More exciting ride wanted

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mail@nickavery.com
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More exciting ride wanted

Post by mail@nickavery.com »

I currently have an aluminium Dawes Galaxy AL Cross. I'm 61 and 106 kg. It was bought for load carrying commuting and is 16kg unladen. It has 11 unused gears. My cycling buddies assure me that ride outs would be completely different if I got something sportier. I'm also wondering about longer rides.

Should I go for an Audax bike and if so any recommendations under £2k ?
peetee
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by peetee »

Where are you and what level of effort do you put into your rides?
The older I get the more I’m inclined to act my shoe size, not my age.
Jamesh
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by Jamesh »

If your not too picky on brands you should be able to get a good endurance carbon bike for that much.

Tiagra or perhaps 105. Disc wheels etc..
PH
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by PH »

I'm the same age and similar weight, are your cycling buddies?
My experience is that the feel of bikes can be radically different, but the performance varies little. Also some of those exciting bikes are simply not designed for people of our size, what may be of advantage to someone 70kg becomes a disadvantage with another 20kg.
I have a steel touring bike (Hewitt Cheviot, though it could be one of many) stripped of all the practical stuff and with large smooth tyres, it's a better option for me than any of the faster Sportive or Audax bikes I've owned. You could try this for yourself with your current bike.
That's not to discourage another bike, just to be realistic about what it'll achieve. My nomination for your shortlist would be a Spa Elan, I've never ridden one, though it strikes me as a bike that might suit what you're looking for.
roubaixtuesday
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by roubaixtuesday »

mail@nickavery.com wrote: 29 Jun 2022, 7:41am I currently have an aluminium Dawes Galaxy AL Cross. I'm 61 and 106 kg. It was bought for load carrying commuting and is 16kg unladen. It has 11 unused gears. My cycling buddies assure me that ride outs would be completely different if I got something sportier. I'm also wondering about longer rides.

Should I go for an Audax bike and if so any recommendations under £2k ?
Your buddies are right! 16kg is a hulk. Keep it for wet rides and utility cycling.

Any "endurance" style road bike would be transformative, my recommendation would be to set a budget and buy from a trusted local retailer, the exact brand and model isn't really relevant. 50/34 and 11-34 seems to be fairly standard which gives a 1:1 bottom gear.

The only thing I would add is buying a separate stronger rear wheel would be worthwhile at 106kg. That kind of bike will most likely come with a wheelset more fragile than ideal. Maybe £100-150 would get something very good.
Jamesh
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by Jamesh »

Avoid Cannondale synapses!!

Wheels are made of plastic!!
slowster
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by slowster »

mail@nickavery.com wrote: 29 Jun 2022, 7:41am My cycling buddies assure me that ride outs would be completely different if I got something sportier.
If you ride a lot with a with a group, and most of them have the same general type of bike, it usually makes sense to get something similar.

For example, you could get a classic styled audax bike with dual pivot brakes, but it would restrict you to 28mm tyres with mudguards. If your mates are on bikes like the Spa Elan that PH suggested and using wider tyres, they are likely to pick routes that include rougher roads, because they will have much less of a problem with poor quality road surfaces on wider tyres.

I agree with PH that the Elan is likely to suit what you are looking for. The titanium versions with Ultegra/105 and hydraulic brakes are well over your £2,000 limit, but you could get the steel version (whether titanium or steel, most of the weight saving is in the carbon fork) or get a titanium version with a lower tier groupset, such as Tiagra, with cable disc brakes, which probably gives the best bang for the buck and also gives the option of a triple chainset (not available with Ultegra or hydraulic 105). A triple might be a better choice than a double if you live in a hilly area or want to be able to tackle longer rides, especially if you choose a Spa chainset with e.g. 46/36/24 chainrings instead of the standard Shimano 50/39/30 chainset. Spa should also be able to build a pair of wheels that are the right balance of strength and lightness/performance for your weight and type of riding.
peetee
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by peetee »

I wonder how much of the above advice is pertinent given that the OP stated their current bike has “11 unused gears”?
More info from them is needed, l feel.
The older I get the more I’m inclined to act my shoe size, not my age.
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531colin
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by 531colin »

roubaixtuesday wrote: 29 Jun 2022, 10:32am ...........
Your buddies are right! 16kg is a hulk.............
As a proportion of an all-up weight of 132kg, what would you notice if the bike was 4kg lighter?
Previous thread(s?) from the OP references fast rides / East Anglia.
eg.viewtopic.php?p=1694361#p1694361
roubaixtuesday
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by roubaixtuesday »

531colin wrote: 29 Jun 2022, 12:13pm
roubaixtuesday wrote: 29 Jun 2022, 10:32am ...........
Your buddies are right! 16kg is a hulk.............
As a proportion of an all-up weight of 132kg, what would you notice if the bike was 4kg lighter?
Previous thread(s?) from the OP references fast rides / East Anglia.
eg.viewtopic.php?p=1694361#p1694361
In my experience, a sports road bike on a short, fast, flattish run is a very different experience to a heavy flat bar tourer, and far more enjoyable if you want to push it rather than bimble.

Just personal opinion.

OP could always borrow a bike to see how it feels to them.
Psamathe
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by Psamathe »

mail@nickavery.com wrote: 29 Jun 2022, 7:41am I currently have an aluminium Dawes Galaxy AL Cross. I'm 61 and 106 kg. It was bought for load carrying commuting and is 16kg unladen. It has 11 unused gears. My cycling buddies assure me that ride outs would be completely different if I got something sportier. I'm also wondering about longer rides.

Should I go for an Audax bike and if so any recommendations under £2k ?
With regard to "longer rides" and a 16 Kg bike an interesting video article

Ian
mig
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by mig »

which tyres are on your current bike?
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TrevA
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by TrevA »

Jamesh wrote: 29 Jun 2022, 11:07am Avoid Cannondale synapses!!

Wheels are made of plastic!!
and bottom brackets are made of Cheese! Avoid Cannondale (Creak’N’Fail) altogether.

I’m very happy with my Specialized Allez Elite - it’s alloy but it’s pretty light.
Sherwood CC and Notts CTC.
A cart horse trapped in the body of a man.
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philvantwo
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by philvantwo »

Yes, avoid cannondale and their creaking bottom brackets.
mail@nickavery.com
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Re: More exciting ride wanted

Post by mail@nickavery.com »

Hi

Thank you you for all the responses.

Variously - completely accept the wheel recommendation. I did the Spa wheel upgrade as I wrecked the 36h wheels that came with the bike. Would do that again.

I ride in East Anglia, its actually Colchester so the local countryside rolls a bit. I'm looking at 22kmh on such a ride. In think for a 61yo I have quite a high power output, but obviously let down by the ratio.

I'm running marathon pluses, and there is a bit of me that is tempted to remove the rack, stand put marathon supremes on and see what happens.

The unused gears are 1-11 on a 24 gear bike. I have only ever used the small chainring by accident.
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