[Closed] I know very little about road bikes, but I think I've decided I want one

All road bikes are the same! It doesn't really matter how stiff or light or whatever they are, once you've ridden it for a while it just becomes "normal"

Apparently Di2 doesn't work in the heat.

Discs brakes aren't necessary if you live somewhere warm with little rain.

There's no reason to spend $5K on a road bike (unless you want to!) You could spend half that and get something mint. Dunno what the road cycling scene it like in Aus, but you might be able to pick something up second hand.

Save some money for saddles/stems/bars to find something comfortable. Also a decent pair of those shoes that attach to your pedals.

Buy whatever Giant Defy meets your budget.

Di2 is great, if you can afford it. Ultegra is all you need, really. Even 105 is good enough.
Discs are better. Why use early 20th century technology?

This is a mtb forum they'll say you need discs but you dont and very few people in the UK use them even though its wet 50% of the time.

I would just get the best looking normal road bike your budget can manage not forgetting clothing shoes and maybe a garmin.

Then ride.

This is a mtb forum they'll say you need discs but you dont and very few people in the UK use them even though its wet 50% of the time.

This thought had occurred to me 🙂

The reason I'm asking here is I'm after a mountainbiker's perspective on this, being a (semi)lapsed mountainbiker myself.

That Lapierre looks lovely, I make that around £3k GBP.

I've no experience with Ultegra Di2 but 6800 mechanical has been excellent for me. 8000 is out if you must have the latest, suspect you're not too fussed about that.

e2a - I've used disc brakes in mtb so very aware of how good they are, particularly hydraulics. I would only bother on a winter bike or anything that's going to get ridden a lot in shitty conditions (cross bike etc.)

That Lapierre looks lovely, I make that around £3k GBP.

It does, which is the problem, as its RRP is another $2k, so I suspect the next model if I don't get this will be well out of my range.

[url= https://www.giant-bicycles.com/au/defy-advanced-pro-0 ]This is within my range with a little haggling[/url], and obviously has discs too, but it's gopping by comparison, and I've never been one for "normal" bikes, hence my Soul and the Salsa commuter. But I guess they do bring VFM that boutique brands don't unless the extra value of the frame can be quantified...

This is within my range with a little haggling

Buy that, then.

Given your location, buying from a bigger brand will not only be better value for money, but also better warranty backup should you need it.

Can you ride them? Might be the best bike in the world but if it doesn't fit then not worth it. Road bike sizing is a bit more finicky ss you're often in a static position for much longer periods of time.

Buy that, then.

Whilst I appreciate your confidence in your recommendation, is there a reason for your love of Giants? I can see that it appears good value even compared to [url= https://www.canyon.com/en-au/road/ultimate/2016/ultimate-cf-slx-8-0-di2.html ]mail order Canyons[/url] in terms of componentry, but it's also a kilo heavier than that Canyon, which seems like a lot in road bike land (I dunno, [i]is it??[/i]).

The Lapierre is obviously a more expensive frame to be RRP $7k but same spec as the Giant (minus discs). But then so was my Soul relative to a 456, and I reckon that was worth it.

Basically, I have no radar about what makes road bike frame better than another\

EDIT: Seeing your qualification, Giant have their own store in the city, LaPierre's main dealer (and they shift a lot of them across the road/MTB ranges) is where I would be getting the LaPierre from, so warranty shouldn't be an issue for either brand. Obviously no way of trying a Canyon or Ribble before purchase, and returns would be very annoying.

They all look like good bikes to me, decent wheels included which is often the week point.

The Giant probably looks better in real life and if you want to go down that route no doubt it will be a superb all rounder.

Personally I would spend a bit of time looking around bike shops see what appeals to you.

Canyon do seem good value with nicely made frames and good spec.

Any options on a Giant TCR?

Will be a bit livelier than a Defy if that's what you're after..

Discs are better.

Discs offer no benefit over a good rim brake for the OP's requirements, and arguably only have negatives for the OP's intended use (comparative cost, faff and weight).

Why use early 20th century technology?

Because it works. If you are reduced to saying that something should be rejected simply because it is old technology, then you have exposed the weakness of your argument. The fact that something has worked successfully for a 100 years is not actually a reason to discard it (q.v. threaded vs. press fit bottom brackets).

OP, I was in a similar position to you at one point. I had a good quality touring bike, which was set up with (for the time) fastish wheels and 23c tyres, but was neverthless a tourer with heavier gauge tubing, cantilever brakes and a rear rack. I wanted something a bit nicer, lighter and faster, and initially I was going to get a top end audax machine. However, I realised that most of my riding on it would not be audaxes or long day rides, and that the bike would only be ridden for quick blasts in the evening or a morning at the weekend. Consequently I decided that the best tool for the job was a full on road race bike, even though I never raced on it.

Since you have a tourer which you can use for more relaxed rides/rides in bad weather and possibly for any gravel type roads for which you would not use the MTB, you can similarly choose a road bike that is specifically suited for quick blasts.

Taking this to an extreme, you might even decide to go for an extremely aero set up and fit which you might not like riding for a whole day, but I would not do that, and would prefer a set up that I could ride all day long in comfort if I wanted. As akira says, whatever bike you get, you need to get the right size and the fit set up correctly. A bottom of the range Defy or similar that is the right size and fits you well, will be far better than any top end machine that is the wrong size or not fitted to you properly.

I don't know what the terrain around Adelaide is like, but if most of your riding will be 1-2 hour blasts, you might prefer not to have a 36 inner ring (in fact if the terrain does not have steep/long hills, and/or you are fit, I would prefer a 42 tooth inner, and fit the 36 or a 39 only when I needed it).

Since you have a number of local bike shops, start off by getting some test rides. Also I would strongly recommend a bike fit if you have that option locally. Some of the bike shops may offer fitting, but you want to be sure that they are not trying to fit you to the bike they want to sell you, so I would suggest asking around for recommendations.

Go a rim braked bike unless you are planning on riding it regularly in wet conditions, the wheels at the same price point are much lighter (and the whole bike will be lighter). Second hand roadies are generally a better deal than mountain bikes as they are less beaten up and are often sold to fund the next must have purchase (not something any mountain biker would ever do...). I was lucky and got a very good deal on a second hand cervelo with dura-ace 10 speed, it is a joy to ride around where I live (warrandyte in victoria) on the hills etc, much better bike than I can ride, and I have never suffered from too little braking, although I don't ride it in the wet very much.
Road bikes are great for base fitness, and covering much bigger distances, but you will see lots of examples of dangerous driving, try to stick to minor roads if possible.
Also you can use mtb pedals and shoes, I haven't seen any good reason to switch them over on mine as I have run mtb pedals for years (although I do have good rigid XC shoes). Have fun.

IMHO and YMMV

Road disc if hydraulic are better if they work but for simplicity and ease rims brakes are still fine for road use. Cable brake - not overly convinced they are as powerful as rim but they are always consistent so not affected by rain. It would not be something that concerned me personally either way but o think my choice would be
1. Hydraulic
2 Rim
3. Cable disc

Di will be better but marginal gains at a relatively high price- its not a game changer for an occasional user IMHO just like casual MTB users dont really need a dropper post.

Get second hand- the first thing you will think is its tool long and big and you might not get into it so why buy new when you can buy a barely used second hand one form someone who did this

Like MTB any premium brand/make will be good quality

I only really care about the quality of my wheels I am not bothered whether the rest is 105, Ultegra or even Tiagra- it all works fine

Shimano shifting seems better than SRAM might just be my setting of it up though

Its never a bad idea to have a bike that takes wider wheels- dont know state of the roads but 28mm are generally better for here than proper skinnies

Also Lapierre are currently discounted here as apparently they are pulling out of Australia, potentially making their warranty work even more difficult, they do have a reputation for being difficult here in Australia (maybe due to the distributer or not, I don't know).

As a semi-lapsed MTBist/fair weather roadie, For a first road bike I don't think I would advise anyone to go straight to a s****y ultegra clad ego chariot, it's a lovely bike but you're not certain yet if you're sold on road cycling, it's a big investment on that basis...

So perhaps start a bit more 'down market' and think more about what you are actually going to do with the bike once you get it, long solo rides? club runs? squeezed in couple of hours at the weekend/evenings? Only you can answer that, but it dictates just where you want to go on the speed vs comfort scale...

Discs for road bikes are a great addition but not enough of a selling point to pick a disc specced bike over a good rim braked one [u]today[/u], there's still some more settling of standards and wider adoption to happen IMO. And all the while 130mm spaced, caliper braked frames and wheels remain pretty well standardised, easy to work on, and affordable...

This is what [u]I[/u] would do:

Maybe halve the budget for the bike and get the best giant, specialized or similar big brand bike with Tiagra or 105 that the budget allows, there may well be a full carbon frameset in that bracket, which will of course be upgradable over time...

Keep the surplus budget in reserve to chuck at kit and possibly a lighter second set of wheels, and certainly clothing, a good fitting, well padded pair of bibs is worth way more to me on just about any ride than discs, Di2 or moar aeroness...

YMMV of course...

I ordered a Canyon Endurace CF9 and it took just over a week to be delivered ( classed as in stock }
Perfectly boxed with just the handlebars,seatpost and wheels to fit.
Gear indexing was spot on with loads of little info leaflets and Canyon handbook.You get all the tools to put it together as well.
The spec for the money,£1750 delivered can't be matched for a new bike.Especially the wheels which are DT Di Cut.
Claimed 7kg a bit optimistic,but lighter than my Scott CR1.
Most importantly,the ride.Its great.Very secure and accurately tracking front end.Rear has a little bit more give than the Scott but that's probably due to the carbon leaf spring type seatpost.
I looked on forums and buyers experience with sizing to help me with the size choice.Also used the canyon sizing guide.
No real negativity unless you don't like the original seat,stem or handlebars.I've found them spot on.
I'd have no hesitation buying from canyon again.

Discs offer no benefit over a good rim brake for the OP's requirements, and arguably only have negatives for the OP's intended use (comparative cost, faff and weight).

They're penny farthing era embarrassments which would cause me endless angst being on my bike. That might just be me.

It is.

You know for me if you want a full on race bike that delivers that last 10% of high contrast riding pleasure a full carbon rim brake bike is the most cost effective way to get it.

If your after something more versatile and toned down just about anything will do the job.

At some point all that will matter is your legs anyway.

That may be true if you come from rim brakes. If you're used to discs then rim brakes are ridiculous faffy things and discs are familiar and faff free.

How many threads can you find on STW and other cycling forums about how to set up and adjust disc brakes, how to bleed brakes, about disc brakes not working correctly, about leaks, about contaminated pads, about brakes fading?

Now compare the answer with how many you can find about adjusting calliper rim brakes and problems with them.

Disc brakes may be familar to you and faff free [i]in your experience[/i], but your experience is clearly not universally representative of many other disc brake users.

They're penny farthing era embarrassments which would cause me endless angst being on my bike.

Like Captain Flashheart, you are reduced to an argument which has nothing to with actual merits or otherwise of the technology, and which resembles a teenager telling their parents that they cannot wear last year's trainers because they are no longer fashionable and their mates are all wearing a different brand.

If you're used to discs then rim brakes are ridiculous faffy things and discs are familiar and faff free

just freeing up some pistons today - rim break set it up and it last for ever pretty much IME with no real servicing.

Discs are certainly the more faffy of the two brake systems.

Like Captain Flashheart, you are reduced to an argument which has nothing to with actual merits or otherwise of the technology, and which resembles a teenager telling their parents that they cannot wear last year's trainers because they are no longer fashionable and their mates are all wearing a different brand.

I was right then too. 🙂

Chapeau for taking my criticism in such good spirit and humour.

I was right then too.

Ferrari agreed with your dad when they developed the F40.

There's nowt up with wind up Windows, they never fail, unlike the electric ones in just about every car I've owned.

This may sound a bit harsh, but I think it's your situation, not the buying of a high spec road bike, that is the problem. In six months your family life may still be preventing you from finding time to ride. You'll have a nice road bike reflecting guilt off the wall at you and be little fitter. Do something about that first.

I'd buy some slicks and a turbo trainer, get onto zwift early in the morning, and get disciplined about some training, then think about road. That way you can mix up family and cycling.

And then buy a Giant TCR or Defy, spec to suit, don't worry about di2 and discs, they are affectations. Nice things that won't improve your overall riding experience greatly.

There are always good offers around on road bikes. Local dealerships are more important than brand.

There's nowt up with wind up Windows, they never fail, unlike the electric ones in just about every car I've owned.

Makes sense.

😀 lol,I like things simple!

I'm in a similar situation OP (but without the cash) and I'm looking at something that can do a bit of both. When I've tried road riding in the past, I've always ended up seeing little tracks, towpaths etc and been unable to resist riding them.

I've always loved MTB and can't resist seeing where a path or knackered little track might take me. If you're a mountain biker at heart, you may find a proper road bike to not be as good as something a little more robust. Just a thought.

Same here too,how do those cx/gravel bikes do on the tarmac compared to a proper road bike though? I'm also an off roader at heart but have been thinking of a road bike lately as some of my mates are getting them,prefer the idea of a gravel bike.Would an average rider on a gravel bike keep up with an average rider on a road bike easy enough?

Usual story - bikes are personal so go and test several. I am looking for new road bike, everyone convinced me the roubaix was the best thing ever. I rode it for three hours and hated nearly every second. Horses for courses.

Expect the defy to be the same. So more likely to go for to a thr or Tarmac or splash out on a cervelo in sales or a wyndy miilla

Agree with flashy, in a few years time expect people to wonder why anyone stuck with old brakes.

Tired, I think it's more an hour out on the road bike takes an hour, an hour out on the MTB takes about three. That was my experience and why I rode more road when the sprogs we're tiny. You could just wait till they were having a nap, grab a quick blast and be back for them waking up. Getting out of the house and some fresh air was as vital as the exercise.

OP just get what you fancy with the best wheels for the money, allyy frames are often good value

I'm 36 and since having a baby I'm limited on bike time. Commuting is the way I'm keeping some spin going through the legs with a Mid week evening mtb for a couple of hours.

I'm using a carbon fibre racer - in the uk this was £1000 in a sale but the equivalent now is about £1300.

Think it weighs 8kg so 17.6lbs. Sram Rival gearing and basic Mavic aksium wheels. Came with no name rim brakes which I've just swapped for some Sram Apex which are better.

In the uk we get a lot of rain and rim brakes are useless - if I could easily swap to disc brakes I would. If you don't get much rain then decent rim brakes are fine on a racer I'd say.

Not used di2 but equally happy with the gears I've got.

I think my priorities would be light / decent frame with a good warranty and very decent wheels above all else.

Its a good point though the actual bike is less important than what your going to do with it.

I'm tiring of Strava now but it certainly improved my fitness for the first few years of using it.

I would get a few local loops you like, time them or make them segments. No doubt there'll be existing popular competitive segments out there too.

It'll still take time though 7 hours a week to be close to your best, 5 should get you pretty fit.

Tired, I think it's more an hour out on the road bike takes an hour, an hour out on the MTB takes about three

Absolutely true. My real point is that I would try and change my activity and discipline before investing in a new bike. I've had young kids. When they were really little, they sat in a seat on the back and I went out at 6 am to "see the cows!" When they were a little older, they moved onto the back of a tandem for ride up to about 30 miles (basically they were the luggage so plenty of fitness gains). When they became teens, I took road riding seriously and began road racing. Looking back, I'd have done more inside training in my time for fitness.

Bought my nice bling road bike for my 40th. It was stolen, so now I ride a Giant Defy and race a Giant Propel. It is a pretty bling Defy though 😉

I wouldn't go out and spend big on a first proper road bike. Your first one will be something of an experiment with finding out what you like. Once you've done 3-4000mi then you'll be in a great position to look for an upgrade and use the first one as a turbo or winter bike.

I'd definitely suggest getting down to a LBS that stocks a complete range from any brand so you can have a sit on different bikes with different geometries. Once you know whether you feel more at home on a race bike or something more endurance orientated then you can start looking what to spend your cash on.

To start with i'd look for rim brakes and Shimano 105 around the 8-9kg mark will be fine, no need to go chasing the 7's.

The midrange of most big firms is excellent these days
I would suggest a 105 or Ultegra level spec
Trek do the Edmonda which is a lightweight flier (what I have).
Rest is down to fitness
With money left over you could get some decent wheels - but I'd get fit first as this will make the biggest difference

PS - I gave my 'heavy' Edmonda wheels to the BIL who is fairly conservative with cash and he keeps up fine with what I would consider to be the cream of UK pro's when they go out training together. So midrange kit really is great these days.

You don't need Di2

You don't need Ultegra

You don't need 105

You barely need Tiagra (I quite liked my old 9s Tiagra, the ability to trim the front mech in a pseudo indexed-friction mode was much easier to setup!)

TBH Sora is pretty good too.

All work perfectly well and the limiting factor in any system is the bit that presses on the pedals.

There is, however, something to be said for getting the right frame for your needs/wants. Have a good long think about the kind of rides you want to do, how flexible you are, what you like about bikes. I don't race but I like my race bike, I'd compare it to driving a Lotus Elise, it makes me grin even when I'm just pootling. Other people want the bike equivalent of an Audi S4 estate (a sportive/endurance bike, worse in every possible way, except if Chris Froome rode one he'd still wipe the floor with me).

Go on ebay, spend about £300, then upgrade it if you get the bug, I did. £300 bought a then 1 year old entry level CAAD4 bike (about £900 new in 2004 money), it's now got 1200g wheels, carbon cranks and 7800 Dura Ace. But the important factor is I was much faster on it before I upgraded it because back then I had time to ride it 200miles a week!

And virtually everything everyone says about road bikes is true.
-lycra is comfortable but looks odd
-you do need chamois cream/butter
-roadies are all a bit serious, but only in the same way MTBers are all middle aged tubby blokes trying to look like DHers out for an XC ride whilst pretending to not want to look like DHers and being serious about it.
-you will obsess over details, this is why buying a cheap bike is a good idea, you will want to change EVERYTHING. Buying a cheap bike at least means you're not buying expensive tyres, wheels, saddle, bars, bar tape, seatpost, brake pads, cables, pedals etc that at some point mid way through a 100mile ride you will obsess over and become convinced that that's what's holding you back by 0.5mph. £100 saddles are expensive, they're even more expensive if you have to take a £100 saddle off first!

All of the above is true
I ride with people who run old Alu frames and they are absolutely deadly wrt the speeds they can get up to.
What I was suggesting is that the midrange kit can also make you feel special if that's what you are after
I know that I have no excuses on a fairly standard Emonda

Forget those Victorian era cable shifters as well, get eTap

I can relate to all of these points. I recently bought my first road bike after years of throwing scorn at the idiots on the road who clearly didn't understand that there was a world of filth escaping their notice. My son was the turning point and once he started to want to ride road, I had no choice but to follow behind.

I went to shops, browsed the internet and in the end, not really knowing what I wanted (yet alone needed), I punted up a few hundred quid on a nice looking Planet X bike which seemed to be OK, without being extravagant. I swapped the stem for a longer one pretty much before I rode it (good call, that), removed the garish stickers from the silly carbon wheels (there was *no* way I was going to draw more attention to myself than I needed!), slapped on a spare pair of SPDs and then got out and rode it.

And you know what? I love it and am having a great time! I have no idea what I'm doing and, most of the time, have no idea what my fellow riders are going on about, but I stick with them and try to listen and learn. One day, I'll probably get a posher bike (or, perhaps, a less posh, but newer one) but for now, I'm just enjoying myself.

Don't think too hard. Set a modest budget and go out and buy a bike that only moderately exceeds it (well, we have to be realistic here!) and feels comfy to you. If you're uncertain, go to an LBS and try a few bikes. If you're an idiot like me, plonk for the first one that seemed about right and spend two weeks in the garage cursing it, but either way, get out and enjoy your new bike.

And I can promise you that you will 🙂

Thanks guys, lots of food for thought.

Tired - yep, I know that all this is on me, but as highlighted by others - for me at present, MTB is an hour or so of fun between faff at each end. It's the faff I don't have time for right now, hence wanting a road bike. True, I have a 700C commuter, but that's just not that much fun to slog up hills, and neither is it that much reward back down them.

Which gets me back to the bike. Comments duly noted about sizing. I'm going to hold off that Lapierre until I can ride a few. The money isn't so much an issue for me. I'm fortunate enough to be in a position where I can think about spending that much on a bike, and I don't tend to swap them much when I have them. Aside from the commuter, my last purchase was my main MTB - a 26" Cotic Soul from 2008. I know what spec level I like, and don't generally put anything less than XT and decent wheels on my MTBs, so I'm not likely to step much below that on a road bike I want for pleasure.

Disks I think I'll leave - it barely rains here, and very rarely enough for me to need to ride in it (i.e. I can just wait for it not to be raining, then go out). DI2 I'm interested in, but I know that mechanical Ultegra will be fine, so it won't be a deal breaker.

I'll chew the cud some more, and maybe get a smart turbo to at least get into a pattern of exercise 3-5 times a week. I'm intrigued by the comments about instead of going for an endurance bike, that perhaps an out and out racer might suit me more, given my likely riding pattern of 1-2 hour blasts. That's an interesting take on things, and one I'll consider further.

Cheers

Z

Hi Zokes,
This time 18 months ago I was in a similar situation to you.
I bought a Rose GF [one of their ex-demo bikes]
It is a blast to ride, has some very decent kit on it, comfy, fast...I use it around the lanes of Cumbria and have tackled some of the harder passes. But my fitness was the issue, not the bike.
The bike has SRAM Force 22 running kit which is great, and rim brakes.
If I was buying another I would go for discs but only due to the wet area of the UK I live in.
Otherwise the bike has been perfect.
https://www.rosebikes.com/bike/rose-xeon-team-gf-4400-818639/aid:818683#0-H1I1U-H1I1V-H1I1W-H1I1X-H1I8N-H1I1Z-H1I8Q-H1I8P-H1I8O-H1I8M-H1I8L-H1I1f-H1I1g-H1I1h-H1I1i-H1I1j-H1I1k-H1I1l-H1I1m-H1I1n-H1I1o-H1I1r-H2xyj-H2xyk

Well, just to complete the record, I'll be picking up one of these on Saturday: https://www.giant-bicycles.com/au/tcr-advanced-sl-1

Test rode a TCR Pro the other week and it fitted like a glove, $2k discount and all of a sudden the SL is affordable and so light I think it might actually float away.

Thanks again for your advice guys. Comments on going for an out and out racer were very good and did change what I was looking at. If I do end up with both the stamina and time to do whole day efforts perhaps I can look at endurance bikes in a few years. Now to get fit, and fast...

Nice, I've got Ultegra DI2 on the Canyon I bought just before summer, and it's superb. Would hate to go back to mechanical! (Although to be fair I've not not compared it directly to a brand new mechanical Ultegra, so the difference may not be that important...)

Nice - well done for not being swayed into buying a $500 s/h bike on the basis it's all you really need at the moment, there's nothing that will inspire you to ride quite like having the bike you really want to ride. Re brakes - Ultegra 6800 calipers are fantastic & are plenty if you're only ever riding in fair weather, a cheap set of training wheels can be had for pennies if you end up riding more in town or whatever.

If we all bought only the bikes we really needed, there would be a whole lot of wasted spare-room / loft / cupboard space in the world - yes I hide bikes in the loft so the missus only ever sees the number i've declared in circulation 😉

I've been very, very impressed with the Ultegra hydro's on my Boardman - more so than I expected in fact as I didn't think the difference would be noticeable in the dry. Di2 is also nice, especially the front shifting.

That looks a very, very nice bike, and I am sure you should get a lot of fun from riding it.

I do suspect that you might find the 52/36 chainset is too large a jump. I would suggest you see how you get on with riding the bike: if you are so fit and going out for such relatively short periods that you are able to ride comfortably in the big ring most or even all of the time, then it doesn't matter (and I envy you).

However, if you find that you are using the inner ring a fair amount and that the drop in gearing from big ring to small ring is too much (even with a simultaneous shift at the back to smaller sprockets), then you might find a 39t inner, or even a 42t inner, to be better. You could still fit the 36t for any big long day rides or rides in hilly terrain.

39t rings are fairly inexpensive, but if you were to decide that you wanted 42t, I think you might only be able to get a Dura Ace version (or an after market TA ring), which would be more expensive (but still nothing like the very high cost of the Shimano outer rings).

A 42t inner? I don't think he's planning to time trial it...!

52/36 and an 11:28 on the back is a pretty standard combination that a lot of road cyclists use (although not me - I'm a wuss and therefore have 50/34 and 11:28 on my main bike).

A 42t inner? I don't think he's planning to time trial it...!

52/36 and an 11:28 on the back is a pretty standard combination that a lot of road cyclists use

It depends upon the rider, their fitness, the terrain and the duration and intensity of the ride.

Put simply, whatever the ring sizes on your bike, if you find that you are in the small ring and small sprockets (and/or big/big) for much of the time, or that you are frequently making simultaneous double shifts (front and rear) on non-rolling terrain, that suggests that your gearing is not ideal for you/your circumstances (although that may change with improving fitness).

In that event, one of the options is to fit a smaller big ring, e.g. 50, 48 or even 46. That is what I would do (and have done) when I want gearing for longer rides and was not bothered about losing the very high gears.

However, if you are only going out for an hour or so and there are no steep hills, then you might find a 39t or 42t inner gives a better range of lower gears.

If I were in the OP's shoes, I would wait and see how I got on with the existing gears, but if I did find the 52/36 unsatisfactory, then I would be very tempted to have two chainsets: 52/42 for the quick blasts, and a smaller chainset which I could fit for any long days with big hills, e.g. 50/34 or even 46/34.

If I were in the OP's shoes, I would wait and see how I got on with the existing gears, but if I did find the 52/36 unsatisfactory, then I would be very tempted to have two chainsets: 52/42 for the quick blasts, and a smaller chainset which I could fit for any long days with big hills, e.g. 50/34 or even 46/34.

Or, depending on fitness, just do what 99.9999% of the road cycling world does and stick with either a 53/39, 52/36 or 50/34 for all your riding...

Zokes, one other comment I would make is to say be careful you don't overdo it. You are likely to find that the speed and responsiveness of the bike encourages you to push yourself all the time. To state the obvious, you cannot batter yourself every time you go out, otherwise you will end up stale, over-trained and burnt out. Similarly, be careful about using computers, power meters, heart rate monitors, Strava and the like, and make sure you don't become a slave to such tech.

Even if you are very fit, and you can sustain high speeds for the whole of your rides, make sure you also fit in some easy slow rides where you can just relax, enjoy the views and enjoy being out; even better if it involves a cafe stop.

Thanks for the follow-up comments guys. I'll stay with the stock gearing at present as rides will likely have both hilly and long flat sections (Adelaide is on a coastal plain bounded by some pretty sharply graded hills) - advice on when perhaps to think about changing rings is very appreciated.

Sadly I'm not very fit any more, hence the purchase. My short commute and the rare time I manage to get out MTBing isn't getting me enough exercise, hence the decision to buy a road bike. I have a target of getting back to being able to do 100kms by the new year, but I'm not going to kill myself trying. I'm only 33, but have seen my fitness at a bit of a crossroads in recent months, and suspect if I don't start doing something about it soon it's only going to get harder as I get older. A few friends and colleagues seem to be in the same boat (coincidentally all after becoming fathers and lapsed MTBers), so hopefully there'll be a quorum of subtle peer pressure without having to go al [b][u]STRAVA!!!1!!1!!![/u][/b].

I'm well aware that this is probably more bike than I need now, if ever, but we only live once, eh? 😉

That said, I nearly fell off my chair when I saw how much a new Cotic Soul would cost at anything approaching the spec of mine. Bikes do seem to have become expensive in the last decade!

Some good info on this thread, so bookmarking for later.

Great choice. Now up early and enjoy it. I like to be back from my 100km training ride by 9:30. So an early start to set you up for the day.

And TCRS are all-day comfortable. Not a lot in it compared with a similarly set up Defy or Propel. Don't believe the hype 😉

As a dad and a committed MTB'er the one thing you need to keep involved in the sport is an understanding Mrs. Road riding has definitely become more regular for me as the time restrictions are less. It's great to do both though - your bike handling on the road should be pretty good already and when you get back on the MTB you should be able to feel a fitness difference.

Just to chuck another bike in the mix; Cube Attain GTC SL disc - another direct order, not sure on ASD price but good value spec.
1 mate got the carbon and another the ally - both are great in their own way. We rode to Berlin last month and as relative newbies they both found them pretty comfortable when I was predicting all sorts of shoulder/neck probs.

Disc V rim; in dry road conditions rim brakes are fine but with the geo of bikes like the Cube Attain you can hit gravel/dirt trails too with 28c tyres on - we had plenty of forest tracks in N.Germany. I love my Ultegra rim brakes on the road but would have preferred the feel of hydro discs when on unpaved tracks. Just my twopeneth - modern road bikes are pretty handy off-road too.

Ok, so just to finish the story, for those familiar with Adelaide, there's a common training hill that's a cycleway up the old freeway. About 9km and average 4.8% gradient. Daryl Impey's time on Strava is 20ish minutes.

Last Thursday on my Salsa I did it in 47 minutes. Not great, but not ridiculously poor for me, six minutes longer than an old PB from fitter days. Yesterday evening I rode the TCR for the first time and smashed 10 minutes off Thursday's time. I can now do it in 37 minutes.

Most of you probably aren't that fussed about the minutiae of an unremarkable, slightly podgy 34 year old's times on a route on the opposite side of the world to most of you. However, I [i]really[/i] enjoyed that ride. I really really enjoyed it. And that's why I wanted a new light bike, one that pushes you to try harder and speed up hills, rather than my salsa that punishes you until you spin in the granny ring.

So yes, I'm sure I could have been just fine with a Sora-specced ally frame for $1500. But, I doubt I'd be wanting to ride back up that hill again this morning if I'd gone down that route.

Confirmation bias in action 😉

So long as you are out riding and enjoying it then it's all good...

Crack on fella!

So yes, I'm sure I could have been just fine with a Sora-specced ally frame for $1500. But, I doubt I'd be wanting to ride back up that hill again this morning if I'd gone down that route.

I rode up loads of big mountains on my Sora spec ally rig...

It's nicer on my new Ultegra carbon fibre bike, of course, but there's definitely a hint of confirmation bias in action as cookeaa so correctly points out 😆

Well done mate, youve not got thousands of other segments to smash 😉

Enjoy!!

Confirmation bias in action

So what? The purpose of the exercise was to get a bike I enjoyed riding up hills.

Job jobbed.

I think people are suggesting you could have done that for half the price. I doubt any time differences between a high end bike and a mid to low end bike would be within the margin of error of Strava.

That should have been ' you've NOW got..' positive style!!

Perhaps I shouldn't have (TBF mostly in jest) said anything about 'confirmation bias'...

I don't think the choice was really quite so binary as "Sora-specced ally frame for $1500" or "6k Di2 clad ego sled" (there was a page and a half of people mostly suggesting you moderate the budget for your very first road bike) but meh, a good bicycle was bought and will doubtless get used, so go ride it and ignore the interntz, We're probably just jealous anyway 😉

I think people are suggesting you could have done that for half the price. I doubt any time differences between a high end bike and a mid to low end bike would be within the margin of error of Strava.

At the risk of getting into yet another pointless argument with you, if you'd read the whole thread you'd have seen that the bike it's being compared to is my Salsa Casseroll, which is hardly what you'd call entry level.

But meh, the giant was bought for me to enjoy. I'll do that. Sorry if a lapsed cyclist finally getting back to enjoying cycling through the purchase of a bike he can afford has offended anyone. I just don't see the point in buying a low end roadie when all my MTBs are of similar high end spec, and were chosen very carefully at the time of their purchase/build.

) I just do not have the time to get out mountain biking as much as I need to

Lamest, cliched excuse ever.

Don't know how much a Ribble would cost to have sent out to Oz but I have one and it's great...and cheap!

Aluminum Ribble Ultralite.

I used their bike builder page to have it built to my spec.

Decent 105 groupset.

Quality contact points: Ritchey bars, Cinelli seat, stem and post has made it almost comfortable!...with decent quality thick bar tape (don't scrimp on these areas, they make a huge difference).

Wheels are Fulcrum, nothing flashy but not heavy either.

With a smattering of carbon in the contact points I listed above it sits at 8kg which I'm happy with.

I initially bought a Spesh Allez as my first road bike and it was ok but adjusting to a roadie position was difficult even though the Allez is considered more Sportive than Race...so I did the opposite of what's expected and bought the Ribble which has proper Race geo (short head tube, straight to tube, proper head down and arse up riding position)...i thought that if I'm going to be uncomfortable then I might as well be uncomfortable on something that looks fast and I will develop into.

It's been a revelation, with the Allez there was more weight on my backside which given the rigid back end of a road bike made it hurt and gave me lower back pain...perceived wisdom to cure this is a comfortable saddle and padded shorts...no thanks, I wanted a carbon saddle and lycra without a bloody nappy in it!

The more racy position of the Ribble has spread my weight more evenly between pedals, bars and saddle which has meant I keep the gorgeous sub 100g carbon saddle and get to ride in lycra shorts without looking like I've had a dump in them while riding.

I know everyone recommends what they own but I think the bike is brilliant and it was only about £1500...not sure what that is in Oz dollars but it's got to be cheaper than what you've been looking at!?

Cheers Deviant. I looked at the Ribbles, but as with Canyons decided that having no way to try the bike beforehand meant that it was a non-starter.

Glad you've got a bike that you like, coming from the MTB world I too initially thought a bike with more sportif geometry might be better. However, after trying a couple of racier bikes including the TCR I went with, I was pleased to find that this seemed to suit me better. Being a Giant, it's mostly Giant finishing kit, but it seems nice enough in an unassuming way. Bars certainly comfortable enough, stem light and stiff. Saddle may take some getting used to and not much choice on the seat post given that it's integrated 😆

I just don't see the point in buying a low end roadie when all my MTBs are of similar high end spec, and were chosen very carefully at the time of their purchase/build.

May I refer you to the thread title?

May I refer you to the thread title?

You may:

"[i]I know very little about road bikes, but I think I've decided I want one[/i]"

Which bit of it said that I wanted a cheap one?

I've ridden MTBs costing >$3k for the past 15 years. Do I need to? No. Does anyone outside of elite sportspeople? Probably not, but it doesn't stop them doing so and enjoying it.

I'm sorry you've taken such umbrance with me being very happy with a purchase that was most definitely influenced by some of the generous advice provided on this thread.

Zokes, never mind the comments, tell us more about the bike. What was it like going [i]down[/i] the hill?

I think people are suggesting you could have done that for half the price. I doubt any time differences between a high end bike and a mid to low end bike would be within the margin of error of Strava.

Not sure what umbrance means but if its similar to umbrage I'm not sure where I have show much. Glad you like your new bike but doubt its made you much faster thats all.

Zokes, never mind the comments, tell us more about the bike. What was it like going down the hill?

Better than me! And certainly better than me in the dark on a damp road with a number of kangaroos to contend with (and I've seen the damage one of those can do to a 4wd at >60 km/h...). When I finally find myself home at the weekend so I can ride in daylight I'll post an update.

Whilst I can't comment on how it handles at very high speeds yet, the rate at which it accelerated was startling, nudging 60 km/h from a standing start with almost no effort. Cornering was equally astonishing. But, even on a dry, roo-free road in daylight I can safely say that it'll be a while before I've grown the confidence to really see how it goes at speeds of 70+ km/h. As an aside to that, for all the worries about carbon rims and braking, it pulled up very quickly and predictably when I needed it to.

Not sure what umbrance means but if its similar to umbrage

That'd be the one 😉

Glad you like your new bike but doubt its made you much faster thats all.

Well, I was up and down this particular hill on the Giant in less time than it took me to haul myself up the same hill four days previous on the Salsa, and did the climb 10 minutes faster (37 minutes, down from 47 minutes). New bike or no new bike, I'm quite chuffed with a >20% reduction in time, especially on a hill that until the other night I'd only ever seen as a very unpleasant experience.