Road Cycling - Recommended upgrades?

I have a 2003 Lemond Tourmalet, that I'd like to think about upgrading. I'm thinking of spending no more than $200-$400.

Where can I get most bang for the buck in performance and riding enjoyment?

I wouldnt mind new brakes, but they might not be where to prioritize. I ride for fitness, 20-60 miles. Wheels? I'd need something strong enough to lug my 5'11" 250lb frame. I have no idea how to evbaluate wheels. crankset?

Or should I save my money since the $$ i pour into this bike might not be value added?

Side question #1, I want to get a camelback. two, 24oz bottlews doesnt cut it on a 50 mile ride. Thinking about a M.U.L.E. since it has some storage space. Too big from other's experience? Is getting a black camelbak a bad idea? For some reason, I get the feeling that a black bag would heat up the water alot quicker.

Side question #2. Lock? Is it akward carrying a Ulock on a road bike? Does it get in the way? Would come in handy when I want to leave my bike unattended for 5-20 minutes.

Side question #3. Going clipless. How do I evaluate the type of shoe and cleat? So many choices, intimidate me from making a mistake.

http://www.lemondbikes.com/2003_bikes/images/tourmaletmens_archive.jpg

MODEL Tourmalet
COLOR Red | Blue

MAINFRAME Reynolds 853 Steel Alloy
FORK Bontrager Race Carbon
HEADSET Direct Connect 1 1/8" semicart.
BOTTOM BRACKET Shimano BB-UN40
CRANK Shimano Tiagra DOUBLE 53/39
PEDALS Alloy road | sealed | w/clips & straps
FRONT DERAILLEUR Shimano Tiagra
REAR DERAILLEUR Shimano 105
SHIFT / BRAKE LEVERS Shimano Tiagra STI
CASSETTE Shimano HG-50 | 9-speed | 12-25
CHAIN Shimano HG-53
WHEEL SYSTEM Matrix Aurora Alloy Hubs
TIRES Bontrager Select
BRAKES Alloy | Dual Pivot
HANDLEBAR Alloy Ergo
STEM TTT The
TAPE Bontrager Cork
SADDLE *CRZ+ Road
SEATPOST Alloy micro-adjust
OTHER SPEC 2 waterbottle bosses | pump peg

Wow......

1) You don't pass by some place with water in 50 miles? Refill the water bottles.

2) Bike goes where I go or I don't go. (Unless a riding partner can watch it for a min.)

3) This should be your first upgrade. Good pair of shoes, good set of pedals. (IMHO)

Two water bottles not enough?? It should be just right for 50 miles. Are you eating anything on the rides?
Clipless pedals would greatly enhance your experience! For the money you want to invest, a nice pair of road shoes (specialized?) and pedals(Look/Shimano) is a good investment. everything else on the bike seems good.
A lock would in bad taste on that fine ride!
My tools and tube go in the saddlebag. Pump on D/T

trifona ...

nice bike, how does it feel?

1. i like a camelbak, and i have the mule. i can carry all my tools, tube, and CO2 pump in there along with cellphone, keys, snacks, etc along with a couple liters of water.

2. as grampy said, bike goes where i go ....

3. as gramy said, nice clipless pedals and shoes ...

-- michael

'04 Tourmalet

I have one of the smaller Camelbaks with minimal storage capacity - just enough for some CO2, tire levers, a spare tube, keys, and cell - and I highly recommend you get one. I can't imagine doing much riding without one now. It's just so much nicer than reaching for a water bottle all the time. But then, I tend to consume massive amounts of water, so two water bottles hardly lasts me through a 20 mile ride.

I will also fourth or whatever the suggestion to get some new pedals and shoes. Going clipless can make a *huge* difference. Some will disagree, but ride clipless for a couple weeks and it becomes second nature. To say nothing of the improved comfort and power transfer.

After that, how's you saddle?

Wow......

1) You don't pass by some place with water in 50 miles? Refill the water bottles.

2) Bike goes where I go or I don't go. (Unless a riding partner can watch it for a min.)

3) This should be your first upgrade. Good pair of shoes, good set of pedals. (IMHO)

1. My favorite ride is a 54 mile trail loop. At 20 miles, there's a CVS. At 27, some stret vendors, on spring summer weekends only. I'm also type 1 diabetic since I was 9. Having soome storage for supplies, and/or extra sugar, power bar or gu would make me feel safer.

2. Had to leave the bike unattended to run in to the CVS last weekend, when my blood sugar went low. An extra powerbar would have saved me, but I will plan better next time, but part of me still wants to overplan this.

3. I tend to agree on this abstractly, but do bike shops even let you try on shoes and pedals? Ok Shoes I could see, but pedals too? Any good reading?

Most equipment upgrades don't make economic sense. Unless you spend a ton of money on new components, the incremental change is so tiny that you'll never notice it. The least bang for the buck is new brake calipers. All they'll do is slow you down. An exception is clipless pedals. You really will feel a significant performance improvement once you get acclimated to using them. You'll gain more style points with clipless pedals than with anything else too.

100 oz. of water is a lot of water. I have a MULE, but I only use it for mountain biking or for roadbiking in the hottest weather. If you fill it up, that's a noticeable amount of weight on your back. Usually I only fill mine half full. One thing I like about it is that, once you get rid of the hot water in the tube, the water stays cool for a lot longer than in water bottles. Mine's royal blue so I doubt it's much better heat absorbtion wise than black.

The first lock that you put on your bike, regardless of how cheesy, is about 90% effective. That's because you have forced the potential thief to bring tools with him. To go from 90% to 99% effective you engage in a game of one-up-man-ship with the thief that you will ultimately lose. Given time and technology, people still manage to break into bank vaults. Carrying a U-lock around with you isn't normally necessary unless you park your bike at work or some such place on a regular basis. If you're the nervous type, park your bike next to some nice bikes that aren't locked and put a cheesy lightweight cable lock on yours.

Two water bottles not enough?? It should be just right for 50 miles. Are you eating anything on the rides?


I just drink alot of water. I'm a big guy.



Clipless pedals would greatly enhance your experience! For the money you want to invest, a nice pair of road shoes (specialized?) and pedals(Look/Shimano) is a good investment. everything else on the bike seems good.

This is something I want, just not sure how to go around it. Shoes, come down to fit. Pedals? There are so many different kinds!



A lock would in bad taste on that fine ride!

Thanks! But my stem has a 45' angle, so it looks different. I dont want to lug a lock around either. Like I said, I got caught in a bad spot last week, when I needed glucose. Better preparation would have doen me better.



My tools and tube go in the saddlebag. Pump on D/T

My bag stores a cell phone, car keys, tire levers & patch kit ( no pump!), cellphone, and glucose tester (think thick wallet size). Money I hide in my shoe. How do you pump a 100 psi tire with a hand pump? I'd get a CO2 cartridge kit, but have no space. Maybe I should start wearing cycling Jersey's!

trifona ...

nice bike, how does it feel?

Oh I love it! Quite smitten by it. Sometime I wonder If I should have bought a 57cm though. I did ride a 57cm Poprad, but that felt too big by comparison. I bought it in March, a 2003 specifically, because it was Steel, the new Lemonds, are aluminum, unless you pony up fro their spline design bikes. The bike cost me only $700. So much lighter and faster than my slick equipped MTB. Brakes aren't very good. Deraillers work well. Tires get ripped up very easily, and only go upto 100 psi, dont better tires do 125? The bike fits me very well. I have major back problems and this is very imprortant to me. The Trek 1000, 1500, 2000, and 2200 all caused me some degree of shoulder blade pain in different sizes. I have 2 consecutive thoracic hermniated discs which I take percocet almost nightly to cope with pain I feel in the morning. The Lemond geometry in a variety of models were all much better for me. And yes the Steel feels so nice compared to Aluminum! Part of me wishes for a 'Cross bike to handle more uneven terrain, but my wife would kill me If I bought a 3rd bike![/QUOTE]


1. i like a camelbak, and i have the mule. i can carry all my tools, tube, and CO2 pump in there along with cellphone, keys, snacks, etc along with a couple liters of water.

I was told at my LBS that maintenance can be a real hassle. They recommended keeping it filled with water all the time in the fridge (air bubbles removed), because, no matter what It would get mold growth within a couple of months, even with hang drying. your experience?

Try a friends pedals. Buy shoes first so you feet are happy.

How do you pump a 199 psi tire with a hand pump?
The road hand pumps go up pretty high. Doesn't your bike have a pump peg? Get a full size frame pump.


Maybe I should start wearing cycling Jersey's![/QUOTE]
Whoa. Hell yea! Not only are they comfy, and sweat doesn't stick around like cotton, they come with pockets for stuff.

Shimano Ultegra front derailleur
Shimano 105 Brakes with Kool Stop brake pads
Speedplay X/3 or X/2 pedals with shoes of your choice

I would not change a thing at this time. This is a very nice bike and all the parts will last you a long time if properly maintained. Brake calipers are all the same these days. Yours will stop you just a well as any $200 set. If you're having problems change to the KoolStops pads.

I would go to clipless pedals and would use the LOOK brand with your size. They have a larger cleat and platform. If you really want to spend some money go for the pedals and shoes first then maybe a carbon seat post and carbon handle bars. These are more of a comfort item and you will notice a difference with the bars.

I was told at my LBS that maintenance can be a real hassle. They recommended keeping it filled with water all the time in the fridge (air bubbles removed), because, no matter what It would get mold growth within a couple of months, even with hang drying. your experience?

Not true in my experience. I've used the Camelbak Flashflo waist model and the older Snowdawg backpack for both distance running and skiing and I've found them to be easy to maintain.

I just take the bladder out, drain it and hang it up somewhere. By the next morning its almost always 99% dry. Every week or so of heavy use, I'll just run a little soft soap through it and rinse it a few times. You can use a long stem pipe cleaner to scrub the inside of the tube, but I've never found that to be necessary.

Check out your local sporting goods store and try on a few different models. If I remember correctly, the Mule is a little bigger than some of the others... I know there are several that have space for little items such as keys, candybars, etc. and still have a pretty low profile. Make sure it fits comfortably.

Also, go for the clipless pedals. Any SPD compatiple pedal and shoe that is SPD compatible is fine. Lots of people like the new "eggbeater" pedals. However, SPD is the standard thats been around for a long time. Your LBS can have you try on specific shoes. Clipless is a GREAT upgrade and really changes the way you ride for the better.

Oh yeah, and get a synthetic NON COTTON jersey. Basic ones can be found all over for $25-30 if you shop around. Cotton sucks.