Upgrade

[lph]

I don't really think of it as upgrading, I think of it as gradually tuning a bike to fit me. The "perfect" bike may be out there, but I'll never have the patience, time, money or insight to hunt it down. My 4 bikes - 3 in use - have all come into my hands in sort of roundabout ways, only one was bought new, and I spend my time and money gradually tweaking things here and there. I've bought them or acquired them based on the frame fitting reasonably well and the price being reasonable, then I swap parts around or buy new ones as old ones wear out, and am gradually tweaking 3 bikes to be fairly specific for 3 types of use: 1 winter bike/commuter bike (durable, low-maintenance parts, comfortable), 1 mtb, 1 training/road bike (lightweight, good wheels).

[ehirsch83]

Don't let yourself think of tires as an upgrade!
Every 1500 miles or so, you will need new tires!! You can stay with the same kind, or try something different. The fun in upgrading are parts that are you are going to really enjoy-either the feel of or the look

Tires are like bar tape- they are something that you are going to need to replace every few months.

Upgrade things like-wheels, seat post, bars, stem, gruppo, frame!

You can even upgrade helmets and shoes.

[marni]

I am a long distance and cross country bike rider. I ride a 2004 trek pilot 5.2 with a carbon frame, a triple crank , a 9 gear stack and all ultegra fixings.My wheels and tires are Bontrager race lites.These were original with the bike. I do one cross country and multiple shorter rides as well 6-8 charity centuries

My upgrades include stryker iron man aero bars and double sided pedals.

Since my focus is distance and endurance over speed, weight is not a major factor for me. I have had very good luck with the bontrager tires, havinng had to replace the only one time. In all my riding, I have had only two flats which I think says a great deal about the strength of the tires, especially when you consider that I have ridden across goat head thorns, endless miles of Texas chip seal, and lots of blown radials and truck tires. I think that speaks to the quality of the Race lites (which have kevlar sides as well as the area under the treads.) That being said, I will also point out that I am fanaticabout checking my tires completely after every ride or any time I run over something suspicious.

The only upgrades in my future are a new bike seat since the one that came with the bike which is cracking and splitting.

The upgrade I would like to make is to get some new aero bars with the gear shifter on the end. Not necessary, but easier to not to keep having to change positions if I need to change gears, especially on hills.

I plan to keep riding the trek until it or I can't go on. I would like a custom painted ffully upgraded Trek Madone for my 65th birthday in a few years which seems highly unlikely but a girl can dream. In the meantime I love mmy trek.

Marni-the hippie biker chick from Sugar Land, TX

[Owlie]

I'll upgrade the tires on my bike when they wear out. My bike has about 60 miles on it, so I doubt that will happen any time soon. If I get some money and some guidance, I may upgrade the wheels. Anything beyond that for this bike is probably not worth it.

My bike came with Sora components. If I wanted to upgrade to 105 (highest level that makes sense for the frame), I would probably replace the cassette first, as I can't quite find a groove in the 8-speed. (I'm really strange, apparently--the bottom is quite comfy, as is the top, but the middle gears, not so much.) If I replace the cassette, I have to replace the RD. If I replace that, I need to replace the shifter. If I do that, I may as well replace the other one. If I do that, I may as well upgrade the FD. I looked up prices for new parts, and it comes to... $842, not including tax. If I include the cost of the wheels, I may as well buy a new bike.

[sundial]

For me an upgrade is new bar tape, Brooks saddle, different pedals (going with touring pedals for now) and nice rims.