boshk

Hi Guys
I was going to buy a hybrid type bike like Giant Anyroad 2 or Merida Speeder 300 but saw a Ridley Fenix A10 endurance bike for sale at a similar price to the Giant/Merida.
They had 3 A10's on sale, all my size, most expensive was Disc hydraulic, disc with cable, then traditional cantilever cable.

I need to go see and ask about the components but based on gear suite website, its a 2015 with Shimano 105 groupset BUT from the website, it states its a poor gear ratio for hill climbs due to 50/34 and 11/28.

I'm completely new to cycling, novice beginner and just reading up on ratios etc.

Apparently the 34/28 is high gear inches so its going to be tiring compared to Anyroad 2's Triple crank, 30/32 but then the Merida flatbar Speeder is a 50/34 12/28....that would make the Speeder the same as the Ridley correct?

Any advise or experience?

Maelochs

Depends on the terrain. 34x28 low is pretty low but if you face a lot of very steep hills you might want the lower gearing. I believe a long-cage 105 derailleur can handle 32 and Maybe 34 teeth (Shimano has the reputation of being able to handle a little more than the listed maximum,) so you would also have the option of swapping cassettes ... if it is a long-cage derailleur and if it can handle 32 teeth.

Any chance of linking to the sites in question?

And yes, the Merida speeder would have the same lowest gear as the A10.

boshk

https://road-bikes.gearsuite.com/l/59...dley-Fenix-A10

pretty good site for comparison. they don't have data on newest models though.

I only have 2 long hills, don't even know the gradient but for a beginner, I'm sure I'll probably end up getting off the bike and pushing it. I transport the bike to cycle paths first to get hang on bike gears etc and general fitness before I start riding to and from home.

rm -rf

I looked at the hill climbs added to strava. Hong Kong is a lot hillier than I would have guessed.
Hong Kong climbs on strava.
(sometimes, the strava climb statistics aren't quite accurate, but I think they've been fixing the incorrect data if any.)


For example, this is one of the longer, steeper climbs:
"O King Road"
listed as 1.0 mile, 8% average, 424 feet elevation gain.
That's 1.6 km, 8%, 130 meters elevation gain. (130 meters / 1600 meters = 8%)

For most riders with a 34-28 low gear, and in shape by riding regularly, that's a hard climb, but one they could handle. (For most riders doing at least 2 or 3 rides a week, 40 minutes or more, and usually including a couple hour ride on the weekend.) If the climb averaged 8% by starting out easy then getting very steep, that would be a lot harder to finish.

Shorter climbs, perhaps 80-100 feet, 25-30 meters high, can be considerably steeper, with the rider standing and working hard.

boshk

Thanks for that site! Just found the 2 roads I will be riding on after I get my fitness up.

Its only 1km, 4.2% and 2km 4.1%

Maelochs

The Anyroad, as its name implies, is meant for riding on almost anything that can be called a road ... dirt, gravel, pavement, packed dirt .... it has a somewhat upright seating position which is probably a lot more comfortable for a beginner or for someone in an urban environment, or riding mixed surfaces.

With a triple crank (I assume 50-39-30) and an 11-32 cassette it will be great for climbing and also have more top speed than most riders would use.

The Anyroad is best suited to a rider who plans to explore ... riding footpaths, trails in the woods, packed dirt ... as well as pavement.

The Fenix, with "endurance" geometry, has a slightly more upright position than a race bike but probably not quite so vertical as the Anyroad.

The Fenix is pretty much of a dedicated road bike ... which means it can be ridden almost anywhere but will be at its best on pavement.

It is hard to say whether 34x28 gearing would work for you ... (and of course, as you ride, your capacity will increase.)

I have climbed some decent hills with a 42x25 ... definitely Not climbing gears, but what I had at the time. it demanded near-fatal effort ... but I was old and fat (now I am older and fatter.)

I have 50-34x11-28 gearing on one of my bike snow, but haven't tackled any really serious hills since I got it ... and health issues have kept me from riding much. I'd Think it would be adequate for long hills--long hills test a different kind of fitness than steep hills. Steep hills, pretty much, can only be done with low gearing, while long hills can be attacked with a variety of techniques.

EDIT: i see the climbs you posted---I think you will be fine with any of the bikes you have chosen, but do ask if that is a long-cage derailleur. if it is, you could move down to a 11-32 cassette and have that extra margin for days when you are tired.

79pmooney

The endurance bike has 30% higher gearing than the hybrid (assuming the same size tires). That is considerably higher, but still, not an especially high gear. What can offset that difference a lot is the fact that it is a dropped handlebar endurance bike. That setup encourages the rider to come out of the saddle and climb standing which is a style best suited to a higher gear. That and other differences especially in body fit may well mean that you will comfortably climb faster and hence want a higher gear.

This is not an apples to apples comparison. But even if the endurance bike is too much work to go up hill in he gear it comes with, changing it to a lower one is just money. You can do half the difference with just a new cassette and maybe a new derailleur. You have come to the right place (this forum; when you get either bike and gear issues arise, ask in the bike mechanics sub forum).

Endurance and hybrid bikes are quite different and best suited for different riding. Yes, you can do most of that the other does on either one, but long rides over a lot of hills, once you get strong, will be a lot more fun on the endurance bike. Slower, sightseeing, markets, commuting and the like will in general be more in lik=ne with what the hybrid was intended for. In general, hybrids are intended to be ridden sitting up more, hence uphill pedaling style tends to be sit and spin. The endurance bike lends itself to alternating between sitting and standing when going uphill. Alternating the two makes long hills much less tedious and gives you a chance to rest some muscles while using others. (Some of us even find standing becomes the preferred way to go uphill. I learned that was my best mode when O was a teenager. In my sixties, standing is still my first choice. And, yes, you can climb standing on a hybrid, but straight handlebars are far from ideal and brake hoods/brifters have been designed specifically for that and fine tuned over 100 years.)

Ben

Doge

It would help to know how steep and how long the hills are. Where do you plan to ride?

Then...how old are you, how heavy, tall - do you know your body composition?

Maelochs

See post #5:

seau grateau

34-28 is fine for climbing. 4% grades may be tough at first, but they're doable. Once you get your fitness up a bit, you'll laugh at them.

Canker

You can put an 11-40 on the back using a roadlink
RoadLink ? wolftoothcomponents.com
Run the gears you need.

goenrdoug

Get the bike the appeals to you the most. The gearing can be tweaked to suit your needs. The 50-34 with 11-28 ought to be a good starting point. If you need more gearing, you could replace the cassette and dérailleur in the back with mountain bike stuff to get much bigger gearing (surpassing the stock triple, possibly)

In short, don't let the gearing that comes on the bike be the final say in the purchase decision. Talk to the shop(s) selling the bike(s) and let them know your concerns. Who knows, they might even switch out the rear mech before you purchase the bike (thereby saving you the hassle and financial impact of trying to re-sell the slightly used components AND paying for the new rear mech.)

10 Wheels

I went with a 12/32 for rides in Tennessee.

bmthom.gis

Sounds like fairly standard gearing. It will be hard for you at first, but you'll soon be tackling those hills with hardly breaking a sweat

ClydeTim

Don't waste any money just yet. The 4% grade is a breeze when you get your fitness level up.

Work on your fitness first, save lots of money.