Bikeforums.net is a forum about nothing but bikes. Our community can help you find information about hard-to-find and localized information like bicycle tours, specialties like where in your area to have your recumbent bike serviced, or what are the best bicycle tires and seats for the activities you use your bike for.Zephyr11
08-31-08, 10:03 PM
I was looking around at some tri bikes today. I don't plan on buying really soon, because I won't need it this year (fall is half-marathon season for me), but the guy at my local shop seems to think prices are going up next year. The shop I was at is supposedly a really good multisport store, and they do fittings for $250, which is then taken off the price of the bike, assuming you buy from them. I'm looking for something entry level, and they have two bikes in my price range...Cervelo P2 and BMC TT03. The BMC is absolutely beautiful, but it looks like their smallest model is huge ( http://www.bmc-racing.com/en/us/bikes/road-series/time-machine/tt03/geometries/ ) and I'm all of 5'3 and ride a 48cm road bike. Now I know that measurements vary from bike to bike...but geez that looks big. Is anyone familiar with this bike, and is it really as huge as the geometry makes it sound? The Cervelo is also very nice looking, though I'm a little wary of the 650c wheels, because I was told to try to avoid them when I bought my road bike. A lot of small tri bikes seem to have them though, so I'm assuming it's not as much of a negative on a tri bike. The Cervelo's kit is a lot nicer than what I'd be able to put on the BMC too (The BMC is just a frame, and I'd probably be putting on either 105 or Ultegra and some random off-brand stuff, though my roadie has 105 and it runs just fine. On the other hand, I could go with a DA Cervelo, or an Ultegra and wheels, since 650c aero wheels seem to come up cheap on Craigslist). The issue I'm having is I'm really hesitant to put down $250 if there's only one bike at the store that *might* fit me (the Cervelo), since if I don't buy the bike there, I lose the money. There's a QR dealer about a half hour away, but it's more of a normal bike shop than a multisport shop, and I think that the only tri bikes they carry are QR's and Transitions (which are well out of my price range), and I'm assuming if I got fit there (if they even do fittings), I'd have the same problem. I'm not sure asking to test ride all the bikes is an option, since the BMC is sold as a frameset and they don't currently have any P2's in my size and would have to order (they do have a P2C, and the guy said the geometry is the same, though last time I played that game I ended up with a mountain bike that was $700 more than my original price limit). I haven't been to the QR store yet. It also would be nice to have the professional fitting done on the Serotta cycle rather than base it on a couple mile test ride.
So I guess that was a long winded way of asking whether the BMC TT03's small size is really as huge as it sounds and how do 650c's compare to 700c's on small bikes. Any input is appreciated. Thanks!
So I guess that was a long winded way of asking whether the BMC TT03's small size is really as huge as it sounds and how do 650c's compare to 700c's on small bikes. Any input is appreciated. Thanks!