Quote Originally Posted by TM383
I have been riding my mountain bike (my only bike) on the road (because I am scared of actually doing a mountain!) for the last couple of weeks for fitness (I am thinking of doing a triathlon). Its really not that comfortable but I figured I would get used to it. Someone recently mentioned that I would be more comfortable and be faster in a tri if I purchased a road bike. How true is this? Is it a big difference?

And, if getting a road bike is a good idea, which one is good and wont cost me alot of money (alot being a thousand dollars).
First HI!!!

I have a hybrid... It's kinda accross between both a mountain bike and a road bike. Doesn't cost as much as a Roadie but it does the job if you're commutting or training. But It's heavy and slows me down.

If you want speed and you want to be able to climb road hills fast then I HIGHLY recommend testing out a roadie. (I did! I want one so BADLY now!)

Think about how heavy your mountain bike is. Then divide it in three and you're looking at probably what a roadie feels like at least. ^_^ Or at least that's what a few bikes felt like to me. lol

The other thing is the WHEEL size. Unless your mountain bike has 700cc wheels (which is rare I think there's 2-3 brands in the world that carry 700cc mountain bike wheels) you don't roll as fast or as quickly.

The wheels on a roadie are thin and don't have much resistance. See all those knobbly things on your mountain bike tyres? They're to cause friction between you and sand, dirt gravel etc so you don't go sliding all the way down the mountain. So unless your roads is in desperate need of work by your local council then they're just slowwing you down.

th downside to roadie tyres is they puncture easily. Like REAL easily. BF has blown three tyres in the last 2 weeks!! O_O



http://forums.teamestrogen.com/forumdisplay.php?f=40

This link on the boards leads you to all the bikes that the women on these forums have tested (or at least are drooling over... like I am) or bought. Check em out.

Finally you mentioned your mountain bike isn't that comfortable. How long have you had it? Were you fitted to it correctly? Is the saddle right for you? If you have no idea what I'm saying read LOTS of the stuff in here and you may get an idea of why it's uncomfortable and what you can do to change it. ^_^

Good luck in the tryathlon!