Hybrid bikes?
30 June 2011, 04:59 PM
#1
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Hybrid bikes?
I'm looking to get a new bike (on the tax free work scheme), I don't want a racer (or whatever they call them these days) so I've been looking at a hybrid.
I've narrowed it down to the following...
Specialized Sirrus Expert
Cannondale Bad Boy Rigid Fatty
I've also seen the the BeOne Karma 2010 at a reduced price.
Has anyone got any experience on any of these or have any further recommendations to look at.
The main contstraint is price, no more than £1000.
I'm 6ft and 16 stone so nothing with really skinny tyres either
Cheers,
Steve
I've narrowed it down to the following...
Specialized Sirrus Expert
Cannondale Bad Boy Rigid Fatty
I've also seen the the BeOne Karma 2010 at a reduced price.
Has anyone got any experience on any of these or have any further recommendations to look at.
The main contstraint is price, no more than £1000.
I'm 6ft and 16 stone so nothing with really skinny tyres either
Cheers,
Steve
30 June 2011, 06:26 PM
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They are less comfortable than a racer, and slower.
A jack of all trades, when you only need a racing bike.
Thin tyres does not mean wheels that cannot bare your weight.
A jack of all trades, when you only need a racing bike.
Thin tyres does not mean wheels that cannot bare your weight.
30 June 2011, 06:33 PM
#3
What Davy said, I went for the Bad Boy first and used it for 18 months, got a Spec Allez Elite and have never used the Cannodale since, prefer drop bars to flats and the ride is smoother, plus it feels a bit faster, also the bottom bracket is lower so you get a longer pedal stroke.
Im 17 stone and the skinny tyres are fine, they are very strong but dont go for really lightweight wheels, honest, you dont need big thick rims.
Im 17 stone and the skinny tyres are fine, they are very strong but dont go for really lightweight wheels, honest, you dont need big thick rims.
30 June 2011, 08:37 PM
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30 June 2011, 08:37 PM
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Every person I know who has had a flat bar road bike (i.e. hybrid) has moved onto a road bike (racer) in the end.
Why? comfort and speed.
There's this weird myth about the road bike being uncomfortable which I cannot fathom out. You simply buy a road bike with a relaxed geometry or an audax (which comes with drop bars you'll note... the bikes for TOURING have drops...). Or you do what I did and get a CX bike so you've got some off road chucked in there as well.
So, why comfort? If you hang you arms by your sides, your thumbs will naturally be at the front.
If you ride a drop bar bike and ride with your hands on the hoods... guess where your thumbs are? In the natural position you adopt - you have straight wrists which means more comfort.
When you ride on a flat bar, you rotate your arms and inevitably relax your wrists and put pressure on the Ulnar nerve which causes tingling in the hands and arms (there'll be people going "Ohhhhh, THAT'S what it is" now) This becomes painful after a while but you're restricted on a flat bar, 'cos that's all you've got. You can fit bar extenders, but these aren't ideal, you tend to stretch out more and this is uncomfortable on your back.
So, drop bars - more positions to put your hands in (flats, hoods and drops) and faster.
Just look up the Boardman range, they scream CTW but they are VERY good value
Why? comfort and speed.
There's this weird myth about the road bike being uncomfortable which I cannot fathom out. You simply buy a road bike with a relaxed geometry or an audax (which comes with drop bars you'll note... the bikes for TOURING have drops...). Or you do what I did and get a CX bike so you've got some off road chucked in there as well.
So, why comfort? If you hang you arms by your sides, your thumbs will naturally be at the front.
If you ride a drop bar bike and ride with your hands on the hoods... guess where your thumbs are? In the natural position you adopt - you have straight wrists which means more comfort.
When you ride on a flat bar, you rotate your arms and inevitably relax your wrists and put pressure on the Ulnar nerve which causes tingling in the hands and arms (there'll be people going "Ohhhhh, THAT'S what it is" now) This becomes painful after a while but you're restricted on a flat bar, 'cos that's all you've got. You can fit bar extenders, but these aren't ideal, you tend to stretch out more and this is uncomfortable on your back.
So, drop bars - more positions to put your hands in (flats, hoods and drops) and faster.
Just look up the Boardman range, they scream CTW but they are VERY good value
30 June 2011, 09:31 PM
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I have a Trek road bike and a Scott hybrid and out of the two i find the hybrid more comfortable. I did the C2C bike ride on the hybrid and it was perfect. I added bar extensions which improved comfort even further.
I do use my road bike as it does cover more ground but i find it slightly uncomfortable.
If i'm riding on my own i tend to use the Scott, if out with mates i use the Trek, mainly so i can keep up
I do use my road bike as it does cover more ground but i find it slightly uncomfortable.
If i'm riding on my own i tend to use the Scott, if out with mates i use the Trek, mainly so i can keep up
30 June 2011, 09:38 PM
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Specialized are quailty bits of kit, I bought a Specialised Stumpjumper about 15 years ago when I was heavily into mountain biking and by **** I didn't half give the thing a battering, I still have it too this day but it hasn't turned a wheel for years.
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30 June 2011, 09:43 PM
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As much as I'd like a road bike for 70% of the years commuting journeys, the other 30% I'm glad I went for the compromise (Specialized Sirrus Elite). Personally don't like drop bars in city centre, plus roads in too bad condition for road bike. I have ridden the Sirrus on Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres through most of last winter in Scotland when I wouldn't have even entertained the twitchiness of a road bike.
Obviously you'll loose out on outright pace but it all depends on what you really need from your bike.
Suits me fine ....after the ten tonne OEM wheels were swapped !!
30 June 2011, 10:08 PM
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Thanks for the info, I suppose things have moved on a bit since my Raleigh Quasar
I want the bike mainly for training, most of this will be done in Phoenix Park in Dublin, although I may also use it to commute to work on the odd occasion and possibly some riding on the canal track.
Do the carbon framed bikes offer any benefits over aluminium framed bikes other than weight saving?
Is it worth going for something with disc brakes?
Anything else in particular to look for? Specific gear manufacturer etc.? (are Shimano the best?)
Basically I want something I can ride anywhere, that is comfortable but also able to get a bit of speed up, hence my idea of going for a hybrid - supposedly the best of both worlds.
I want the bike mainly for training, most of this will be done in Phoenix Park in Dublin, although I may also use it to commute to work on the odd occasion and possibly some riding on the canal track.
Do the carbon framed bikes offer any benefits over aluminium framed bikes other than weight saving?
Is it worth going for something with disc brakes?
Anything else in particular to look for? Specific gear manufacturer etc.? (are Shimano the best?)
Basically I want something I can ride anywhere, that is comfortable but also able to get a bit of speed up, hence my idea of going for a hybrid - supposedly the best of both worlds.
30 June 2011, 10:10 PM
#11
Every person I know who has had a flat bar road bike (i.e. hybrid) has moved onto a road bike (racer) in the end.
Why? comfort and speed.
There's this weird myth about the road bike being uncomfortable which I cannot fathom out. You simply buy a road bike with a relaxed geometry or an audax (which comes with drop bars you'll note... the bikes for TOURING have drops...). Or you do what I did and get a CX bike so you've got some off road chucked in there as well.
So, why comfort? If you hang you arms by your sides, your thumbs will naturally be at the front.
If you ride a drop bar bike and ride with your hands on the hoods... guess where your thumbs are? In the natural position you adopt - you have straight wrists which means more comfort.
When you ride on a flat bar, you rotate your arms and inevitably relax your wrists and put pressure on the Ulnar nerve which causes tingling in the hands and arms (there'll be people going "Ohhhhh, THAT'S what it is" now) This becomes painful after a while but you're restricted on a flat bar, 'cos that's all you've got. You can fit bar extenders, but these aren't ideal, you tend to stretch out more and this is uncomfortable on your back.
So, drop bars - more positions to put your hands in (flats, hoods and drops) and faster.
Just look up the Boardman range, they scream CTW but they are VERY good value
Why? comfort and speed.
There's this weird myth about the road bike being uncomfortable which I cannot fathom out. You simply buy a road bike with a relaxed geometry or an audax (which comes with drop bars you'll note... the bikes for TOURING have drops...). Or you do what I did and get a CX bike so you've got some off road chucked in there as well.
So, why comfort? If you hang you arms by your sides, your thumbs will naturally be at the front.
If you ride a drop bar bike and ride with your hands on the hoods... guess where your thumbs are? In the natural position you adopt - you have straight wrists which means more comfort.
When you ride on a flat bar, you rotate your arms and inevitably relax your wrists and put pressure on the Ulnar nerve which causes tingling in the hands and arms (there'll be people going "Ohhhhh, THAT'S what it is" now) This becomes painful after a while but you're restricted on a flat bar, 'cos that's all you've got. You can fit bar extenders, but these aren't ideal, you tend to stretch out more and this is uncomfortable on your back.
So, drop bars - more positions to put your hands in (flats, hoods and drops) and faster.
Just look up the Boardman range, they scream CTW but they are VERY good value
Looking at the bigger picture, for commuting and medium-distance fitness riding there's a lot to be said IMO for the greater stability and puncture-resistance of a bike designed with some off-roading in mind.
01 July 2011, 05:58 AM
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You could not have taken a road bike on "my" last nights route 
At one point i was pretty much powering through a bloody swamp
I discovered that a 1 mile detour on my test route, puts me into this place, sweeeet!
These are not my videos, just some that i found after searching for the place once i found it (by accident) i totally bottled the large jump, although i did do a few of the smaller ones
http://youtu.be/NlBxKkjj3ZQ
http://youtu.be/SiEv_c-jpeo
Things must have changed a bit over the years as all the kids bombing over the large jumps last night, had full body armor and a full face mask.
At one point i was pretty much powering through a bloody swamp
I discovered that a 1 mile detour on my test route, puts me into this place, sweeeet!
These are not my videos, just some that i found after searching for the place once i found it (by accident) i totally bottled the large jump, although i did do a few of the smaller ones
http://youtu.be/NlBxKkjj3ZQ
http://youtu.be/SiEv_c-jpeo
Things must have changed a bit over the years as all the kids bombing over the large jumps last night, had full body armor and a full face mask.
01 July 2011, 08:07 AM
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Can't most if not all of what you're talking about here be achieved with flat-bar and the right set of bar-ends?
Looking at the bigger picture, for commuting and medium-distance fitness riding there's a lot to be said IMO for the greater stability and puncture-resistance of a bike designed with some off-roading in mind.
Looking at the bigger picture, for commuting and medium-distance fitness riding there's a lot to be said IMO for the greater stability and puncture-resistance of a bike designed with some off-roading in mind.
As said - the bar ends can stretch you out too much. Not sure what you mean about stability; I think you're thinking about the twitchy frame geometrys such as you get on the Specialized Allezs or the Trek Madones (my Sunday best bike....mmmm....
)I'm simply referring to the fact that the drop bars give you more options for hand positions and are better for any kind of distance riding
Also, the puncture resistance comes from the tyres, not the bike. If you're concerned about punctures make sure the pressure is high and you get better quality tyres.
01 July 2011, 09:03 AM
#15
Dont bother with disks, my Cannondale had them, they stop you well but tend to be more expensive to fix and need more maintenance, they can also be a bit noisy.
As for off road ability, my road bike is pretty similar to my Hybrid, its the tyres that do it not the bike.
Kieran is bang on, my Allez is not twitch at all, it has a lovely planted feel and rides much better due to the carbon forks where the hybrid had straight alloy ones which transfer a lot more road buzz and bumps, it just feels more sophisticated and smooth. Dont confuse an off the shelf standard road bike with some **** in the air race bike, different to ride, like comparing a sporty road car with a Touring Car, my brother in law has a road bike and it is very twitchy, horrible to ride but some like that style.
You think you are getting the best of both worlds but its always a compromise, it was with the Bad Boy, the Sirrus may be a little more of a road bike with flat bars than the Bad Boy which is kind of a hard tails MTB with skinny wheels.
Gear wise, most will have Shimano or Sram, both great, they go up in spec levels with the cost of the bike, mine has entry level decent kit, Tiagra and it works really well, the higher specs tend to be a bit lighter and use more excotic materials, they may shift a bit better as well, dotn know, not tried but I really rate mine, ditto the Sram on the Cannondale.
As for off road ability, my road bike is pretty similar to my Hybrid, its the tyres that do it not the bike.
Kieran is bang on, my Allez is not twitch at all, it has a lovely planted feel and rides much better due to the carbon forks where the hybrid had straight alloy ones which transfer a lot more road buzz and bumps, it just feels more sophisticated and smooth. Dont confuse an off the shelf standard road bike with some **** in the air race bike, different to ride, like comparing a sporty road car with a Touring Car, my brother in law has a road bike and it is very twitchy, horrible to ride but some like that style.
You think you are getting the best of both worlds but its always a compromise, it was with the Bad Boy, the Sirrus may be a little more of a road bike with flat bars than the Bad Boy which is kind of a hard tails MTB with skinny wheels.
Gear wise, most will have Shimano or Sram, both great, they go up in spec levels with the cost of the bike, mine has entry level decent kit, Tiagra and it works really well, the higher specs tend to be a bit lighter and use more excotic materials, they may shift a bit better as well, dotn know, not tried but I really rate mine, ditto the Sram on the Cannondale.
01 July 2011, 10:27 AM
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yr generally better going to a bespoke bike shop, rather than a chain: and seeing what handbuilt stuff they can do to suit you.
they'll fit you perfectly to a frame, seat, wheel and tyre choices etc: and probably for less than mass produced stuff.
dunno where you are but I'd recommend keith lambert cycles in bingley west yorkshire or pennine cycles in bradford west workshire.
some bargains also to be had on ebay too with road bikes.
they'll fit you perfectly to a frame, seat, wheel and tyre choices etc: and probably for less than mass produced stuff.
dunno where you are but I'd recommend keith lambert cycles in bingley west yorkshire or pennine cycles in bradford west workshire.
some bargains also to be had on ebay too with road bikes.
01 July 2011, 10:42 AM
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Personally I found the 'racer' type handle bars made things very awkward to ride when I was a nipper (the last time I rode a bike). I just remeber it being much easier to bump up and down kerbs ride over potholes with wider bars.
01 July 2011, 11:42 AM
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01 July 2011, 12:19 PM
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Watching this thread with interest, have similar thoughts....
My primary bike is a full suspension Marin mountain bike, I really enjoy going off road / getting muddy so the bike is great for that, however with the pressures of renovating a house, new family, etc. the biking has taken a bit of a back seat of late. I was going riding last summer in the evenings primarily as a fitness tool and it made a lot of difference to me, but then stopped when the weather went bad. I was only riding on lanes and canal towpaths so the mountain bike was overkill for it really. Intended to restart that this year but the bike is broken at the moment and I haven't got round to getting the bit I need to repair it. I will fix it eventually but it got me thinking maybe a new bike...
Something that rides well on the road, I can use on rollers or a turbo trainer in the depths of winter and is tough enough to cope with a bit rough stuff. Initially thought about a full on road bike but then thought it would be too much of a compromise. The likes of Specialised, Trek, etc. now seem to be making these crossover bikes that have a bit of mountain bike stuff about them but should be fast on the road too. No idea what if any to buy though along with the added pain that I can't really be spending hundreds on one. I keep checking eBay to see if anything interesting comes up locally....
My primary bike is a full suspension Marin mountain bike, I really enjoy going off road / getting muddy so the bike is great for that, however with the pressures of renovating a house, new family, etc. the biking has taken a bit of a back seat of late. I was going riding last summer in the evenings primarily as a fitness tool and it made a lot of difference to me, but then stopped when the weather went bad. I was only riding on lanes and canal towpaths so the mountain bike was overkill for it really. Intended to restart that this year but the bike is broken at the moment and I haven't got round to getting the bit I need to repair it. I will fix it eventually but it got me thinking maybe a new bike...
Something that rides well on the road, I can use on rollers or a turbo trainer in the depths of winter and is tough enough to cope with a bit rough stuff. Initially thought about a full on road bike but then thought it would be too much of a compromise. The likes of Specialised, Trek, etc. now seem to be making these crossover bikes that have a bit of mountain bike stuff about them but should be fast on the road too. No idea what if any to buy though along with the added pain that I can't really be spending hundreds on one. I keep checking eBay to see if anything interesting comes up locally....
01 July 2011, 12:55 PM
#25
Even off road, most of the time you dont need it, most of it, for most people is for show unloess doing proper hard core stuff, downhilling, proper XC, dont need it on Bridle paths or unmade roads, might be alittle comfier but the rest of the time you have the additional weight and drain on your energy, a spring is s brilliant device for harvesting your effort.
01 July 2011, 01:31 PM
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Watching this thread with interest, have similar thoughts....
(snip)
Something that rides well on the road, I can use on rollers or a turbo trainer in the depths of winter and is tough enough to cope with a bit rough stuff. Initially thought about a full on road bike but then thought it would be too much of a compromise. The likes of Specialised, Trek, etc. now seem to be making these crossover bikes that have a bit of mountain bike stuff about them but should be fast on the road too. No idea what if any to buy though along with the added pain that I can't really be spending hundreds on one. I keep checking eBay to see if anything interesting comes up locally....
(snip)
Something that rides well on the road, I can use on rollers or a turbo trainer in the depths of winter and is tough enough to cope with a bit rough stuff. Initially thought about a full on road bike but then thought it would be too much of a compromise. The likes of Specialised, Trek, etc. now seem to be making these crossover bikes that have a bit of mountain bike stuff about them but should be fast on the road too. No idea what if any to buy though along with the added pain that I can't really be spending hundreds on one. I keep checking eBay to see if anything interesting comes up locally....
I have a Specialized Tricross Sport and I just change the tyres if I need more off-road than on-road (or in the in the middle of Winter when the snow / ice hit)
Triple chainring gives you a huge GI range - all the way from 50/11 to 30/34, so you can climb near anything and still top 40mph while pedalling
01 July 2011, 02:44 PM
#27
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Not if you buy the right frame size/geometry/bar length and bend for your individual build
Hybrids will tend to have less extreme geometry (although I'd accept that the differences may not be that noticable to most
Having said that, personally, if I was the OP I'd be looking at a cyclo cross bike rather than a traditional hybrid.
Not sure what you mean about stability; I think you're thinking about the twitchy frame geometrys such as you get on the Specialized Allezs or the Trek Madones (my Sunday best bike....mmmm.... )
)
Having said that, personally, if I was the OP I'd be looking at a cyclo cross bike rather than a traditional hybrid.
Last edited by Devildog; 01 July 2011 at 02:47 PM.
01 July 2011, 03:54 PM
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I really fancy a blast of my workmates bike, he bought the Boardman carbon frame road jobbie and uses it on his commute into work during the decent weather, when the weather turns crap and snowy, he brings out the mountain bike instead.