Hello!

[gocard]

Hi everyone! Just joined this forum today - it seems like a great place.

I have been in the market for my first road bike and have pretty much narrowed it down to either a Cannondale Synapse 5 alloy or carbon Synapse 6. I tried out the Ruby Elite (I think) and loved it but it's just too far out of my price range.

I've been wanting to get into cycling for a while now, as a cardio alternative to my primary sport, tennis. I used to run but my ankles haven't been very happy with me on long distances, so cycling seemed like a good sport to pick up.

This being my first road bike, I was inclined to go with the alloy 5 but we found a great deal on the carbon 6 and my LBS has agreed to price match...I am having a hard time passing up a good deal! ;) I also am not the type to buy something with the intention of upgrading later on, so although carbon bikes were not on my list to begin with, here I am...about to pull the trigger on one. :P They are willing to order it in my size so that I can make sure it's the one I want before purchasing.

Can't wait! I'm so glad to have found this women's cycling forum. :) Looking forward to seeing you around!

[jyyanks]

Congratulations! I definitely think you should go Carbon 6.

I was also not planning on buying a carbon road bike and tried to cheap out. The LBS said that since I enjoyed riding so much, I would end up wasting my money on a lower end bike as I'd want to upgrade almost immediately (he was right). I'm so happy with my bike - it was worth every penny and more so get the carbon and have fun riding!

[Koronin]

Welcome. I also agree with going with the carbon. I have both an aluminum and a carbon. There is ride difference. (Although granted my aluminum bike I bought used and several years old where the carbon I bought bran new.)

[gocard]

Thanks for the welcome! I'm eagerly waiting for the bike to come in - it's not a color that they normally stock and one of the salespeople was also wondering why they didn't carry that color (navy/white/turquoise). I'm sure several people would say that fit and comfort is more important than color, but the way I see it, the better it looks, the happier I'll be! :D

I was torn between the 105 or the Apex, but seeing as how the 105s were nearly $300 more and not a full 105 groupset, I went with the Apex. The 2013 model will change to Tiagra, which I didn't like as much.

So excited!

[Megustalaplaya]

Welcome to TE!

Congrats on your new bike. The color scheme is very pretty! Be sure to post pics of your new baby when it comes in. :)

[Catrin]

Welcome to TE, and to cycling! Fit is, of course, paramount, but if you can find something that both fits you properly AND is a color you like then that is the best of both worlds ;)

[gocard]

Thanks guys! I have a helmet that I won one year at a bike to work event, but it's a bit loose even though it's a women's small. It's a Giro Eclipse. Is there any place to get some thicker padding to put inside the helmet? It's the older design so it doesn't have that awesome wheel tightening mechanism that I find the modern helmets now have.

[Catrin]

Thanks guys! I have a helmet that I won one year at a bike to work event, but it's a bit loose even though it's a women's small. It's a Giro Eclipse. Is there any place to get some thicker padding to put inside the helmet? It's the older design so it doesn't have that awesome wheel tightening mechanism that I find the modern helmets now have.
How old is the helmet? If it is more than 5 years or so then please consider replacing the helmet. They do have a "shelf life" and will degrade over time. This isn't something that you can see with your eyes :eek: Don't put your noggin at risk and get a new helmet - there are less expensive helmets available if that is a concern.

The cost of the helmet isn't related to the safety side of things, in the US at least they all have to meet current safety standards, but more expensive helmets typically have more vents (are cooler), and can be lighter in weight.

[pll]

Thanks guys! I have a helmet that I won one year at a bike to work event, but it's a bit loose even though it's a women's small. It's a Giro Eclipse. Is there any place to get some thicker padding to put inside the helmet? It's the older design so it doesn't have that awesome wheel tightening mechanism that I find the modern helmets now have.

Get a new one! All helmets you see in a bike shop pass some minimum performance standards. The pricier ones use lighter material and are more ventilated, but safety-wise are comparable to the cheapest one. So, please get a helmet that fits properly.

[gocard]

Thanks Catrin and pll, it's about 4 years old and hasn't been used much at all.

[barrelgal]

You want it to fit correctly for sure, but the Eclipse (if I remember correctly) does have a way to tighten the back, just different then the new style. There should be two large 'tabs' that can be pushed towards eachother to tighten the helmet. For some reason I remember this always working better when the helmet was on my head rather than off (you should always tighten the helmet once on, but I seem to remember that the eclipse was difficult to even play with the tightening when it was off my noggin.)

[gocard]

Ok, I'm going to look for a new helmet. :) There are so many to choose from though! I liked the looks of the Giro Eclipse, as the profile was a good fit for my face, but it's a bit loose. Barrelgal, it was weird - I had it in the smallest setting and while the fit wasn't loose, I felt like I could still shift it around, meaning it wasn't snug.

I think the wheel tightening feature has helped improve this though, since the helmets I borrowed for the test rides all fit when I adjusted them.

Any good suggestions for small profile helmets? With my small face I feel a little like Toad from the Mario Brothers with some of the helmets.

I've used Bell and Giro in the past and I'm not quite as worried about the head fit with the wheel adjustment. I've done some searching and do not wish to go beyond $90 at this point... I'll go to the stores this week.

[smittykitty]

Well it turns out helmet fit it just like bike fit! Who'd a thought! I recently went to my lbs and the one I had found on the internet did not fit me at all! My lbs sells Specialized. I actually ended up with a cheaper one with less fancy straps to get one that fit me.

So my recommendation would be to head down to your lbs and let them help you choose.

[gocard]

Well it turns out helmet fit it just like bike fit! Who'd a thought! I recently went to my lbs and the one I had found on the internet did not fit me at all! My lbs sells Specialized. I actually ended up with a cheaper one with less fancy straps to get one that fit me.

So my recommendation would be to head down to your lbs and let them help you choose.

Totally! I dropped by my LBS (love that it's so close to work) and checked out some of the helmets on my own. I am so glad I did because my head is bigger than I thought, lol!

I found a few fits that I liked but the LBS doesn't carry the Bell Savant, one I found online that I'm interested in. The Cannondale Terramo fit me really well with a lower profile (no mushroom head).

I was surprised that there were so many different manufacturing date labels. It really varies even within the same model - 2010-2012.