gobes
I'm planning on doing my first 'cross race in a few weeks.
I currently have a Tricross Sport that I purchased last December. I bought it because it was the first 'cross bike that I found in a shop that fit me. I've ridden the bike a lot on and off road and it has served me well. One thing that I liked about the bike was that is has eyelets to attach racks and appears that I could use it for touring. I even sold my Trek 520 touring bike.
One thing that I don't like about the bike is that it is pretty heavy. I always figured that the frame weight was reasonable but that the bigger wheels and tires were what made it so heavy. Well, a few weeks ago I threw a pair of road wheels on there to see the difference and it was still prettyy heavy. I don't know how much the tricross frame weighs but I'm guessing now that it weighs quite a bit more than I originally suspected.
Another thing that I'm not too thrilled with the Tricross is the 45cm chainstays. I think that they're simply too long and that maybe I could get better traction going up steep climbs with shorter chainstays. I think that 43cm would be ideal as that would still allow me room to put on panniers and not hit my heels.
A couple of days ago I was in a shop and saw the Fuji cross comp. It seemed to be a nice bike at a good price, $850. Fuji claims that the frame weight is only 3.3 pounds. The bike definitely felt lighter than my tricross. So now I'm driving myself crazy thinking about selling the tricross to buy the fuji. The fuji has eyeletes for a rear rack although I probably couldn't put a front rack on with the fork that comes with it. Also the fuji has 43cm chainstays.
What do you guys think about these two bikes? Any recomendations on which one might serve me better? I will be racing this season and I might go on a tour someday.
I currently have a Tricross Sport that I purchased last December. I bought it because it was the first 'cross bike that I found in a shop that fit me. I've ridden the bike a lot on and off road and it has served me well. One thing that I liked about the bike was that is has eyelets to attach racks and appears that I could use it for touring. I even sold my Trek 520 touring bike.
One thing that I don't like about the bike is that it is pretty heavy. I always figured that the frame weight was reasonable but that the bigger wheels and tires were what made it so heavy. Well, a few weeks ago I threw a pair of road wheels on there to see the difference and it was still prettyy heavy. I don't know how much the tricross frame weighs but I'm guessing now that it weighs quite a bit more than I originally suspected.
Another thing that I'm not too thrilled with the Tricross is the 45cm chainstays. I think that they're simply too long and that maybe I could get better traction going up steep climbs with shorter chainstays. I think that 43cm would be ideal as that would still allow me room to put on panniers and not hit my heels.
A couple of days ago I was in a shop and saw the Fuji cross comp. It seemed to be a nice bike at a good price, $850. Fuji claims that the frame weight is only 3.3 pounds. The bike definitely felt lighter than my tricross. So now I'm driving myself crazy thinking about selling the tricross to buy the fuji. The fuji has eyeletes for a rear rack although I probably couldn't put a front rack on with the fork that comes with it. Also the fuji has 43cm chainstays.
What do you guys think about these two bikes? Any recomendations on which one might serve me better? I will be racing this season and I might go on a tour someday.