sdmc530

I have been riding MT bikes forever and I am looking to buy a road bike for the first time. I am an avid rider. I put on about 1,000 miles a year in our riding season. Living in SD I only get about 8 months of riding a year.

Anyways I am 6' tall and 295lbs. I started the year at 332, and dropping pretty good but I am fearful of a road bike holding up to my size. I have been doing research and discoverd that most bikes are not "recomended" for my weight. I was looking to buy a Spec. Allez but they the spec website says its only for 285 with cargo. So I get to looking into bikes that will hold my weight and I found that Cannondale has better rating, I really like the Synaps but that too is only 290 lbs.

Cannondale CX bikes are rated for 330lbs, that is great but I am really interested in a road bike. Any thoughts, I am under the perceptions that the weakest part of the bike is the wheels set up, so if I am to buy a road bike and jsut beef up the wheels would be ok on a un-recomended bike weight?


Sorry for the newby questions, I know MT bike but nothing about road bikes.
thanks!!

Black wallnut 

You are 10 pounds over the limit..... With dietary adjustments you could drop enough weight by riding season to be within the weight limit of an Allez. I'm sure there are riders that weighed more than you do that have ridden an allez without issue. Test all that you can and choose the one based on which LBS treats you the best and which bike feels the best.

Ronno6

I am a big (pun intended) fan of the original design (1985-1988) Cannondale road frames.
I have been on 'Dales since 1986 and have weighed as much as 275#
I continue to ride that series frame today.
They are rigid,sturdy rides that have always served me well.

I have had little problem with 32 spoked wheels, but would recommend 36 spoke wheels for you.
25c tires would also be a plus.

If you consider touring framed bikes, then you can go to 32c or wider tires.
Less efficient, but more comfortable and will help the wheels handle the load.
Just my $.02
Good luck!

sdmc530

Thanks. I didn't think about spokes, but I was looking at 32-35 tires for sure.

Dropping the 10lbs to fit the recommended weight is a goal to continue to loose the lbs but still worry about the bike fatigue, don't want to drop 1250 bucks to have something I should not be riding.

My LBS has been a great resource and brutally honest with me, I like that...mostly.

Cannondale is my first choice right now, Sepc would be second....not a brand hatter of any but Trek is not my favorite at all.

Johnny Mullet

I am a clyde and had 2 older, but really good road bikes. I still have one of them today, but don't ride it much. I have a good quality, light weight mountain bike and ride it all the time and a beater mountain bike I ride daily. I truly feel that in order to ride a road bike in comfort and no flats (700c rims/tires) I need to get below 200 lbs. My 2 cents.

Willbird

If your diligent IMHO you can shed that 10 lbs in about 5 weeks, maybe a little less actually :-). Log every morsel of food you eat, hit the proper goals, get 30 minutes or more aerobic exercise every day, it will happen for you IMHO. If you have 4 months, golly you could be down 32 lbs by then :-).

Bill

sdmc530

Bill your absolutly right, I am working "dillgently" on my diet, but just concerned still. 4 months is a good time frame to work with. Just don't want to set myself up for falure/dissapointment.

dr_lha

One thing to remember about weight limits on bikes is that they are conservative (thank you lawyers!)

The main issue you will have with any bike is the wheels. Certainly my bike could not cope with my weight until I replaced the low spoke cheapo Chinese house brand wheels with higher quality 36 spoke wheels (Velocity Deep Vs). The problem is that unless you spend a lot of money on a bike, they almost always come with cheap house brand wheels, and the fashion is for low-spoke counts, which is bad for Clydes.

So I think in answer to your question is: Yes, you'll be fine with a road bike with beefed up wheels. The one caveat will be whether or not the bike company will have issues with the warrantee if you do this. I'd talk to you LBS about this issue.

Willbird

One Day at a Time and you will be fine :-). Are you logging intake may I ask ??

Bill

MRT2

But the good news is, a stronger 36 spoke wheelset doesn't have to be outrageously expensive, and you might need just a back wheel. the stock front wheel might be adequate for the time being.

dr_lha

FYI I spent $286 on my 36-spoke wheelset, which have remained strong and true for almost 2000 miles now, and I'll be honest I splurged a bit by getting fancier hubs than I probably needed. Agreed that the problem will almost never be with the front wheel, the only reason I got a set was that I am vain and wanted my wheels to match!

sdmc530

Bill,
Yes, I do. Last July squad started a biggest looser compition. They got me to join in, and I needed it. So for 12 weeks I was crazy into food and calories. Little to no carbs are sugar. Rode bike every chance I got. I am lucky to have a really nice bike path system. In the 12 weeks I lost just short of 30lbs. Felt reallly great. Wife loved it and still working on it. Winter will be tough but have a trainer bike in the basement. Keeping it honest and trying to loose some more.

I see the guys riding road bikes and just flying on the trail...wan't to do that. So that is the deal, in May for my birthday a new bike for me.

Black wallnut 

Hey that's a great goal Johnny but there are plenty of folks over 200 pounds that find comfort, real comfort on a road bike. I at 230 pound wore out 2 sets of tires 25's without a flat. I think I was at over 250 when I bought my first road bike. My LBS fit it to me so that I was comfortable. Each time I had an issue related to fit we made tweaks that made it better. Two years ago I did my first STP in one day 204 miles and my discomfort during the ride and after had nothing to do with my fit on the bike. This year at IIRC 212 pounds I was comfortable the entire way. Some sore muscles the next day, some cramping as well but otherwise comfort was achieved.

sdmc530

good info too....my LBS said too that this would be an option. For about $350ish....

dr_lha

For the record, this is the wheelset I purchased:

Velocity Deep V Black Shimano 6800 Hubs 7-11S 36h DT Sl Wheelset [72847] - $269.00 Velomine.com : Worldwide Bicycle Shop, fixed gear track bike wheelsets campagnolo super record vintage bike

I was going to get my LBS to hand build me a set (at considerable more expense), but unfortunately they let me down with the timing and I had to get a wheelset real quick as my back wheel assploded 5 days before I was due to do a metric century. These guys had the wheelset in my hands with 2 days to spare, and it's been solid.

nymtber

Honestly, get whatever bike you want, so long as its NOT an ultra-light model. Consider it motivation I would not discount a CX bike, either, as they are just a beefy road bike! Change out tires, BAM road bike. And, IMO a CX bike should come with tough wheels already....should.

dr_lha

Yep this is what I did. My bike is a CX bike, but replacing the tires and I've ridden it as a road bike for thousands of miles without issue (including doing a non-metric Century). The benefit of a CX bike for clydes is the ability to put fatter tires on it, which help with comfort and flatting a lot. That and they're generally built to take more punishment of course.

Sadly, this is not always the case, in my experience!

sdmc530

Update, I stopped at my LBS today, the one I trust. Talked to the owner and we chatted about road bikes. He echoed what you have said, any road bike frame would be fine in steel or AL, just need different maybe a bit wider wheels. He said if I wanted that rout he would set me up happily. However he recommended that I do get a CX bike for now. I do resect his opinion. He said if I am not going to race but just continue to do club rides and charity rides I would be fine on the CX with some slick tires. I sat on a few that he had and said if I found one I liked it could be customized more to my roadie liking or just wait a few years and when get a roadie down the road.

I really liked the Cannondale CaadX he had one with 105 componants and it was really sweet. Was a touch to small for my height but he said when I am ready to buy he would have the frame I need in the 2015 models. I am seriously considering that bike now, really liked it, was a road type set up and I would probably just get a second wheel set to have slicks on one and standards on the other. Was really comfortable to sit on seemed like a really nice bike.

Willbird

From what I have read anyway "tread" on road bike tires really does not serve any purpose related to traction or hydroplaning. Slick is just as good as treaded on dry or wet pavement.

I think if we heftier folks will have issues with wheels it will tend more to be rear wheels, so I built a spare rear, I need to get it finished up (need to build a truing stand first) and get a tire and tube.

Bill

nymtber

I was actually going to link you the CaadX bikes earlier! If you like it, buy it. Your health and well being are worth it Although, it won't hurt to try out other bikes, either.

Sounds like the bike shop owner is doing his best to build a relationship, and thats great! Did you ride the bike? If not, ride it. Even if its just a bit too small of a frame, you can get a feel for it.

I wish you luck, and when you do get a bike, remember: We need pictures

sdmc530

My LBS owner seems to be a super good guy, really helpful, he WILL get my sale in the spring.

I didn't get to ride teh CaadX because we just got snow and I couldn't but he said to stop buy Saturday and I could take it for a ride. I plan to do this, I rode it on the trainer in the store and it just felt "right". It was a 52 frame I think and was a bit small for me. I hope to ride it Saturday. If it still feels good it will #1 on my list and the one I will buy. Just really excited for this bike, can't wait for spring!

sdmc530

Good to know Bill. Am going to too look into tire tread vs. road use vs. rolling resistance.

dr_lha

CAADX 105 will be a great bike.

ClaretMike

Local Bike Shops are a great font of knowledge.
I'm at 217lbs and looking at either Specialized, Giant or Cannondale. Giant is looking more likely.

Been to a few big chains who didnt really seem to care or know what they were going on about. Get out there and test as many as you can. You'll soon find the one and gain some really good knowledge along the way with LBS.

Jarrett2

Don't let the weight ratings scare you.

I rode a Specialized Secteur at 325 lbs. 1700+ miles on that bike and its still going fine.

I ride my carbon Specialized Roubaix at 275lbs. 2000+ miles on that bike and its still going fine.

It's all about getting strong wheels under you.

52 is too small for you. If you are 6 foot, then look at a 58.

Don't be scared to buy carbon if you are 295 and dropping weight consistently. I wish I would have bought a carbon bike sooner.