bryroth

I've heard it is all about the engine. Has anyone here witnessed someone with a sub-par bike (doesn't have to be a p.o.s.) win or place in a race?

Someone on the cx forum was talking about a mike messenger who won a cx race with his flat-bar fixed gear. I'd be interested in knowing if such a story exists in the roadie race world.

datlas 

Not a race, but I often finish first on our informally competitive club rides (which end with a tough climb), and my bike is a 22 year old steel machine that weighs about 25 pounds.....and most of the other guys are riding carbon fiber weight weenie bikes that are probably 8 pounds lighter.

I think it is mostly the engine, but anyone serious enough to race competitively is probably serious enough to not ride a walmart bike.

photonick

I have friends who pull double centuries on fixed gears even tall bikes and drop me up hills on bikes falling apart all the time, i don't know why it would be so hard to believe. It's the same with anything, all the best drummers i know play kits that are laughable at best.

Lithuania

yes all the time i see people winning and placing on low quality bikes.

MONGO!

Yes.

BananaTugger

A guy got on the podium a Masters crit here in 2005 riding a Colnago Mexico with Nuevo Record and toe straps.

mrbubbles

Yes. People do win races on Soras. Imagine that.

djbowen1

Yes a guy regularly completes in our races wearing sweat pants, fanny pack, trek 1000 triple. Does quite well.

cuski

I recall hearing of a couple of people here winning on BD Motobecanes.

mrbubbles

There are people who only ride old bikes, I know a guy who has 16 bikes. I've seen his bikes, all of his bikes are tubulars, downtube friction, quill stem, ancient Campagnolo, 144mm BCD, steel tubing, etc. The only thing modern this guy uses is clipless system.

These people don't respond to the ads calling for carbon this and latest brands of bike, he has no appeal for brands such as Cervelo, BMC, Cannondale, Specialized, Trek, Giant, Scott, etc.

datlas 

Now that's a SUB-PAR bike! lol

MONGO!

Because they appreciate VALUE and PERFORMANCE

nebrider

i just won my class and placed 3rd overall at a local hill climb on a steel Centurion Lemans RS. Def. sub-par

curiouskid55

Lance Armstrong comes to mind.

JoelS

Good wheels helps. If the frame geometry works for you and fits, you'll do just fine. At that point, it really is the engine.

scuzzo

not only yes but hell yes,
i have seen a crop of cat 2 racers dusted by some guy on an old dale 2.8
and i have seen guys in full kit completely thrashed by a dude on a 9sp steel bike with open pros,
its not about the bike never has been,.. but that is not what mouse clickers want to think, but its still TRUE..

purchase power has very little to do with power to the pedals.

umd

Look, the key thing to remember is that a lighter, more efficient (aero, drivetrain, etc) bike will mean that the same rider can do the same speed with less power than on a heavier, less efficient bike. If you took the same rider and put one on a crappy bike and one on a good bike, the one on the good bike will do better. HOWEVER, a more powerful rider can "waste" power on the inefficient bike and still beat out the less powerful rider. That being said, racing is also about tactics and conservation of energy, so a less powerful rider can do well just by being smarter.

Ralleh

Guys 20 years older than me on crappy bikes pass me on my 20-pound DA Bianchi occasionally. The people who pass me always have huge calves and seem like they have been riding for years. I hadn't ridden a bike since I was a kid and then got back into it a few months ago, so I don't feel bad at all about it. I'm making tons of progress and am really looking forward to being able to ride faster for longer.

I think the thing is if you're getting on the podium with a crappy bike, you'll be 1st place with a good one. You pretty much don't need the good bike until that point though. In fact, I feel kind of embarrassed on a fairly nice bike because I feel like I haven't earned it or something.

Creakyknees

define "sub-par" please.

buzzman

I don't race any more but when I did I regularly beat people who were equipped with better bikes.

I think of the bike I now ride as anything but "sub-par" but it is not exactly new nor as light as carbon fiber frames. It's a steel frame custom built for me in 1976 that I upgraded to a new Campy groupo about 6 years ago. The wheels are more for touring than racing but when I've got some miles under me around mid-season I can still hold my own on it. I regularly pass riders on newer, more expensive bikes on my rides.

I suppose a better wheel set might be in order to improve my speed a bit but I recall spring training rides I used to do when the bike was new when I would throw my heavy forty spoke tandem wheelset on the bike and thrash everybody on the hills.

It really is how fit you are on any given day that makes the most difference.

caloso

Older perhaps, but I would not consider this to be a subpar bike.

timmhaan

i see people winning far more often on expensive machines. i've never seen anyone win on a piece of junk. very rarely do i see anyone win on a sub $1000 machine (once or twice at the most).

CharlieWoo

I saw a college freshman run a 4:09 mile in a pair of Chuck Taylor high-top sneakers once.

Ralleh

I would guess that in a race you are pretty much just buying seconds with your equipment. I wonder what the it would work out to for $ spent/seconds reduced.

markhr

My younger brother was junior national hill climb and RR champ. All on a second hand, beat up bike with a hodge podge of components he kept together and working with a lot of hard wrenching. Training with and keeping up with seniors helped a lot.

He proved, at least in my view, it is truly about the engine and training smart.

Edit: USD250-350, to put a value on the bike