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Making My Hybrid more road friendly?

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Making My Hybrid more road friendly?

Old 06-04-14, 09:31 PM
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Originally Posted by Vexxer
I wish I could, really do not have the money right now.
Sometime ago, I was just picking up the rear while cycling with my club, when suddenly out of nowhere came this guy on a mountain bike and he managed to pass me up and ride along side the leader. We were all amazed at this guy on a freaking mtb, passing some of us and keeping up with the leader.

Speed always has more to do with leg muscle strength than the bicycle, itself. On a windless day, your hybrid should be pretty much on par with the drop bar road bikes, provided that you really know how to ride your performance hybrid bike...
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Old 06-05-14, 06:47 AM
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Originally Posted by MRT2
Save your money and just ride what you have then. You might surprise yourself how far, and how fast you can train yourself to ride a hybrid.
Spot on.
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Old 06-05-14, 07:07 AM
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Originally Posted by WestPablo
Sometime ago, I was just picking up the rear while cycling with my club, when suddenly out of nowhere came this guy on a mountain bike and he managed to pass me up and ride along side the leader. We were all amazed at this guy on a freaking mtb, passing some of us and keeping up with the leader.

Speed always has more to do with leg muscle strength than the bicycle, itself. On a windless day, your hybrid should be pretty much on par with the drop bar road bikes, provided that you really know how to ride your performance hybrid bike...
I have a similar story. About 6 or 7 years ago when I was still riding a hybrid, I did a group ride that left from my health club Saturday mornings. It was more of a fun ride than a serious road thing, but there was a core of 4 or 5 serious roadies who after warming up with the rest of the group, would drop the rest of the group. There was 1 guy who had no problem hanging with the fast riders and he rode a stock Giant Cypress, which, if you look it up, is basically a comfort bike. Sitting bolt upright, cotton shorts and T shirt, and platform pedals.

Your Escape is pretty entry level but for a year or 2 until you get the funds together to buy the bike you really want, and maybe should have purchased initially, the Giant will likely hold up.

If you really want, you can swap out or flip the stem to get a little lower, get some bar ends, and swap out the stock tires for something a little narrower and lighter. If these things give you a little mental boost, then by all means do them. But that is money that could go into a new bike fund.

In the meantime, ride, talk to your roadie buddies about their preferences, read up on bikes, and scope out deals both on the used market and at the LBS. Maybe that shiny new bike that is calling out your name will be within reach financially at the end of the season. Don't know about your local market, but in my neck of the woods, after Thanksgiving the LBS were absolutely dead and if I walked in with cash between Christmas and New Years, they would have sold me a road bike for a steep discount. (if I walk in this time of year, they might give me a small discount as a loyal customer, but nothing like the size of the discount they would have offered the end of December)

Last edited by MRT2; 06-05-14 at 07:44 AM.
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Old 06-05-14, 07:41 AM
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Originally Posted by WestPablo
You can't make Filet Mignon with hamburger... Save your money and get a road bike!
+1
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Old 06-05-14, 08:24 AM
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My hybrid originally came with 35mm tires. They were total slugs!
I went to 28mm. MUCH improvement, but they tended to be flat prone.
I've since gone to 26mm tires. better yet.
On long rides, accelerating the weight of bigger tires saps energy. Let's face it, we have to slow down for intersections, hills etc. and then speed up.

IF your bike has one of the generic 11-3x cassettes, a more "road friendly" cassette may give you more USEFUL gears. Who uses a 48-11 combination?
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Old 06-05-14, 09:05 AM
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It seems that group-ride speed has become your primary objective. As others have said, a road bike is your long term, ultimate solution. In the meantime, ride what you have and save your money for the new bike; the cost of modifications and accessories for the hybrid will quickly surpass the down payment on a new bike.

One inexpensive addition to your current bike that will add a lot to enjoying it is bar ends. The additional hand positions provided by long bar ends will enhance comfort and fun far beyond the cost.
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Old 06-05-14, 09:18 AM
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My first group ride I was invited along with a group of guys who belong to a group that ride extended tours, of about 50-60 miles a day for a week. They are all older. One of the group, who came with a recumbent, has ridden across America several times.

I was the only guy with a road bike. For the most part, they were more active and more fit, and had no problem keeping a good pace. I kept up, lead occasionally. On the downhill, I let it out, tucked and flew down the hill, on the return, they spun and I hurt.

Its entirely possible to do a century on a hybrid. I would suggest not just a thinner tire, but slicker tread for less resistence, and something that can take a higher pressure.
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Old 06-05-14, 11:28 AM
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Originally Posted by Bill Kapaun
IF your bike has one of the generic 11-3x cassettes, a more "road friendly" cassette may give you more USEFUL gears. Who uses a 48-11 combination?
I don't use my 48-11, but I use my 36-11 all the time. By the time I would get the front switched to the 48t, I'd be at the bottom of the hill and needing to get back to the 36 and down to the 34t on the rear again. Thus, I need all of my 9sp 11-34 in the rear.
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Old 06-05-14, 12:42 PM
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Originally Posted by mrodgers
I don't use my 48-11, but I use my 36-11 all the time. By the time I would get the front switched to the 48t, I'd be at the bottom of the hill and needing to get back to the 36 and down to the 34t on the rear again. Thus, I need all of my 9sp 11-34 in the rear.
I was responding to the OP.
I don't really care that you should have different size chain rings so you could run a more user friendly cassette.
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Old 06-05-14, 01:30 PM
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I would switch to a low rolling resistance 28mm tire, leave the flat bars, change the stem to a lesser angle and longer, that would stretch you out more like a drop bar bike and less up-rite. You can get some pretty good speed but I would be on the 48t unless the (up) hills get serious. Down hill you should be starting on the 48t.
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Old 07-12-14, 10:41 PM
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For giant escape, the answer is yes. I went from giant sx2 32mm to continental gatorskin 28mm and avg speed increased by 1-1.5 mph. used to do avg 15-15.2mph on hilly trails, now +16 easily. On flats easily going over 22mph while doing around 20mph with the 32s. Here is the downside, sx2 runs with 65psi, gators with 116. you'll need to make sure wheels are tensioned properly. My front wheel immediately started to make pinging noise. Broke couple spokes in the rear wheel. Eventually decided to change my wheels to mavic a319 with deore lx hubs that is handling my 240lbs weight much better. But that's another 250$ cost. Add the tires on top if that and you may realize you can get a reliable road bike for that money instead of the hybrid. Giant defy 3 sells for 950$.
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Old 07-13-14, 12:19 AM
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I have to say that converting my commuter hybrid, a Trek Valencia, into a faster bike was one of the best things I did. 32mm to 28mm tires made a huge difference. It is more responsive and with the lighter tires, I no longer feel like I'm peddling a barge. I also replaced my handle bar, flipped the stem and lowered the height. I put long bar ends on and point them forward for aero position when I need it. I replaced the clunky triple with a lighter single, with better rear derailleur and one added speed. All this wasn't cheap but it is like a completely different bike! Definitely faster and more fun to ride.
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Old 07-13-14, 05:56 AM
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Originally Posted by Vexxer
Wouldn't the different hand positions though stretch you out, making you lower and more aerodynamic?
Not very much. I have one and love it, but it doesn't do that. They are great at letting you move around changing hand positions and body positions. I'm less stiff after a ride with it. But as to speed? I don't think it helps at all.
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Old 07-13-14, 06:13 AM
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if you put the time into learning to build wheels it pays off. a low $ set up, sun m-13 rims, sapia butted spokes from thorusa, and vittoria zaffiro tires. the sun rims will take the 25mm tire, the 28 is pushing the limit for a 13mm rim [13x2=26] but not by much and works ok. you can use your current hubs, or get another set of hubs and you have 2 wheel sets, plus no down time while building the wheels.
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Old 07-13-14, 08:02 AM
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I respectfully disagree. I changed tires from a 32 to 28 and it made a big difference. Make sure you get a tire that can be inflated to 100 psi or greater. I know of other riders who did the same thing and it made a big difference for them as well. I agree that lowering your handlebars helps; but it will help more if you shorten your handlebars so that your hands are the same width as your shoulders. Bar ends can be helpful for hand grip variety and standing while climbing hills. I had a road bike and never moved my hands onto the drops so I never benefited from that handlebar. A hybrid will usually have a longer wheelbase which adds stability, while the shorter wheelbase of a road bike could feel twitchy. It would also help if you got toe clips or cleats. You'll notice the biggest difference between your hybrid and a road bike when climbing hills. If you're on a bike that is 5-plus pounds lighter and using cleats, you'll climb much quicker. I don't think there is much difference on flats and downhills. I hope that helps.
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Old 07-13-14, 08:59 AM
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Those bolt on handlebar drops, from Origin 8, really work, and are less than $20. I got mine from Niagara Cycle. They WILL make you more aerodynamic, and retain everything the way it is.

And, you have to get a better pump!
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Old 07-13-14, 09:07 AM
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Spend over $60 on light supple casing wide tires like Compass bike and Riv , the 33 Jack Brown, .. sells

and your speed will only be less, if you are lazy ..

https://www.compasscycle.com/tires_gb_700_32.html

https://www.rivbike.com/product-p/t100-g.htm

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Old 07-13-14, 10:42 AM
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Depends on what kind of hybrid bike you have. If you have a comfort hybrid, it will never go really fast. It was not built for fast day rides.

If you have a performance or fitness hybrid bike, which is basically a flat bar road bike, it will be as fast as a road bike because on the mid to high end models, they share the same frame with a corresponding road bike!

Basically, if your comfort hybrid bike is not offering you the fast ride you seek - either upgrade to a performance hybrid bike or save for a road bike.
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Old 07-13-14, 12:17 PM
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35 to 28 made a big difference to me. Single biggest upgrade difference-maker, as a matter of fact.
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Old 07-13-14, 12:50 PM
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I run 23mm front 25mm rear on my Hybrid. I did not enjoy 28mm tires at all, sluggish on take offs and just too touring of a feel to me.
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Old 07-13-14, 01:10 PM
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Ten tips: From my experience, there are several things you can do to improve the road performance of your hybrid. 1.) Use "28" tires with a smooth tread and a psi of at least 100. Keep your tires well inflated. 2.) Shorten the handlebars. Move your shifters, brakes and grips in toward the center so that your hands are as wide as (but no wider than) your shoulders. Take a hack saw and cut off the excess ends. If you have a typical hybrid handlebar, you will end up cutting two inches or more off each end. 3.) Use toe clips or cleats. 4. Use your shifters to maintain a steady cadence, not for power. If you grew up riding heavy single speed bikes like I did, you've been conditioned to pedal for power. Need to change and go for a smooth, steady cadence, not more power. Your speed increases. 5. Lower your handlebars as much as you can - it will bend your back forward. 6. Consider adding bar ends - they will prevent hand fatigue and give you leverage when standing on your pedals as you climb a hill. 7. Add a bike computer. Knowing your speed gives you instant feedback that helps you make better adjustments to your riding techniques and a measure for your progress. 8. Find opportunities in your rides to go for leg and lung burns - sprinting hard. This increases your speed and stamina. 9. Challenge yourself to maintain cadence in one gear higher than you think you're comfortable in. 10. Keep your bike clean and well oiled.
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Old 07-13-14, 01:13 PM
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Originally Posted by 2702
I run 23mm front 25mm rear on my Hybrid. I did not enjoy 28mm tires at all, sluggish on take offs and just too touring of a feel to me.
Do you ever have to ride on dirt or gravel? If so, how well do those tires handle that?
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Old 07-13-14, 01:22 PM
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Originally Posted by practical
Do you ever have to ride on dirt or gravel? If so, how well do those tires handle that?

I don't ride dirt, gravel on my Hybrid unless it to avoid a stray dog or hugh road imperfection. I just slow down on my skinny tires.
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Old 07-14-14, 09:12 AM
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Originally Posted by Jaeger99
My conclusion is that my hybrid is pretty close to perfect for its intended application, but it isn't a road bike and never will be.
That is true, but I can easily keep up with my riding buddies on road bikes on our rides. My hybrid is much heavier than their road bikes, I have around 4 lbs of additional gear on my bike, and I'm not a skinny ass like most of them. We ride for pleasure, so average speed is somewhere between 16 and 17 on unpaved and hilly terrain. I absolutely hate riding on a road bikes, and position is not comfortable at all. My hybrid is a hybrid between hybrid and a road bike, and I love it. It gives me an option for a fast riding when wanted, or to explore unpaved, overgrown trails when needed. I think road bikes are only for speed oriented riders, while hybrids are more for fun, touring and exploring.
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Old 07-14-14, 09:22 AM
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Originally Posted by practical
Do you ever have to ride on dirt or gravel? If so, how well do those tires handle that?
I have 28mm tires and I ride everywhere I want. Only deep sand or mud will stop me quick lol You can get cross tires in 28mm width, with some knoby design that will help you with traction on more challenging surfaces.
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