Looking for recommendations for entry level road bike - cougarguard.com — unofficial BYU Cougars / LDS sports, football, basketball forum and message board

Chunk · 03-16-2008, 07:21 PM

The wife and I are doing a triathlon this summer and need to buy a pair of road bikes. While we need them for the race, we do not need high end bikes (all carbon, etc). We are hoping to get a good bike for $700 per, hopefully not more than $1,000. Is that possible? Any recommendations?

I've been to one bike shop (bountiful bicycle) and they recommend either the Giant CR2 or the Specialized Allez. Both are $900 at their shop.

I'm betting I could find much better deals online, but I am very wary of being a first time road bike buyer, and not having the service of a bike shop.

Any recommendations would be appreciated!

Archaea · 03-16-2008, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chunk

The wife and I are doing a triathlon this summer and need to buy a pair of road bikes. While we need them for the race, we do not need high end bikes (all carbon, etc). We are hoping to get a good bike for $700 per, hopefully not more than $1,000. Is that possible? Any recommendations?

I've been to one bike shop (bountiful bicycle) and they recommend either the Giant CR2 or the Specialized Allez. Both are $900 at their shop.

I'm betting I could find much better deals online, but I am very wary of being a first time road bike buyer, and not having the service of a bike shop.

Any recommendations would be appreciated!

Ask that shop what deals they make for people who are joining the local tri team. Sometimes just that question can save you ten to fifteen percent.

bluegoose · 03-17-2008, 06:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chunk

The wife and I are doing a triathlon this summer and need to buy a pair of road bikes. While we need them for the race, we do not need high end bikes (all carbon, etc). We are hoping to get a good bike for $700 per, hopefully not more than $1,000. Is that possible? Any recommendations?

I've been to one bike shop (bountiful bicycle) and they recommend either the Giant CR2 or the Specialized Allez. Both are $900 at their shop.

I'm betting I could find much better deals online, but I am very wary of being a first time road bike buyer, and not having the service of a bike shop.

Any recommendations would be appreciated!

Got any more info for us? Sizes of you and your wife. Race distance. Estimated mileage that you will put it. Price range willing to spend.

Chunk · 03-17-2008, 04:23 PM

Well, the triathlon is a 25 mile bike portion. Outside of that, I'm not sure how many miles I'll be doing per week.

This will be a ways down the road, but I'd love to do the lotoja. This is the bike I'm leaning towards:

http://http://www.specialized.com/bc...jsp?spid=32189

There seems to be a lot of cycling diehards here that might laugh at a $700 road bike. I simply don't have the coin to drop $2,500+ on a bike. I'm hoping that something in the $700-$1,000 will be good enough.

mtnbiker310 · 03-17-2008, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chunk

There seems to be a lot of cycling diehards here that might laugh at a $700 road bike. I simply don't have the coin to drop $2,500+ on a bike. I'm hoping that something in the $700-$1,000 will be good enough.

Actually, I've always thought the Allez looked like a pretty good bike. No mocking from me. I think they've cheapened up a bit on the component level from a few years ago, though. If you get it and continue to enjoy cycling, down the road a year or so you might think about upgrading the derailleurs and shifters to a level that shifts a bit more crisply, but that's generally a good price point for starters.

creekster · 03-17-2008, 06:53 PM

My borther in law has an Allez and loves it. He used it when we rode from SLC to St. George a few years ago and it served him well.

bluegoose · 03-17-2008, 07:17 PM

For some reason, that link won't work for me, but the Allez is a very good bike. Any beginner to the sport would do very well for several years on an Allez.

bluegoose · 03-17-2008, 07:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chunk

Well, the triathlon is a 25 mile bike portion. Outside of that, I'm not sure how many miles I'll be doing per week.

This will be a ways down the road, but I'd love to do the lotoja. This is the bike I'm leaning towards:

http://http://www.specialized.com/bc...jsp?spid=32189

There seems to be a lot of cycling diehards here that might laugh at a $700 road bike. I simply don't have the coin to drop $2,500+ on a bike. I'm hoping that something in the $700-$1,000 will be good enough.

My first bike was an old Trek T1000 with Suntour components and down tube shifters. I paid $150 for it and got about 2,000 miles out of it the first year.

My next and current bike I spent a little more on, but still less $1K. I put on about 4,000 miles per year and it has serviced me very well.

No snobbery from me for someone looking to ride and stay on a budget.

bigpiney · 03-17-2008, 08:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chunk

I've been to one bike shop (bountiful bicycle) and they recommend either the Giant CR2 or the Specialized Allez. Both are $900 at their shop.

I'm betting I could find much better deals online, but I am very wary of being a first time road bike buyer, and not having the service of a bike shop.

Any recommendations would be appreciated!

I have the Giant OCR2 and have really liked it. Though I don't ride as much as I should it works fine for the triathlons I have done.

bigpiney · 03-17-2008, 08:51 PM

I should add that mine came with 105 Componentry and not the Sora that seems to be listed on the Giant website.

03-16-2008, 07:21 PM	#1
Chunk Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 5	Looking for recommendations for entry level road bike The wife and I are doing a triathlon this summer and need to buy a pair of road bikes. While we need them for the race, we do not need high end bikes (all carbon, etc). We are hoping to get a good bike for $700 per, hopefully not more than $1,000. Is that possible? Any recommendations? I've been to one bike shop (bountiful bicycle) and they recommend either the Giant CR2 or the Specialized Allez. Both are $900 at their shop. I'm betting I could find much better deals online, but I am very wary of being a first time road bike buyer, and not having the service of a bike shop. Any recommendations would be appreciated! Last edited by Chunk; 03-16-2008 at 07:22 PM. Reason: Do I need a reason?

03-17-2008, 04:23 PM	#4
Chunk Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 5	Re: Well, the triathlon is a 25 mile bike portion. Outside of that, I'm not sure how many miles I'll be doing per week. This will be a ways down the road, but I'd love to do the lotoja. This is the bike I'm leaning towards: http://http://www.specialized.com/bc...jsp?spid=32189 There seems to be a lot of cycling diehards here that might laugh at a $700 road bike. I simply don't have the coin to drop $2,500+ on a bike. I'm hoping that something in the $700-$1,000 will be good enough. Last edited by Chunk; 03-17-2008 at 04:26 PM.

03-17-2008, 06:53 PM	#6
creekster Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: the far corner of my mind Posts: 8,711	My borther in law has an Allez and loves it. He used it when we rode from SLC to St. George a few years ago and it served him well. __________________ Sorry for th e tpyos.

03-17-2008, 07:17 PM	#7
bluegoose Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Northern California Posts: 2,919	For some reason, that link won't work for me, but the Allez is a very good bike. Any beginner to the sport would do very well for several years on an Allez.

03-17-2008, 08:51 PM	#10
bigpiney Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Big Pine , CA Posts: 842	I should add that mine came with 105 Componentry and not the Sora that seems to be listed on the Giant website.