Help Pooks Find a New Bike

[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

[mimitabby]

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

ha he was talking to me where he said "A Protovelo is not the frame for you if you're a chronic worrier, if you need reassurance that 'it'll be OK..' "

[pooks]

The guy was a fairly new rider, I think -- he'd been on a hybrid and this was his first roadie. I think he was naive, pleased as punch with his new bike, and wanting to share the joy. He was a very nice young guy.

I'm not sure the 57 is all that much too big, especially with the seat lowered a bit. But I just wasn't ready to try it yesterday.

I do think I need to test as many bikes as I can -- even just parking lot tests -- until I begin to get a feel for what I'm doing, and the differences. It's possible that it was "new position nervousness/tension" that was the main part of my problem on that Allez. It's also possible that it's something about my shoulders and upper body strength that I need to work on, at least partially. I really do get tense in my shoulders.

I can think of a number of things I can do, including just taking one of the shop's bikes out for a few miles to see if I loosen up any or adjust or if it gets worse, etc.

If you get a professional fit, is that to a particular bike? Or are those measurements that you then take with you to determine what kinds of bikes to try? Does a professional fit tell you what geometry to look for, etc.?

I am now really wondering about the 52. I thought it sounded small. The guy looked at me and said, "We're about the same, I think, let's try a 52, this is what I ride." Then after adjusting the seat a couple of times, he said it looked like a good fit, and that I wasn't stretched too far or bunched up, and that if that was a bike I was interested in that they'd then start working on the stem, handlebar, etc.

[mimitabby]

Pooks, 52 might be too small, but remember your stand over height (which relates to the 52) is not the only important measurement.
In a factory made bike you might have to get a smaller sized bike to get the top tube length that is best for you. So don't worry so much about 52's 54's and 57's worry about what it feels like. When you go into a bike shop, stay in the range of 52, say, try a 54 next time. If it makes your head and neck feel much worse, that's clearly not the direction you need to be going in.

[roguedog]

Thanks for the reports, Pooks. I get to vicariously shop with you and experience the discovery with you. It's fun.