"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - What to ask for?

Here's my situation: I've saved up quite a bit of "present points?" I Didn't get anything for christmas or my birthday b/c i said that i wanted something for my bike, but wanted to wait till i got into racing. I'm to start racing this season, What do you think i should ask for?

I have a nice Eddy Merckx MxM, and i would be devestated if i crashed it in a race..

My thoughts are, once i get to Cat IV, get a pair of tubular racing wheels.. lookin at the Reynolds SDV66s (this would be my racing & training bike)

OR

get http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=34009 Specialized Tarmac Comp Double, for racing..

OR

I have an old Steel Racing bike, it's pretty light, but i would get a carbon fork, new seat, and switch out the handlebars with ones i already have.

What do you guys think i should do from a performance, sense and cost standpoint? I really don't want to do any damage to my Merckx, but i still want to USE it.

I would recommend to do the same thing I am doing now. Spend some money on a power meter and learn how to effectively train.

I would recommend to do the same thing I am doing now. Spend some money on a power meter and learn how to effectively train.

+1

Steel bike + power meter

Unless you crash it REAL bad, your bike should be fine. A big mistake (IMO) would be to buy a bike for racing only. I had separate "racing" vs "riding" bikes and there was always a twinge of regret every time I would not race my favorite bike for fear I would destroy it. And now, I've wrecked that bike several times. Big deal. I'll race it until it explodes. It is carbon so from what I understand, it will explode sooner or later ( :rolleyes: )

I wouldn't spend the money on Tubular racing wheels for cat 4 either. But that's just me. Unless your current wheels have something wrong with them.

Good points, but which would i use to race/train on? Steel + powermeter for both?

+1

Steel bike + power meter

For the win.

Get some Sidis too. Comfy feet = more training time :)

+1

Steel bike + power meter



I would not go that way unless he gets a powertap harness for the "good bike". If he gets an SRM for the steel "race only" bike it is a waste of money.

Get some Sidis too. Comfy feet = more training time :)


I got that covered, i <3 my sidis.

I would not go that way unless he gets a powertap harness for the "good bike". If he gets an SRM for the steel "race only" bike it is a waste of money.

If he had the money for the SRM I doubt he would have to save up present points :)
Powertap with a extra Ebay harness and he is good.

Yeah, my 2-harness 2005 PT SL was $680 shipped, after the new wheel build.

Get a power meter, use it to train well and get out of the 4's, save up present points all year and get some carbon tubs for next year.
I just finally picked up a set of carbon wheels, and though they do make an immediate and noticeable difference, it really isn't much. And I waited until I got my 2 upgrade (I just felt left out :) )
Wheels won't upgrade you. A power meter, if used correctly, probably will.

I'll probabley go with the powermeter & a new fork, except my steely is 9spd and my merckx is 10spd.

For some reason, the D/A right shifter is $7 less than the Ultegra:
http://aebike.com/page.cfm?PageID=30&action=list&Category=660&brand=367&modelid=4984&type=T

I think this and a chain are all you would need. Not sure on the front shifting impact, but with a designed-for-9-spd crankset, the front der should be in good shape even with the narrower chain.

The other option is to get friendly with your chain whip when going from train->race mode.

Don't spend money on the steel bike unless something breaks.

I'd put all my coin into the Merckx if you really like it. If you like it like "I want to have it when I am 60" like it, then you should buy another bike and put the Merckx away. A racing bike is 100% disposable. F1 guys don't cry when they crash their car - they just wait for the crew to build another one up from spares. As long as you think of it that way, you'll be fine.

Once you have a bike, deep profile wheels make a lot of sense if you don't have them already. For speed/dollar, it's hard to beat deep profile wheels (other than position and your own fitness/speed).

HRM is fine, power meter is better. PM lets you participate in all the power type discussions. HRM gets you working hard and costs less than $100. PT is nice, you don't need extra software to DL your data in a sensible fashion (SRM software is terrible).

Whatever you do, don't blow your money on the beater. It's money taken away from your power meter or a HRM or a set of tires or a new cassette for the Merckx etc etc etc. If someone basically gives you what you need (Reynolds Ouzo fork for $50 for example) okay, fine. But to pay any more than that, forget it.

If you crash and destroy your race bike you'll have to replace it. But I think the chances of doing that are very, very slim. Maybe a brifter or a rim, usually not a frame, fork, or anything substantial.

If you're racing for a while and you really want to have a backup bike, then buy one exactly like the one you're racing. Same seat, bars, stem, post, crank length, pedals. You can cheat a bit on drivetrain levels (front der, rear der, cassette material), brake calipers, etc. Make sure it's identical in feel and fit. This way it's not a huge handicap if you actually have to use it. Bonus is if you get the backup on the cheap.

good luck,
cdr