Alas, I never got around to writing that post because, for the next few months, I paid for this tentative dip back into the hill climb world. I’ve been nursing an old injury. I think it’s an SI joint. I’ve watched a 100 YouTube videos, saying “Do this Stretch it will FIX SI PAIN” etc. but nothing seems to make any difference.  I’ve had the same issue for seven years now. I think it was separate but related to the hip impingement. I fixed the hip, but not the SI joint (lower back)

So after seven years of constant effort to find a cure, you realise it’s probably not going to happen. Recently, I went up in the loft and saw three excellent bikes, which look rather forlorn. I don’t want to add up the total original cost of the three bikes sitting in the loft, but it dawns on me it is a little extravagant to keep three bikes, rarely used. I also have many lightweight wheels, which as a hill climber you tend to accumulate – Zipp 404’s and a “Lightweight front wheel – weighing around 300 grams or something ridiculous.

The problem is that they are all rim brake bikes and this makes the bikes very last millenium. I imagine the resale price of tubular rim brake wheels and rim braked bikes has plummeted. I’d like to sell, but you are resistant to sell when you need to accept a huge discount from the original bike. There’s always part of you thinks. “But, if I sell all my best bikes, I’m bound to get better and then I’ll need to buy new ones!” I have a zen-like attitude to personal possessions – I love selling on ebay or giving to charity shops, but with bikes there is a degree of attachment. Funny I have no attachment to my turbo trainer. (see below)

In 2013, the Trek Madone (the bike I used in 2013 National HC) was I believe top of the range, but now manual shifting and rim brakes – show how quickly the bike industry has moved on. The bike industry are very good at creating the old adage “There’s always a better bike to buy!”

Kirkstone Pass 2023

When I was racing, my dream hill for the national hill climb was Kirkstone Pass, the Struggle. Mainly for selfish reasons, it would have been an ideal hill for me. But, it was great to see the event as strong as ever held on closed roads on Kirkstone Pass in 2023.

Turbo Trainers

Remember the days of spending 30 minutes on a turbo in the garage? I never tried the modern-day video game versions. People seem to spend much longer on Zwift and the like. I always found turbo trainers intensely boring and time moved slowly. You had to be super-motivated to do 30 minutes or even an hour. Does anyone still use static turbo trainers? I tried to sell it on gumtree for £5, but I got no takers, so now I’m giving it away for free.

The Trek Madonne is theoretically a deluxe winter training bike. The problem is I never do any winter training these days.

The irony is that I have three great bikes, but I spend all my time on an old winter hack, which I’ve had for getting on 25 years. I’m tempted to consider a disk-brake commuting bike to see what all the fuss is. But, whenever I think of buying a new commuting bike – I’m always stuck in that conundrum, taht given the risk of bike theft in the centre of Oxford – why chance it with a better bike?

Also, I’m selling my Scicon Travel bag. It’s very good. You can read the review here

It’s available on Gumtree here. £90 ONO

It’s not all doom and gloom, I still really enjoy cycling 10-15 miles a day around Oxford – there is a wonderful bike path. It’s enough to keep fit and happy.

The post Selling Up appeared first on Cycling uphill.

I bought a very nice commuting bike in 1999 for about £550 (It was a Trek) but it got stolen from the back of my house. I bought a second hand bike (Trek 1000) from a neighbour for £200 as a temporary stop gap. 17 years later, I’m still riding this temporary stopgap. It is essentially an aluminium road bike, adapted for commuting. I often check out alternative commuting bikes and have test ridden a few, partly for this blog, partly for interest in ‘upgrading’ my commuting bike.

There is a great choice of commuting bikes for under £500. I would separate the choices into:

1. Classic / Retro Style Bikes – Look cool, great joy to have. Slower. heavier. A bit more expensive. Not great quality at less than £500.
2. Hybrid Bikes – best value. Most practical, most widely bought. Cheap prices due to economies of scale.
3. Mountain Bikes – Good for rough terrain like canal paths. Wider tyres are slower. FOr under £500, you won’t get a ‘real’ mountain bike, more like a hybrid geared towards the MTB range.
4. Road Bikes – Faster, narrower tyres, more aggressive riding position, but less stable than hybrid bikes. Useful for longer commutes and those wishing to combine commuting with training.
5. Single Speed Bikes – Easy to maintain. Look cool. More expensive (not many under £500). Not good if you have lots of hills!
6. Foldups – Useful for those commuting by train. Limited choice for under £500. Certainly, no Bromptons come under this price range.

1. Classic Commuting Bikes

If you are looking for a classic, stylish bike, there are few under £500. For example, the Dawes Diploma looks like an old fashioned classic bike. It may not be the fastest bike from A to B, but, it does the business and looks pretty cool too. One limitation is the 3 speed Sturmey archer.

For real style, why not have a look at the classic Dutch Gazelle. It has a real continental flavour and stands out with distinctive design and colour. But, difficult to source in the UK, more likely to find on eBay second hand.

• Pros of Classic Bikes – look good, fits in with ‘cycle chic’ appearance. Steady to ride
• Cons of classic bikes – are slower to ride, heavier. not great for long distances or up steep hills. More attractive to thieves than your common MTB.

Hybrid Bike

If you are more practically minded, you might like to buy a hybrid bike. This is a cross between a road bike and mountain bike. It comes with road size wheels, but a thicker tread than ordinary racing bike wheels. In a sense, hybrid bikes are simpler, cheaper versions of mountain bikes. They are fine for commuting, offering good stability and practicality. They can be easily adapted for panniers and mudguards. There is a great choice of hybrid bikes under £500. If you are willing to spend £300 you can bike such as the Dawes Discovery. Hybrid bikes from under £200 will be made of cheap steel and will typically be quite heavy with more unreliable components.

Dawes Discovery

The Dawes Discovery 201 is available for under £400.

Just £400 for a solid commuting bike. On the heavy side at 14 kg, this has a good choice of gears so you will be able to take it steady. It will appeal to a commuter looking for a non-sporty, but a reliable and sturdy commuting bike. It is good value, and although not super-cool, it will mean it is less attractive to thieves.

Review of Dawes Discovery 201

Trek FX 2

The Trek FX range is quite extensive and is pretty good value. The Trek FX 1 is only £400. For £499 you can get a Trek FX 2, which comes with disc brakes

• Internally routed cable and a lightweight aluminium frame.
• Tyres: Bontrager H2, wire bead, 30 tpi, 700×35 c
• Shimano Altus shifters
• Shimano derailleur – Shimano Tourney (front) Acera (rear)
• Brakes Tektro HD-R280 hydraulic disc, flat-mount, 160 mm rotor
• Weight: 11.95kg
• Equipped with potential points for panniers, mudguards and bottle holders.
• Sizes (S) to XXL will fit all sizes.
• 24 gears rear cassette (11-32) front chainring (48/38/28)
• Comfortable grip handlebars.

It is very good value for under £500. thick good quality tyres and a range of gear choices. It is not going to be the fastest bike on the streets, because of the ’35 wide tyres, but with 24 gears,  and a very low gear of 28-32, it will be much more than you will ever need.

• Trek FX at Evans Cycles

Ridgeback Speed Hybrid

At 30lbs, 13.6 kg, I’m not sure ‘speed’ is the most appropriate name. The advantage of the Ridgeback is that it comes with all the essential extras that a commuting bike should have. Namely mudguards and pannier rack. Both of these make commuting a much more enjoyable experience. If you choose a commuting bike, I would factor these extras into the pricing (along with a good lock and lights) The tyres are quite wide Vee Tire Zilent 700x42c tyres are better than many on hybrid bikes in this price range. But at 42′ are not exactly speedy. Despite a slightly misleading name, it is a good solid, middle of the road commuting bike.

• Frame: 6061 Aluminium
• Fork Hi-Ten Chromoly
• Gears – Shimano 21 speed. Derailleur Tourney (12-32)
• Breaks – Promax TX-117 V-Brakes
• Saddle Ridgeback custom

Specialized Cross Tail

Geared towards the mountain bike genre. At just £450, this gives quite a lot of comfort for a sub £500 bike. Disc brakes offer more powerful braking. Suspension forks and 38′ MTB style tyres this is a  bike suitable for commuting over rough terrain, which may involve a canal path or just potholes on your local roads.

The latest model the Crosstrail Hydro Disc comes in at £575 but has features not found elsewhere for a similar price

• Disc Brakes – Promax Solve hydraulic
• Shock absorber forks – SR Suntour NEX For
• Tyres – Trigger Sport Reflect 700 x 38c
• Specialized Cross at Evans

Giant Escape

The Giant Escape is a popular commuting bike, coming in both men’s and ladies and different models. There are quite a few choices for less than £500. For £499, you can get the very good Giant Escape 1

Giant Escape 1

• ALUXX-Grade Aluminum frame
• Giant Composite with ALUXX aluminium steerer fork
• Shimano Alivio and Altus 27-speed transmission
• Tektro linear pull brakes
• Giant GX02 double wall aluminium rims with Formula hubs wheelset
• Giant S-X2 puncture protect 700x32mm tyres

Fold Up

Foldup bikes are great for anyone who has to commute part of the way on the train. Look for bikes which are not too heavy and easy to dismantle and put up. Bromptons are the best known type of foldups but they don’t have many options under £700. See Review of Bromptons.

Dahon Vittesse

Dahon are also a  good brand and the Dahon Vitesse is sold for around £400 and is said to have a folding time of 15 seconds. It took me longer when reviewing. I did a test ride, but was put off by the relative slow speed of foldups.

• Review of Dahon Vitesse

Single speed Bikes

 Charge Plug

Charge Plug have a few different models from £350 upwards. A basic single speed, which doesn’t have the price label of some more established single speed names. See Review of Charge Plug

Commuting bikes under £200

To get a commuting bike under £200 means you are getting some pretty inferior components. The bike is likely to rust and break down more frequently. The tyres will be thin and more prone to punctures. If you can spend more than £200 do! But, if saving money is a real priority, I’ve reviewed these two cheap bikes.

Ammaco Dresden

£179. Plenty of gears on a cheap aluminium frame. But, tyres are weak and gears prone to becoming unresponsive. Will not last too long without needing to go back to shop. Review of: Ammaco Dresden

Raleigh Oxford

Another popular bike here in Oxford. You see quite a few with substantial amounts of rust. Pretty slow to cycle, not the best experience. Surprised Raleigh put its name to it. Review: Raleigh Oxford

My Commuting Bike

My commuting bike is a Trek 100 road bike (now discontinued). I bought second hand for £300. Brand new it would have cost £450. It is quite a practical commuting bike as it is relatively fast and has pannier rack, mudguards, lights. It’s only limitation is when we get a dusting of snow, the thin wheels 25′ are pretty narrow for the the weather conditions. Over the 17 years, I’ve spent a lot replacing worn out components. I’ve switched to Armadillo All Condition tyres.

I have made front chain ring – single ring – taking off the front derailleur for less maintenance. I run a short chain to avoid it coming off. I use clip on mudguards, though I would like full all the way round mudguards. I only use 2-3 different gears in Oxford, and would consider single speed / even fixed.

I don’t ride particularly fast on commutes, but it’s good to have a road bike because you can get into town without getting hot and sweaty. I wouldn’t wish to switch to a slower hybrid mentioned in this article, because I would have to work up more of a sweat to get into town.

Related Articles

• Tips for commuting by bike
• Best puncture proof tyres – one of the best upgrades for a commuting bike

Buying

• City and Commuting Bikes at Wiggle
• Hybrid Bikes at Evans

The post Best commuting bike under £500 appeared first on Cycling uphill.

You might say the Pashley is the Rolls Royce of bicycles, but that wouldn’t be really correct because a Rolls is flash, ostentatious and expensive, the Pashley isn’t. The Pashley is more of a lovingly restored vintage car you’ve picked up for a few thousand. It’s not often you get the chance to get a really great vehicle and still have change from £700.

Design

Pashley have refined the art of bicycles, one glance at a Pashley and you feel it is the image of what a bicycle should be. I’m not enamoured of the over-engineered Brooks saddle complete with multiple springs catches. (though I feel it slightly sacrilegious for offering any criticism to a wonderful British product)

But, overall it looks a classy bike. Closer examination reveals a well made traditional bike focused on clear and neat colours of black and silver. The steel frame is traditionally lugged and brazed. If you are looking for the opposite of a cheap aluminium hybrid or MTB, the Pashley gets as close as anything.

Pashley Sovereign bikes are quite popular in Oxford with students and professors, where the relative flat and short distances of cycling around town make it a suitable bike for cycling across town.

Ride Quality

Curved steel forks for greater absorb-ability of shocks.

The Pashley is good to ride. As you might expect, with all the accessories, you have a considerable weight to carry around (20Kg). It is definitely not fast. The steel frame gives a comfortable ride and the upright riding position encourages a relaxed approach to riding around traffic. It is the riding position I noticed most, as it is quite different to most bikes I usually ride. By keeping you in an upright position, it encourages a different mode of cycling. It is also a good position for observing movements in traffic.

The 5 speed Sturmey Archer gears are quite low and it enables you to take your time in finding an easy gear.

Accessories

The Pashley Sovereign comes just about equipped with everything you could want from a bike.

• Mudguards
• Bike rack
• Internal rear wheel lock (for quick locking) though you would also need an extra lock to lock frame.
• Good puncture-resistant tyres Schwalbe Marathon Plus
• Front Dynamo light, rear LED light.
• A fully-enclosed chaincase and protective skirt guard
• Large bell,
• Wicker basket,
• Pletscher alloy rear carrier,
• Prop stand
• Frame-fitting lock and pump

When I compare it to say the Electra Amsterdam, you are getting a complete deal. If I bought this bike, I wouldn’t feel like anything needed an urgent upgrade. Because of all these extras, the Pashley starts to look really quite good value.

Who would enjoy the Pashley Sovereign?

The Pashley is for someone who loves bicycles and would like to ride a bike they can really look after over the years. You buy a cheap hybrid or MTB for a couple of years, but if you buy a Pashley you are buying a bike for life. When you look at it like this, the Pashley isn’t too expensive. £600 for a quality bike is really not too bad. It’s also a price tag where you are still willing to risk leaving it locked up in town.

If you live in a really hilly area, e.g. Bristol, I’d think twice about buying this as it is quite heavy and you may find yourself walking up very steep hills.

Would I buy A Pashley Sovereign?

It’s the kind of bicycle I feel I should buy. It would look really good to keep in the dining room (where I keep my unattractive commuting bike) It would make me feel like I was a real bicycle connoisseur. It’s like a really keen motorist going on top gear and when Jeremy Clarkson asks you what car you have, you’re rather embarrassed when you say just a second hand Ford Escort. If you’re a real car lover, you want to get a ‘real car’ a Morgan or Lotus in British Racing green. It’s the same with bicycles, a real cyclist doesn’t want an Apollo MTB.

The Pashley Sovereign would change my riding style, I wouldn’t be able to cycle past so many people on the commute into town. It might encourage me to cycle slowly and enjoy the ride, so I probably wouldn’t take the plunge, even though it is a really nice bike to own and look after.

It isn’t for anyone who lives at the bottom of a 16% hill or a cycle messenger who want to get from A to B in the shortest possible time. But, many people would really enjoy riding and looking after a Pashley Sovereign.

Technical spec

• Frame – Traditionally lugged and brazed hand-crafted steel frame
• Fork Tubular crown, hand-brazed
• Number of Gears 5
• Shifters – Sturmey Archer 5 speed thumb shifter
• Chain set – Traditional, slender chromed steel crank
• Pedals – Alloy body with non-slip rubber inserts
• Brakeset – All-weather, low maintenance front and rear hub brakes
• Handlebar – Chrome plated raised bar
• Stem – Stainless steel Quill
• Grips – Authentic black rubber grips
• Rims – 26″ polished alloy rims
• Rear Hub – Sturmey Archer 5 speed C50 hub
• Tyres – 26×1 3/8″ Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres with extra puncture protection and reflective sidewalls
• Saddle – Antique brown Brooks B66s natural leather saddle with twin coil springs

Frame Sizes

• 17.5″ frame suits 27.5″ – 31.5″ inside leg
• 20.5″ frame suits 30″ – 34.5″ inside leg.
• 22.5″ frame suits 33.5″ – 38″ inside leg.
• 24.5″ frame suits 35″ – 39.5″ inside leg*

Buying Pashley Sovereign

You are unlikely to find the Pashley discounted because Pashley try to protect the brand by not allowing discounts.

• Pashley Roadster Sovereign at Evans Cycles
• Pashley bikes at Evans Cycles
• Pashley Sovereign at Pashley.co.uk

Pashley Princess Sovereign

The Princess sovereign is based on the classic Roadster sovereign but is designed for women. It has a step through top frame and comes with a front wicker basket. The Pashley is also available in Regency Green.

Princess Sovereign at Evans

The post Pashley Sovereign review appeared first on Cycling uphill.

If you can spend £1,000 then you can get quite a significant improvement on these £500 entry level bikes. The range £500-£1,000 is very competitive these days, and you can start to get carbon frames and good groupsets.

Although, you can spend several thousands of pounds on a road bike, the difference between a £1,000 bike and £4,000 bike is not that significant for an amateur who is just doing some general riding / sportives. If you are a newcomer to the sport of cycle races, your results will not be significantly better for spending an extra £4,000 – at least in the beginning.

Best Frame

It is sound advice to buy the best frame you can. With a good frame, you can always upgrade components later. For example, a good value deal for your first road bike, would be to look at a Raleigh Revenio Carbon or Trek Madone 3.1 (£1,100) Both come with a good quality carbon fibre frame. It is the kind of frame you can build on and later get a top of the range bike. But, don’t feel a carbon fibre frame is essential. Aluminium frames can offer excellent value for money and can be as light as carbon fibre. Also, there is a big difference between different types of carbon fibre frames. Also, don’t discount other frame materials, such as steel/titanium.

A Future Winter Training Bike

In my case, my first road bike cost about £700. It was from Ribble Bike builder, based on a Ribble Aluminium frame with Shimano 105 groupset. It was excellent value. I really got into road cycling. After 5 years, when I got serious about cycling I spent £5,000 on a Trek Madone 6.9.

I still use my Ribble as a winter training bike (after 15 years of ownership) so don’t worry about getting  a £500 bike, it can easily become a winter training bike. When you have a top of the range bike, you don’t want to be taking it out on salty roads in the depth of winter.

Buying Online or in a shop?

If it was me, I would buy my first road bike at a local shop. You may pay an extra 10-15% but it is worth it to benefit from expert knowledge, free service and also the chance to speak to a knowledgeable bike shop. Another benefit is that if anything goes wrong it is much easier to take it back. Also, quite a few bike-shops may be able to offer some basic advice on bike fit. It really is important to get right saddle height, frame size e.t.c

Not all local bike shops are equal, try to find one with an interest in road bikes (rather than just hybrid / student  bikes). For example, I wouldn’t bother with the Cycle King variety of cycle shops. For example, in Oxford Beeline bicycles now has a specialist road bike section which is a good place to go. I’ve bought a couple of bikes there – often through the Trek Project One system. This is a good combination of online choice and also using a local dealership. I also like Evans Cycles as you can combine local shop, with some of the benefits of online economies of scale.

Tips to Get better Value from a road bike

Buy in September when you can start to pick up last year’s models at a cheaper price. This is the easiest way to get a good discount. Last years models can be 10-30% cheaper, but there is only 1% difference in quality. I’m riding a winter training bike which is 15 seasons out of date. But, it does a good job.

Extras. If you buy at a local bike shop, try asking for a few ‘free’ extras. e.g. ask for a tyre upgrade or some bottle cages e.t.c. Most bike shops will be willing to do this.

Buying Second Hand?

I’ve never really got into buying bikes second hand, so I don’t have much advice here. You can save some money, but you need to know what you’re doing. I might be selling a Trek Madone (2nd  hand) soon.

What Do you Need From Your First Road Bike?

A few questions to ask yourself?

1. Which gears do you need? E.g. Compact gears of 50/34 means that you have a lower gear range. This makes going over hills easier than the standard 53/39. See: Compact vs Standard gears for more details
2. Will I be using it for racing?
3. Which material do I want? Carbon fibre frame and fork mean you will need to pay over £1,000 but it gives a more comfortable ride. Aluminium tends to be cheaper, but don’t write off aluminium, it is still very lightweight and strong.
4. Some brands are more expensive. If you want a premium Italian brand like Bianchi or Colnago, there tends to be some premium for the image associated with the bike. You might find better value with American bikes like Trek / Specialized. British Raleigh bikes have also made a strong comeback recently, and they have produced quite a few entry level road bikes.
5. Best place to buy? Would you need help setting up / bike fit?
6. Aero or lightweight. Some road bikes are becoming increasingly specialized e.g. bikes based on weight (Emonda) vs Aerodynamic bikes. For most people buying a first road bike, I wouldn’t worry about this distinction.
7. Tubeless ready? More bikes are coming ready with tubeless ready technology – if you set it upright, you can really limit the amount of punctures you get.
8. Does it look good? When I buy a bike, I always want it to look good. Forget Shimano vs Campag. It’s the colour of the bike that really matters
9. Do I need electronic shifting? Shimano Dura Ace / Ultegra Di2 is a great product. I gave an enthusiastic review here. But, I should really have added, it’s not necessary. Mechanical shifting is still very good. Only if you are looking for very tiny marginal gains in hilly time trials does Di2 really come into its own? At the end of the day, electronic shifting is a lot of money for not particularly a lot.

Suggested Entry Level Bikes

The market for road bikes seems to be continuously expanding. You are faced with a huge range of different companies, models and combinations. It’s impossible to do a review of whole market – it would take forever. In reality, there is not a huge difference between different bikes – often they have similar components and similar frames. Often friends ask me to recommend a bike for between £500 – £1,000 and I find it a difficult question to answer. The truth is there are many good bikes at this price range. I don’t think there’s anything that really stands out.

These are three bikes, I know a little about, but I could easily have chosen many others.

Trek Madone 1.1 – 1.5

The Trek 1.1 is based on Trek’s starting Aluminium 100 series tubing. It comes with Shimano Claris 16 speed. Compact gearing 50/34. This Trek 1.1 is around £575 and makes an excellent starting bike. I use an older series similar spec Trek for my commuting bike. It is not flash, but an excellent way of getting a decent road bike for around £500. As you would expect at this price, there is no carbon fibre in the fork or on stem/handlebars. But, the aluminium is sufficiently comfortable in the ride.

If you want to spend more than £500, you can upgrade to better spec models within the Trek range, such as the

• Trek 1.5 with carbon fork and Tiagra gearing.
• Trek 1.7 Aluminium Frame, Carbon Fork. Shimano 105 groupset and Bontrager components.

• Trek Road bikes at Wiggle Cycles

Specialised Allez

The Specialized Allez is another good entry level bike, at just over £500. Aluminium frame and fork.  16 speed Shimano 2300 compact gear set, give a good range of gears. Tyres of Specialized Espoir Sport have a good reputation for being puncture resistant. I bought a Specialized Allez for riding in New York. I’ve written a more detailed review here. (also experience of testing £300 road bikes, encouraged me to spend that little bit more.)

Specialized entry level road bikes at Wiggle

Giant GT

• GT GTR Series 4 /5/ GT GTR Series are good entry-level bikes – from £500 upwards.

Best Upgrades for Road Bike

Tyres. Many entry-level bikes don’t have the best tyres. It is worth upgrading to really high quality.

See: Best Road Tyres

The post Buying first road bike appeared first on Cycling uphill.

Trek Speed Concept 9

• 600 Series OCLV Carbon,
• KVF (Kammtail Virtual Foil) tube shape,
• Carbon Fork
• Weight: frameset, cockpit setup, headset, BB and small frame parts come out to 1,874g
• Total bike weight (with Bontrager R5 training wheels and tyres) 8.1 kg

Bike with draft box

 Project One

I bought the bike through Project One. You order the bike online (or through Trek dealer) and it gets delivered to bike shop. The great thing about Project One is that you can choose any combination of equipment. This enabled me to keep costs lower by choosing cheap training wheels. I also like to be able to choose the colour of the frame. You can spend quite a bit of time, switching equipment on the website

Another great thing about Project One is that it gets delivered to a good bike shop and experienced mechanics can put it together. The staff at Beeline bikes Oxford have been helpful in getting the bike on the road. Project One combines the best of the internet buying with also using a good bike shop. The best of both worlds really. Definitely adds to the experience to get a bike through a bike shop with enthusiastic workers to look after bike.

Trek Speed Concept at Project One

The main disadvantage of Project One is the time taken for bike to arrive. I ordered in  May. It arrived end of July. I kept waiting to have enough money in the bank before ordering, but if I’d known how long it would take, I could have ordered earlier.

Also, it has proved bad timing on my part. My time trial season is effectively over (I might do one 25 mile TT just to use bike). I should have waited for new model to come out in Autumn and got bike for start of 2015. When buying a bike, it’s always worth planning the best time of the year to buy it.

Clean lines on Trek Speed Concept

This is what you pay your money for. Nice neat lines, everything hidden away. Super aero.

Neat front section. Really clean. Though annoyingly the plastic cover doesn’t fit 100% flush with the fork.

Smooth rear view (the black plastic bit for draft box can be removed) The lines of the frame are immaculate.

What’s it like to ride?

First impressions are good. Pretty stable at high speed. Seems to cut through the wind pretty well. Though disappointingly if you want to go fast, you still have to pedal very hard. It is difficult to make quantitative judgements about how much time it saves from last bike (Trek Equinox SSL) Even when I race it will be difficult. I was more impressed by the electronic gears than new frame. Electronic gears are pretty cool and easy to see the difference. Marginal aero gains, hard to judge. But, it definitely looks Aero!

Overall

Overall I am happy. It looks good, it looks fast and it feels like a big upgrade from the last bike. It has some very nice touches like micro adjustment of saddle, aero fins, clean lines and integrated brakes. It isn’t perfect, some things spring to mind.

• Project One takes a long time to arrive
• For such a high quality bike, there are moments of ‘cheap plastic’. The draft box fell open on first ride, and it does have feeling of cheapness. The front aero brake cover is a great idea, but it doesn’t fit 100% flush. Disappointing, even if very marginal.
• I was surprised the aerobars had moments of cheap aluminium. They could have saved weight there.
• The aerobars are OK. Though I guess I was hoping for a bigger angle of adjustment.

Problem

Aerobar bolts keep breaking. See: this post on aerobar bolts that keep breaking.

Weight – The new bike is the same weight as my Trek Equinox SSL. Partly this is due to the extra bits and bigger frame which make it more aero. 8 kgs is still reasonably good for a time trial bike and this compares well against other TT bikes (though as I found when researching TT bikes, companies hate giving weights for bikes). Also, I might be able to reduce weight a little with lighter saddle and lighter wheels.

It’s easier to list the things which could be better. But, it’s still a very good bike. Nevertheless, it doesn’t quite feel like the finished product. Perhaps future models will be able to improve on this. I’m hoping I will be able to go faster on this bike than old bike – though I have a feeling these extra seconds will be relatively expensive seconds saved.

Still, if all else fails, it looks good, so that has to be worth it.

Other bits about bike.

Aero fins

Aero fin in front of rear wheel. It does look a little ‘fishy’. I’ve taken mine off.

Adjusting brakes

Inside the casing, the front brakes with plastic cover taken off. It’s quite easy to adjust brakes. (e.g. making wider for wide rim like Zipp 808)

Tribars and cockpit

The integrated tribars and cockpit offer a degree of adjust-ability. It’s not too difficult to change.

The integrated cockpit can be angled about 10 degrees. It’s good for those wanting to adjust angle (something many TT bikes don’t offer). But, it’s not enough angle for those who want to ride in the praying mantis position (potentially much more aero position)

I think the Speed Concept base bar is UCI legal though it does look to be stretching the 3:1 ratio rule.

The integrated tribars are not particularly light. This is fairly heavy aluminium. Pretty soon I decided to cut off those extra bits because they stick out in the wind, and weighed 50 grams.

Alternative to Speed Concept basebar.

If you are happy to have a flat aerobar and ditch angle, you can buy an adaptation which simplifies this base bar set up and save a bit of weight. I can’t remember what it’s called, but it will come to me sometime.

Unfortunately, the Dura Ace battery didn’t fit in that space by stem. Making it a little bit sticking out. This is the only area of the bike that is not super-smooth and clean.

The end of the tribars stick out and it looks like it needs cutting.

Frame

Shimano Dura Ace front mech. 54/42. My last bike was 56/39

Integrated fork and TT frame. This is the full foil fork. I choose the non UCI Legal fork, which I may regret for next year’s British Time Trial Championship

The rear brake pads are hidden behind the Chainring.If you want to change the brakeblock, you will need to take the outer chain ring off. (Ouch!)

I hope the aero benefit is worth the extra maintenance hassle.

The frame

Draft Box

Trek claim that the addition of the draft box doesn’t add any drag onto the bike. It is drag neutral.

It is a fantastic carrying space. Easily get a couple of spare inner tubes and mini pump. I’m often in a dilemma about carrying spare tub in race, but this makes it easier.

However, for such an expensive bike, it feels like surprisingly cheap plastic. On my first ride, the lid jumped out on a speed hump.

The bike looks better without it.

Adjustment of arm pads is quite good, you can change angle.

Dura Ace Di 2

It is a new bike, but also a new gear system. Electronic dura Ace Di2. I didn’t set it up, but left it to bike shop. They have quite a bit of experience with Di2 and say it is very low maintenance and easy to use.

I will review Dura Ace Di2 later, but first impressions are really good. I can definitely see how it will be very helpful in hilly timetrials. It’s just so easy to change gears!

Dura Ace rear derailleur

Reasonably aero front mech. It’s a real surprise to feel how easy it is to change between chainrings. Just changing gears gives joy with Di2.

Non-invasive gear change Buttons.

Brake levers have wonderful ergonomics.

The brakes are incredibly powerful, though I have to change the brake blocks for carbon rims – so braking power will be affected.

Front mech

Related

• Best time trial bike

External links

• Trek bikes at Evans Cycles
• Time trial bikes at Evans Cycles
• Trek Speed Concept at Project One

The post Trek Speed Concept 9 Review appeared first on Cycling uphill.

Courtney finished in a time of 2:37.5 (29th). Perhaps without on-board camera he may have finished in a time of 2.37.4. But, it captures what it is like to race up Bank Road.

You can roughly calculate time saved from weight loss

My 2016 hill climb bike

This year I didn’t really get into the world of marginal gains. I even left a Shimano Ultegra derailleur on. It is about 500 grams heavier than 2015 Hill climb bike.

I wish I had chance to take more photos of hill climb bikes. I heard Pete Tadros rode a 3.9kg fixed gear bike and Matt Clinton’s Emonda was 4.7 kg. Weights have fallen a lot in recent years, especially for geared bikes.

Take a look at this hill climb bike from the 1950s.

My one concession to weight was removing front derailleur and outer chain ring. That saved 214 grams.

I weighed bike on pavement after race at 6.0kg but I think the un-even surface slightly altered the weight. I weighed myself at 61.5 kg the day before. Clothes and shoes add a bit.

Bike links

• Hill climb bike 2015 – 5.2kg
• Hill climb bike 2013 – 5.9 kg

What I might buy for next year

A lightweight rear brake so I can remove Dura Ace brake – which is heavier for gear shifting.

A lightweight narrow-wide 42 tooth chainring. I did look for one this year, but it was very hard to find for 4 teeth 110 BCD

Other bike at race

Related

• Blog from 2016 national hill climb championships

Photo links for national hill climb 2016

• Andy Jones at Cycling Weekly
• Kimroy Photography albums
• Russell Ellis photos
• Cadence Images
• CraigZad Photos
• Ken Norbury photos
• Gary Main album at Facebook

For other albums add link in comments.

The post Hill climb bike 2016 + Video + Photos appeared first on Cycling uphill.

I used this in my first hill climb season. 2004. I remember using it in Otley CC hill climb and Brighton Mitre, but I’ve lost the photo. 12 years is a long time in website history.

Although it is quite light (8.9kg with current heavy wheels) It was relegated to a winter training bike quite a long time ago as new, more expensive road bikes came along. I used to just accumulate bikes, but it’s time to let this one go. Over the years, I’ve probably done more miles on this bike than any other. I don’t know how many miles, but I would image 30,000 would be a reasonable guess. It’s accumulated wear and tear you would expect on a well ridden bike, though there are also some new components too. (inc. new cassette and chain)

It is collection only from Oxford, so if you are interested you can bid on its Ebay Listing

The post Ribble Winter Training Bike for sale appeared first on Cycling uphill.

• It is a very competitive market segment with numerous bike companies offering several models. It is impossible to review anything like close to all the models available.
• To some extent, many of the bikes in this price bracket will be quite similar. It is hard to find huge variances in quality and spec.
• A more important question is to ask – where is best place to get a bike? What features do I want from a road bike? Have I left enough money for important extras.
• Which is best material? Steel, Aluminium, Carbon fibre or even titanium? There are not many full carbon fibre bikes for under £1,000, but there are an increasing number of companies who can squeeze a carbon fibre bike under £1,000. I wouldn’t see it as essential. Also, it is not just the material, but how it is put together. You can get cheap carbon fibre frames and more expensive carbon fibre frames. To get a carbon fibre frame under £1,000 may lead to lower quality. Aluminium is very popular in this price bracket because it is cheap, strong and easy to mass produce. The disadvantage of aluminium is that it tends to give a bit of a ‘harsher’ ride – you notice more potholes. Aluminium is also harder to mould into attractive smooth lines (though new technology has led to improved Aluminium frames in recent years, and we are starting to see more Aluminium in top end road bikes)
• Sportive vs Road bike. A sportive bike is a racing road bike, with slightly different geometry. They tend to have a taller headset to give a more upright and comfortable position. Racing bike geometry tends to make you lower – more aerodynamic and tends to be less comfortable. There is not a huge difference, but you can choose between comfort / speed. Sportive bikes also tend to be less stiff – absorbing more vibrations more comfortable ride. Finally sportives tend to have compact chainsets 50/34 – rather than bigger gears, such as 53/39.
• Many £1,000 bikes have some cheap components, such as wheels and tyres to allow them to stay under £1,000. It means if you get into the road bike, you can consider later buying some better race wheels, which often provide a big upgrade on the cheaper wheels which come with the bike.

Cycle to work scheme

Bikes under £1,000 also fall under the UK governments cycle to work schemes. If your employer has signed up, you could save a significant amount (25%). If your employer hasn’t signed up, try and encourage them to!

Groupsets for bikes under £1.000

For bikes under £1,000 – the most common groupsets are Shimano Tiagra or Shimano 105. 105 is a very good groupset and comes fairly close to the performance standard of Ultegra and Dura Ace. It benefits from many ‘hand-me-down’ technology. 105 is probably as good as Dura Ace was many years ago. A very rough order of groupsets.

• Shimano Claris (tends to be fitted to cheaper Hybrid bikes)
• Shimano Sora (9 speed road bike groupset (£429)
• Shimano Tiagra (now 10 speed) RRP £449
• Shimano 105 (10 speed, now 11 speed) RRP £559

You can buy these groupsets cheaper than the list price, but it does shows that if you built up a bike from different parts, it would be more expensive than buying the full bike altogether.

Firstly my bikes which I bought under £1,000

Ribble Aluminium Frame-

I bought this over 10 years ago. It is is Aluminium frame, carbon fibre fork and Shimano 105 groupset. It came in at around £900 and I bought from Ribble Bike builder. I got a custom paint job. I raced on it for a few seasons, but has now become my winter training bike. All of the groupset has worn away several times, but I am still on the existing frame and fork. It has held up very well, despite taking a real battering. The paint on the carbon fork has started to peel away, but carbon fibre is inert and will not rust. The good thing about aluminium is that the odd dent, doesn’t impact on the frame too much (Unlike carbon fibre, where it can write-off the frame).

Overall, this bike has been tremendous value. I have done over 50,000 miles on this bike, not bad for £900. Just shows you shouldn’t worry about wanting to save up for a top end bike. If you get into cycling, your £1,000 road bike will make the perfect winter training bike.

When I look at Ribble today, their sub £1,000 bikes are mainly carbon fibre frames, so it shows how technology has changed.

Ribble 7005

Ribble road bike with 7005 Aluminium frame and  Groupset based on Shimano Sora starts from a very low £575.

Ribble Bike builder

Specialized Allez Sport

Specialized Allez is a popular entry level road bike series, there are several models to cater for different price brackets.

• Specialized Allez 2015 is £600 rrp
• Specialized Allez Sport – £750
• Specialized Allez Comp – £1,200 (you may get for under £1,000 if you’re lucky)

The Specialized Allez sport is based on:

• Specialized E5 Premium Aluminium tubing
• Specialized FACT Carbon fibre fork
• 9 speed Shimano Sora STI groupset
• AXIS Classic wheelset
• Specialized Espoir Sport tyres

I bought a Specialized Allez in US for training over there. After riding an expensive Trek Madone, it is a bit of come down. But, it remains very good value for the money. A friend recently bought a Specialized Allez for £600 an is quite happy with value.

They also do women specific Specialized Dolce Vita.

Full review of: Specialized Allez

• Specialized Allez models at Evans Cycles

GT Grade Al 105

Within the segment of entry level road bikes, there has been an increased demand for road bikes that are more versatile – built for a wider range of terrains and less constrained by typical UCI regulated racing bikes, almost a semi-cross bike. To a purist, this unconventional frame may not appeal. But, this is typical of a new generation of road bikes, built for comfort and versatility rather than traditional aesthetics. The triangle frame adds extra strength comfort and durability.

The bike has a combined mechanical / hydraulic disc brake system and a high end Shimano 105 groupset.

• Frame Grade alloy
• Fork Carbon
• Groupset 11 speed Shimano 105 groupset.
• Cable Disc Brake with TRP Hyrd mechanical/ Hydraulic disc road brake, 160mm rotor
• GT Al at Wiggle Cycles (RRP £999)

Cannondale CAAD 8

At the other end of the spectrum the Cannondale CAAD is more of an entry level racing  bike. It comes with race geometry and a traditional race look and feel.

It is built on:

• Light-weight aluminium frame CAAD8, Optimized 6061 Alloy
• Carbon fork.
• 11 speed Shimano 105
• compact 50/34 chainset and 11-28 cassette
• Wheelset – Maddux RS
• Tyres Schwalbe Lugano, 700×25c
• Weight: 9.1 kg

The Cannondale is an excellent starting frame for an entry level road bike. Like many road bikes in this price range, the wheels  offer an opportunities for a significant upgrade, when you have a bit more money.

Trek 1.5

Many of my own bikes have been Trek. My commuting bike is an Aluminium Trek (old Trek 1000). It has been going for over 15 years and is pretty fast as a commuting bike. The major downside is that you do feel all the bumps and potholes of Oxford roads. However, the fork is aluminium. Since I bought that bike, there has been an improvement in aluminium frame and with the Trek 1.5, you get a carbon fork which is a nice upgrade.

• Frame: 100 Series Alpha Aluminium
• Groupset: Shimano Tiagra
• Compact chainset 50/34
• Tyres: Bontrager T1
• Trek 1.5 at Evans Cycles

I have found Trek offer good value road bikes. They also sell bikes at the same price in shops as they do online, so it is worth checking out a local Trek dealer.

For a £1,000 you can get the Trek Madone 2.1. The Trek 2.1 comes with a very nice 200 Series Alpha Aluminium frame, carbon fork and Shimano 105.Like the Cannondale CAAD 8, it is a very high spec Aluminium framed road bike for under £1,000

The Trek 1.1 is only £700, but you only get Shimano Sora groupset .

Other Bikes

There are so many other bikes and models to consider. There’s a lot to be said for going into a bike shop you trust and seeing what they have on offer.

Related pages

• Buying first road bike

Road bikes

• Road Bikes at Evans cycles
• Road Bikes around £1,000 at Wiggle

The post Best road bikes under £1,000 appeared first on Cycling uphill.

People think that a big fat saddle is going to be more comfortable to sit on. I guess the size of this saddle spreads the weight. But, it isn’t really any more comfortable to ride.

The thing with this bike is I really didn’t feel comfortable to ride more than 15mph. In fact as I was cycling along, I spent a considerable time waiting for gears to index. The back wheel was also buckled, not overly reassuring since I was testing a brand new from shop. I assume this was just very bad luck to pick the bike with a buckle in back wheel.

The brakes are fine at stopping, though you do have to squeeze pretty confidently. I guess you won’t be tearing around corners on this. However, they do look fairly flimsy and will need careful maintenance over time.

I have to say, I really quite like how it looks, at least from a distance. When you get closer, it starts to look a little cheaper, like the plastic mudguards are not going to win any prizes for style.

Extensive Chain guard protection

Handlebars are adjustable in height, quite a nice touch, though I doubt the actualy buyers would be too fussy about finding optimal handlebar height. It’s the kind of bike you buy and hope to ride it straight from shop. Tyres are cheap and will offer no extra puncture protection, so be prepared for quite a few irritating punctures.

Extras.

For the price, it’s very good to see it come equipped with mudguards and panniers.

Pretty good mudguards.

Shimano Turney gears – I found pretty rattly. Takes time for indexing to work. May not have been set up to optimal indexing, but the front changer was pretty slow and hard work to move. Rear mech was better.

Looks nice. A good simple paint job

To be honest some of the extras on this bike would get pretty close to £165 alone.

If I was a Car?

If the Ammaco Dresden was a car, I’d be tempted to say a Lada with a really nice paint job and roof rack attached at no extra cost.

Who would it Suit?

It would suit a student on a tight budget, absolutely unable to pay more than £200 for a bike. It might also suit someone who wanted to buy a bike for a few months when visiting a new city.

Is it Good Value?

I know this level of bike components will need more maintenance. There will be more punctures, the brakes will need careful attention and it is more likely to rust. It’s good value if you are a student buying a bike for a year or so. If you’re looking for a bike to last a decade, don’t bother.

Would I buy the Bike?

Would Ian Paisley buy a Celtic flag? I’m too much of a bike snob to buy something so cheap. Also the experience of cheap MTB has put me off spending a £150 hoping to get a good deal. What made me want to test this bike is my lodger wants a bike, but has no money. I see 100s of these Ammaco’s around Oxford and to be fair they seem to last pretty well. I guess if I was an impoverished student only wanting to cycle 2 miles a day, I might be happy to ride this. But, then I might be happy to to get a free can of Tesco Value Baked Beans.

Go on get out that student loan and blow it on a nice Pashley! – who needs beer and curry? spend all your grant on a bicycle. “You’ll never regret buying a bicycle”

Related

• Best Hybrid Bicycles

The post Ammaco Dresden Review appeared first on Cycling uphill.

Single speed

All come with Cro-mo steel frame and fork

• Charge 0 – £329 (bullhorn bars)
• Charge 1 – £399 (bullhorn bars
• Charge 2 – £499 (drop track handle bars)

Geared Charge Plug

• Charge 3 –  (disc brakes, Shimano Sora Gears)
• Charge 4 – Shimano 105 gears (£1,099)
• Charge 5 – SRAM Rival 22 gearing and hydraulic discs

Charge Plug 0

This is the entry level Charge Plug bike, newly released

• Charge steel frame and fork
• Bullhorn bars
• Gear: 42*16
• Caliper brakes
• 32′ tyres
• Charge Urban wheelset
• Brakes: Promax RC482  Flat bar caliper levers
• Charge Plug 0 2015 at Wiggle

At £329, it is quite a cheap introduction to single speed bikes. For simplicity and value, the Charge 0 is a reasonable start.

The Charge Plug – comes with bullhorn bars, these are a little more aerodynamic and help enable a stronger push when pedalling the single speed off from a standing start. They also help the bike stand out from the pack. However, many novices to cycling will find it easier to use horizontal bars.

Charge Plug 1

In many ways the flagship model, this comes with a Cro-molo (mainly steel frame) which offers greater strength than just a pure Steel premium frame.

GEARS/ Single speed.

FRAME/ Cro-mo. FORK/ Charge Whisk, steel.

CRANKSET/ Shield track, single ring 42t.

WHEELS/ Charge Urban doublewall rims with Charge shield front hub and rear flip flop hub. Spokes stainless steel

TYRES/ Charge Coaster, 32c tyres.

BRAKES/ Promax RC482

HANDLEBAR/ Charge Slice.

STEM/ Shield road, 31.8mm.

SADDLE/ Charge Spoon.

PEDALS/ Wellgo alloy trekking. CASSETTE/ DNP 16t FW / 16t fixed cog.

CHAIN/ 1/8” shortlink.

The frame and fork is a cro-molo (mainly steel) Tange Plain Gauge. The gearing is by default a 42 tooth chainring by 16 rear cog – nough to get up all but the steepest hills. The bike comes with Charge Coaster, 32c tyre. Upgrading to any of a wide range of better commuting tyres, will help offer better puncture protection and also a better quality ride. Personally, I like to put something like Armadillos tyres on commuting bikes. They are very strong, resistant and great at resisting punctures.

A quick test ride of the charge plug was enjoyable. It’s very different riding a single speed to a normal road commuting bike. Of course, lower end road bikes are cheaper than these single speed. But, at around £400, the charge road bikes offer a good value single speed, which is both good looking and solid components.

Given that one of the main attractions of these single speed bikes is the aesthetics, it would be worth charge considering offering custom paint colours. There is a reasonable choice between different versions. But, clearly choice of handlebars and colour are two big factors for people choosing between single speeds.

When buying a single speed like the charge plug, you have to bear in mind, there are no mudguard, pannier eyes. It is good for sleek looks, but, not so practical if you want to be carrying more than in a messengers bag.

Charge Plug 2

HANDLEBAR/ Charge Bowl.

Road brake levers

Related bikes

If you prefer horizontal bars, try the Charge Sink.

Related

• Charge Plug range at Chargebikes.com
• Charge Plug bikes at Wiggle

The post Charge Plug review appeared first on Cycling uphill.