Help Pooks Find a New Bike

[pooks]

There's this scene in Moonstruck, at the end, where the whole family is around the table and engagements are being broken and made and words are flying and in the middle of it all --

Is the old man.

And he looks so pitiful.

And he says.

"I'm so confused."

I am that old man.

(But that's okay -- I think I like it better when I don't know all this stuff. I just need to RIDE some of these bikes.)

[SadieKate]

touring and cyclocross geometry are very similar.

Not necessarily. A cross bike can handle like a road bike with a high bottom bracket which makes cornering feel different. Touring bikes frequently have longer chain stays and less steep angles which can slow down the steering and make them more stable at low speeds and with weight on the frame. Touring bikes are designed to carry loads and cyclocross are usually not. My cross bike hates towing a trailer, but touring bikes will generally be fine. True cross bikes have only one bottle braze-on (doesn't change the handling but the buyer should know). Some companies may try to design a more stable cross bike so it can be used as a touring bike, but this is not always the case. Riv's Legolas is a case in point. They caution against carrying loads.

I agree though that Pooks needs to go ride a ton of bikes first and worry about labels later, but she needs to clearly identify how she wants to use this bike.

[KnottedYet]

Ooops, my bad. I was going by what a couple shops told me about some specific bikes. Guess it really depends on the bike model. sorry to lead you astray...

Anyway, yes, Pooks, go ride lots of bikes! Don't worry about the labels, just worry about how they feel and how you feel riding!

Feel the bike love!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

And be sure to check out the Bleriot! It's is Riv's least expensive bike, but still wonderfully made in every way. It's got the "classic" look I keep hearing you talk about wanting...

[KnottedYet]

I saw Bleriots at Robinson Wheelworks and at Rivendell when I was in California last month. They really are lovely. Pooks, be sure to ride one and tell us how you like it!

[pooks]

It's funny. There's one in a local bikeshop and their website says, "Borrow our Bleriot for the day." I wonder what size it is? I do intend to check it out after I've gotten more adjusted to the feel of a roadie.

I forgot something, though. I was talking to my husband again the other night, and he is still a bit confused about why I'm not just getting the next size in my chainless bike. And I started talking about fit again, and he said, "So why didn't we do that last time?"

Um ... because we got chainless? Off the internet?

"Well, why didn't we buy them locally?"

Um ... because I called everywhere, and nobody sold them? (Sidenote: now I know there is a place that can order them, but when I called them whoever answered evidently didn't know that.)

"Well, why did you want chainless?"

You could have heard a pin drop. (Excuse the cliche, but really.)

"YOU wanted chainless."

"Me? What did I know about it?"

(I might point out to you, at this point, I wasn't sure whether to laugh or hit him. I refrained from saying, "Obviously NOTHING." Ahem.)

Finally, I said, "But I might want to keep this one, because it's well suited to errands that are close by."

At which point my husband, who hardly ever finds time to ride with me, says with honest dismay in his voice:

"That's crazy. We don't have room for the two bikes we've got. What are we going to do with FOUR?"

You can't imagine how hard it was for me to keep a straight face. Four? If I get a road bike, he's getting one, too?

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

I just said, "Don't worry. I'll figure something out."

I guess I'm not the only one who is going to be test riding roadies!

[7rider]

Just a thought....if your DH doesn't ride, is his bike bigger than yours and will it fit you better than your current ride? That's 1 option and certainly a no-cost option.
Don't be afraid of carbon forks. They absorb road buzz wonderfully, and in all my years of riding a bike and knowing folks who ride bikes, I have heard of exactly ONE fork failure - and it was a steel fork. And it had about 100,000 miles on it - literally...this guy was a 12,000 mile a year rider. I don't know if I'd get a carbon fork (or carbon bike, for that matter) for cross-country racing or jumping, but for day-to-day riding, they are great.
As someone mentioned...take notes. All these bikes will start running together after a while. And see if you can ride several bikes back-to-back, so you can better compare one against the other.
Good luck and .. oh, have fun!

[mimitabby]

about FORKS

You're right, most bikes do have carbon forks now. My bianchi has one too. It works just fine. I wouldn't worry about that, it doesn't mean the bike is worth any more or less.. It's pretty standard now.

The parts made of carbon that worry me are cranks and other parts that
have high shear in their normal usage.

[KnottedYet]

Just for the adventure, take a peek at the Rivendell "Protovelos." Kind of a grab bag bike shopping adventure!

(I'm not at all seriously suggesting you get one, just saying here's something interesting)

http://www.rivbike.com/bikes/protovelo

[pooks]

First of all, I don't think I can ride my husband's bike because there's not enough clearance (or maybe ANY clearance) when I attempt to stand over it. (I haven't actually hoisted a leg over -- I've just stood beside it.)

All those protovelos are way too large for me, alas and alack! (I'd like to see pics, though.)

And today (drumroll, please) I saw my first Rivendells.

TWO (count them) TWO Bleriots.

I went to the shop that sells them and they have one Bleriot in stock for people to see/ride, and take orders from that. One was being delivered today, and the proud new owner was sitting on an old sofa drinking a Dos Equis while they prepped his bike in front of him. He was in such a good humor, he kept offering to let me test ride his bike, and I kept telling him, A) I am not comfortable on road bikes yet so don't want to try it yet, and B) the Specialized I was on was a 52 (the guy at the bike shop said he'd probably try me on something larger, but it was hard to say w/o measuring and I just wasn't ready for that yet) and both the store's Bleriot and the one the guy had bought were 57s, so that's really the primary thing that held me back. Combining "not used to" with "too large" and I just didn't want to try it. (Plus, if I'd been going to test ride one, I would have gone for the store's, not his brand new one, gack!)

But it was a fun trip, and these guys are nice. Their shop is a rental storage unit (or at least that is what they look like); they handle nothing but steel, don't have much stock on hand (or so it seems), and do a lot of custom work. There was another couple there to pick up a bike, and there was a very relaxed friendly vibe.

Well, of course there was. It was in a garage. <g>

Anyway, the Bleriot is gorgeous and I probably will go back this week or next and give it a try when there's nobody around!

(But -- a 57?)

And Dos Equis guy? He said it was like riding on a puffy cloud. (Did I mention he was in a very good mood, and not because of the Dos Equis.)

[KnottedYet]

Rivendell itself is in two "garages" in Walnut Creek, CA.

So, getting a Riv in a garage while sippin' a Dos Equis (or Lemon Drop) sounds very appropriate to me!

Riv's website has instructions somewhere for figuring out the sizing for their bikes. It is a little different, but I can't remember how. LisaSH would know!

[DarcyInOregon]

Pooks, we are the same height and I ride a 57 cm. Did you say you are 5'8"?

Also, another TE member who is around the same height, I know that her WSD bike is 57 also.

My bike fits me perfectly.

Darcy

[SadieKate]

The numbers a bike company assigns a frame are only numbers. Brand to brand to brand, all size Xs are not created equal. I've ridden everything from a 48 to a 52. Get a fit.

[Batbike]

And Batbike, i felt strain PARTICULARLY doing figure 8s in a parking lot.
and here's this lady saying "oh, you really look comfortable" and I'm thinking "oh, this is not comfortable"

just want to clarify that anything new is stressful and can cause strain, tension, etc ... because of this, the body reacts and it can be painful. i did not say that Pooks did not experience the pain, or that the pain was not genunie and related to the bike ride in parking lot ... just felt (in my opinion only) that her pain may be more stress related than bike fit related. if I am wrong, I apologize.

to me, the best way to alleviate stress, thus pain, is try try try try different bikes for different feels, get either a professional (the best) or a personal fit (self-determination of what you like/feel and taking personal measurements), to narrow down what type of bike and size you are looking for. once all that is determined, than saddles, pedals, etc. can be fitted to the "chosen one" and bike and rider are forever together -- cycling bliss!

[mimitabby]

Pooks, I would not have tried that man's new bike either. When you have some time under your belt on road bikes, maybe then you'd feel comfortable riding a bike that is 5 cm too big. BUt someone's brand new bike? How many beers did he have?