Why is my bike SO slow?!

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Originally Posted by zoom-zoom

The tubes and tires would be my last suspicion. I have Kenda Nevegals, which people around here always seem to rave about.

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Could the tires be inflated too much? It sounds counter intuitive because higher inflation means less sidewall flex and thus less energy lost flexing the sidewalls. However, overinflation also makes you bounce over every little road/trail irregularity. Lifting you up a millimeter and then dropping back down takes a lot more energy than you might save in reduced sidewall flex.

A nearby university has a sidewalk / utility road where one side is concrete and the other is asphalt. Riding on the concrete is annoying because of the constant thump-thump across each expansion joint. However, it is the easier and faster ride. In contrast, the asphalt has constant rolling irregularities that just sap all my energy and speed.

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Originally Posted by laura*

Could the tires be inflated too much? It sounds counter intuitive because higher inflation means less sidewall flex and thus less energy lost flexing the sidewalls. However, overinflation also makes you bounce over every little road/trail irregularity. Lifting you up a millimeter and then dropping back down takes a lot more energy than you might save in reduced sidewall flex.

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Nah...I have a hard time going even 9-10mph on the paved road with this bike and have to kill myself to do so--it feels like the bike is fighting me every pedal stroke. By contrast my POS Schwinn that I had years ago that was too big, had much lower-end components, and weighed more was easy to roll at 11-12mph when I had no cycling fitness. I can get a heavier Salsa Mukluk fat bike going much faster on the road than the F5, with FAR less effort. Generally we have the tires on the F5 around 30psi, IIRC.

I think if the bike is not a good fit for you, you cannot get your legs moving well enough to do speed. I remember when I changed from a trek hybrid to a bianchi. The bianchi just wanted to go go go. The difference was very obvious.
Different frame angles can definitely slow you down. It's just physics. It doesn't have to be a heavier bike or a defective bike. It just has to do with the way it was made and the way you are made. Sounds like you need a new bike, i mean, after all you are "zoom zoom" go get you a bike that zooms.

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Originally Posted by Biciclista

I think if the bike is not a good fit for you, you cannot get your legs moving well enough to do speed. I remember when I changed from a trek hybrid to a bianchi. The bianchi just wanted to go go go. The difference was very obvious.
Different frame angles can definitely slow you down. It's just physics. It doesn't have to be a heavier bike or a defective bike. It just has to do with the way it was made and the way you are made. Sounds like you need a new bike, i mean, after all you are "zoom zoom" go get you a bike that zooms.

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That was DH's theory, too, but then it makes no sense that I can get my friend's even smaller Ala Carte up to speed without much trouble. That thing feels positively zippy, even though the bikes aren't all that different in size and geo. Both bikes fit my DS really well, but he ends up really frustrated on the Cannondale and can only ride about half the distance before he's exhausted and wants to quit.

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Originally Posted by zoom-zoom

Those are all interesting possibilities. How easy is it to determine any of these possibilities and diagnose? The tubes and tires would be my last suspicion. I have Kenda Nevegals, which people around here always seem to rave about.

What is so frustrating is all the glowing reviews I read of the Cannondale F5. I have a friend with the EXACT same bike (Cdale had a bunch of the petite size sitting in a warehouse and essentially liquidated them about a year ago). She rides far less than I do and on the road with our road bikes I can ride circles around her. On trails I can barely keep up with her and end up beating myself up trying to do so.

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The first thing to check would be wheel trueness. "Dish" (proper spacing of the rims between the dropouts) and "lateral trueness" (no side-to-side warping of the rims) are most relevant here. Roundness of the rims (vertical trueness) wouldn't affect tracking.

The easiest way to check the rims is with a truing stand and a dishing tool, but you can improvise tools to do a quick check of trueness (http://sheldonbrown.com/wheelbuild.html#improvised). Spoke tension can be checked with a special tool, or in a pinch, by listening to the tone when the spokes are plucked (http://www.bikexprt.com/bicycle/tension.htm). Check Sheldon Brown's web site for truing methods.

Checking the frame alignment is best done with a special tool. You could do a preliminary check of alignment by improvising (http://sheldonbrown.com/forkend-alignment.html), but your best bet is to take the bike to your local bike shop -they should be willing to check alignment for for free, or for a very minimal charge.

As I mentioned earlier, check the wheels. Take the wheels off the bike and spin the wheels in your hands, make sure that the axle in in your hands and NOT the quick release. If the bearing adjustment is too tight, then the wheel will spin and feel as though it is catching in your hands.

Although you only have 225 miles on the bike, it still could have dirt/water inside the hubs making them not spin as freely. I know that you mentioned that your DH services the bike, perhaps a trip to your LBS is also in order. They should ahve the experience to check the entire bike over, and give you a pretty quick answer. I seriously doubt that the frame is out of alignment etc.... again check the wheels!

As for the Nevegals, they are indeed a bit heavier tire but they are meant for "traction." If you're riding in an area that you don't need that much grip, then change your tires. I typically ride the Kenda Small Block 8's early in the season when it's dry, but this time of year I"m riding the Nevegals for traction over the wet roots and leaves.

Good Luck!!

i still say, get rid of the stupid bike. You won't be sorry. Or you can take it to a shop and have them try and find what was wrong with it.

I have to agree with Mimi. If you had a lot invested in it and/or it was a fine bike, then it would certainly be worth trying to figure out what is wrong. But as inexpensive as it was, I'd just try to sell it for ~$300, figure the $50 was not a lot to lose, and move on.

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Originally Posted by Becky

Nevs are definitely a slow tire (but they grip everything!!), so I wouldn't discount that.

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http://www.kendausa.com/en/home/bicy...n/nevegal.aspx

There are lots of Nevs, some very heavy (read: lots of ruber to flex and eat up your energy). I'm with Becky: try known-good tires before getting rid of the bike.

Hmmm...the thing is I've gone from small block 8s to a much heavier and wider tire on my CX bike and never noticed a huge difference--I actually like the heavier tire because they are much more aggressive, more stable down hills and rough areas, and I can bomb through sandy and muddy areas better (which is pretty much all of West MI--it's all sand dunes with pathetic grass). I asked my DH about the possibility of the Nevegals being the issue and he pointed out that the tires on the Mukluk are WAY heavier and that bike still was noticeably easier to move and keep moving, even up hills.

I almost wonder if it's more than one factor at play and that we could end up spending a lot of time and money to not really come up with any one solution for a bike that we'll likely sell in a year or two. I'd really like to borrow one of my friends' identical bikes (I think there were 4 of us who ended up with this bike when our LBS had them a year ago) for a few miles and see if theirs are noticeably different.

We'll definitely be looking for a higher end used bike for the rugrat when the time comes. I don't want him to always be stuck frustrated with heavy, sluggish bikes. He's such a slight kid that he can't even use his body weight to beast a bike around (unlike me, heh).

I don't know, but it's something I've been wondering for a few years now. I, too, have a Cannondale F5 (but from '07). I'm like a slug on that thing, but can ride my friends Salsa mtn bike (that is about the same weight) with SO much less effort. I'm perplexed. The shop I bought it from fit me to it so I'm certain it's the right size (they've fit my other 3 bikes just perfectly).
Makes me wish I'd never gotten rid of my old crappy rigid Trek mtn bike....

Okay, I am not a techie, but everyone has mentioned wheels and tires, but could it be something in the bottom bracket that is causing interference? Maybe you're getting some resistance there.

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Originally Posted by Tri Girl

I don't know, but it's something I've been wondering for a few years now. I, too, have a Cannondale F5 (but from '07). I'm like a slug on that thing, but can ride my friends Salsa mtn bike (that is about the same weight) with SO much less effort. I'm perplexed. The shop I bought it from fit me to it so I'm certain it's the right size (they've fit my other 3 bikes just perfectly).
Makes me wish I'd never gotten rid of my old crappy rigid Trek mtn bike....

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Which spec. level is yours? Granted, mine is not the top of the line for the model, but it definitely wasn't a truly "entry level" bike, either. I've been told that the fork, alone, would probably have been a $350 fork. A mix of SRAM X5 and X7 is not crap, either.

But for the life of me I cannot figure out how the F5 was Cannondale's top-selling mountain bike at the time if they all were this doggy.

I have ridden with a friend who rides a heavy full-suspension mtn. bike and leaves me in the dust when I'm on my F5. On CX and road bikes of similar quality and weight we are very nearly perfectly matched in terms of speed at comparable effort. You'd never know we have similar fitness levels to see us ride mountain bikes together.

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Originally Posted by Charlieggo

Okay, I am not a techie, but everyone has mentioned wheels and tires, but could it be something in the bottom bracket that is causing interference? Maybe you're getting some resistance there.

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I have wondered about this. DH played with the brakes and we'll see if that makes any difference. He really doesn't think it's the hubs/wheels. BB is next on our list of things to examine.

Have you ever ridden the bike with a different wheelset? That might help rule out the wheels as the issue.