered a Hybrid bike to be a misnomer. It is supposed to be a bike you can ride off-road and on road. In reality they are not very practical for anything off road that is even slightly technical nor are you going to keep up with a group of roadies. If you already have a decent mountain bike I would look at a used road bike or bikedirect. E-bay is also a good place for a cheap new bike if you know what you are looking for. What you describe there is a cyclocross bike. I've always considered a hybrid to be more of a road-friendly mountain bike, seeing as 98% of all mountain bikes sold never leave the pavement. They don't fare very well off road, but I don't think they are meant to be ridden that way. Hmmm... kind of like SUVs.  |
| 2010-06-08 8:39 AM in reply to: #2899560 |
Expert 614 Atlanta, GA | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes Don't buy the hybrid for triathlons. They're good bikes and serve their purpose but my old 90's bianchi mtn bike with slicks isn't that much slower than my Trek 7.3 FX. As others have said, keep saving for a road bike. I bought a cyclocross bike off bikesdirect for $500 and put road tires on it. It's working great for me so far. |
| 2010-06-08 7:55 PM in reply to: #2899560 |
Regular 63 Rockford, MI | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes Last year I bought a Giant FCR and raced in my first tri. Like others, I really wanted a bike that I could ride around the block with the kids and it works just fine for that. I'm "back of the pack" when it comes to tris, but this year a picked up a used road bike on Craigslist and will give it a go. It just looks faster. That's got to count for something. |
| 2010-06-08 9:28 PM in reply to: #2899560 |
Veteran 279 San Francisco | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes If you can be patient and have the time to look around deals can be found. My budget was $800 and I was tempted to go with an entry level road bike. It took a couple of months of looking but I was able to get a $1600(list price) for $700. It was the prior year's model and the dealer wasn't selling Specialized anymore. I know that is more than your budget but it you visit shops or check their web site most of them have models they are trying to clear for one reason or another. The road bikes I was initially looking at were in the $800 range (list price) so finding one marked down to $500 isn't out of the question. I found mine through Craigslist at a shop about an hour away. You could always test a road bike in the lower price point and hybrid. I know riding one model right after another I could really tell a difference between the two bikes I was looking at and it's what made my decision to go with the close-out model with better 105 components. I'm glad I took the time because I feel like in the long run I will save even more $ because it should serve me for quite a few years. Edit - A couple of friends told me to check with local cycling clubs. Sometimes members are about to upgrade or have an extra bike or more (I never realized people had multiple bikes) they might be interested in selling. Edited by Chatagirl 2010-06-08 9:35 PM |
| 2010-06-09 4:52 AM in reply to: #2899560 |
Extreme Veteran 552 Wesley Chapel, Florida | Subject: RE: Hybrid bikes I have a Trek 7.3 as my only bike. I have upgraded to commuter pedals so I can clip in when training and not when riding with my kids. I don't regret it -- found it on Craig's List, hardly used, for almost half price -- but have already developed road bike envy. At my race I averaged around 14mph and I am pretty sure I would have been faster on a road bike. Since I am nowhere near competitive, though, the money savings is worth it to me at this point. We got my husband one, too, and even without clipless pedals he can manage 17-19 mph on it with his tree trunk legs. I think we will both eventually upgrade to a road bike, but keep the hybrid for tooling around with kids -- they are 7 and 4 and will the 4 year old's max speed at this point is 5mph. I would like to be faster eventually, but for now, I chalk it up to being good for training and just blame the bike that I am not faster.  So it really depends on your goals here.I will second that if you know what you are looking for, you can get a good deal on CL or from a local tri or cycling club with patience. It's just a matter of how much time you have to invest to save a few hundred bucks. |
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