BaseGuy

+1.

The POINT is this: if you're a noob (self-proclaimed), you lack the experience to know what you like, what you don't, what fits you, what doesn't. WE ARE ALL DIFFERENT. Just because a restaurant has 5-star ratings does not guarantee you will love it.

Do you prefer a really rigid bike, or one with comfort? Or something in between? Do you like SRAM's double-tap shifting, or Shimano's two-lever deal? Do you know? What kind of riding position do you like, so what kind of geometry are you looking for? We can't tell you, you have to find out yourself.

Good advice is what rms13 gave you. It's not as fun as buying something new, but a $500 used bike will be a $500 used bike a year from now, and you'll know whether:
- you love it;
- hate it;
- whether it fits;
- is too big;
- is too small;
- has too far a reach to the bars;
- has too steep and twitch geometry;
- or shakes is head on fast decants;
- or flexes its rear triangle when you stand and crank to the point that the rear brakes rub the rim, or...

timmbo

Buying a first road bike is tough, like it was mentioned already, you simply don't know what you want/like/need. Here was my process of buying 4 bikes in just under a year, LOL.

- 1st bike: Used Trek 1000, mostly Sora. I finally realized I should buy a road bike as I was traveling longer distances with my mountain bike. I saw some Scott Speedsters on clearance at the LBS, but my wife was not keen on me spending a $1000 on something I may not use much. So anyway, I found the used Trek for $500. I started with this, found it it was too small at a 56cm, and also I found I liked riding in the drops, and Sora shifters are not the best option for this.

- 2nd bike: I found an old model brand new Trek 1.5 with 9 SPD Tiagra at a bike shop for $800. It was a 58cm. I loved it. Shifting wasn't always the smoothest, and it was a triple crank which after owning it didn't seem to make sense for me. I loved the Tiagra style shifters. After I purchased this bike my wife let me get all the gear for the bike, so that was cool. What led to me purchasing the next bike was that my wife purchased a bike with 105 5700 shifters. After seeing how smooth this shifted, I was super jealous. I also had an appreciation for Trek's 200 series aluminum vs: the 1.5's 100 series aluminum.

- 3rd bike: LBS had a clearance special on a 2012 2.1. This bike was full Sram, so it had a compact crank. After the first test drive I was in love with the geometry of this bike, and also the Sram shifting. I absolutely loved this bike, rode it a ton, and really enjoyed it. I found that since it was equipped with the Bontrager Speed Trap sensor on the fork (vs having something measuring the rear wheel rotation) that in the winter I was not able to monitor anything on my trainer. Not a huge deal, but sort of annoying. Also the 11-32 cassette was a little more extreme than I needed.

- 4th bike: Found a deal on a brand new Trek Madone 4.6 in the box at a bike shop. Geometry was the same as my 2.1, 4.6 is equipped with Sram Rival, and the DuoTrap sensor for speed and cadence. Also now into full carbon fiber. This was really the first time I knew EVERYTHING I wanted in a new bike. Cassette is an 11-28 which is perfect. I have this equipped with my Selle Drakon saddle, and life is good!

In short, you simply can't know what it right for you on the first bike. I test many other bikes, and of course feeling comfortable and getting the correct geometry is HUGE. Getting a road bike perfect the first time is possible if you do TONS AND TONS of research, and test ride like crazy, but that would get annoying. Oh well, do what works for you!

TrojanHorse

This response of yours is full of misinformation. Are you suggesting that Aluminum will bend, and is therefore the stronger material?

Roopull

I'm suggesting that carbon fiber is, among the current materials bikes are made out of, the worst material for a new rider.

Aluminum can be repaired readily (steel even more readily.) You don't even have to find a bicycle mechanic to be able to repair most aluminum frames.

Carbon fiber, on the other hand... It's debatable whether it can even be repaired to original strength. Even assuming it can be repaired, the repairs will be insanely expensive. Plus, in most areas of the nation, there isn't even a facility set up to repair the stuff. This means shipping your busted bike off to a shop, paying for shipping, and being bike-less for weeks or months.


As my buddy who has worked on ALMS race cars (Cadillac, Panoz, Audi, Viper etc) in fabricating and repairing the carbon fiber body panels says, "You don't repair carbon fiber. You patch it. After you've patched it enough, you throw it away & replace it."

Carbon fiber gets its strength and even its TYPE of strength from the weave of the fibers. There is no way to weave new fibers into already hardened carbon fiber. It's repaired by "scabbing" patches over the top of the fractures. Ugly and not nearly as strong as the original.


If you're well funded enough to be able to replace the frame if you break it, and you're interested in the lightest bike you can get, carbon fiber is the go-to material. If you're a newbie who will be learning how to clip & unclip... stay away.

WhetStonez

Still have my first bike, $350 dollar scattante with 105 off of craigslist, works fine and I fell at least 3 times because of not being used to being clipped in. Glad i didnt have an expensive bike to learn on.

mprelaw

I have never even scratched a frame in a 0 mph fall. Most of the time, the frame never touches the ground. You're more likely bend the rear mech out of line than anything else, if it falls on the drive side.

halfspeed

Oh, so now you're injecting experience and common sense into the discussion. We can't have that.

schiiism

Not everyone falls the same, regardless of speed. I fell several times learning to clip in and did end up dinging my aluminum frame several times. It's cosmetic, but that's important to some people. It also affects the resale value of the bike.

That being said, purely in terms of skill, many high end CF bikes are MUCH twitchier than hybrids and entry level road bikes. That can be a good or bad thing. It's a matter of whether you would like to "grow into" your first bike, or get one that's more appropriate for your current skill level until you want to upgrade. It's a personal decision and no one can tell you the right choice.

I'm glad that I learned on my cheaper alum bike, but I'm also very anal about cosmetics.. which is not the case for everyone.

Astrozombie

As a FIRST car?? Analogy just backfired........then again if their parents pay for it they won't really care when they wreck it.

rms13

One of the guys looked like he couldn't have been more then 20 years old so maybe his first car. Oil money!

Roopull

I'm amused by the different camps on this forum (I'm somewhat new, here.)

It seems there's a group of folks who have really high dollar bikes and love them.
Then, there's another group that seems to think that spending tons of money on a bike is stupid.

So, you get the back & forth we see above. Am I right?

Here's how I see it...

High dollar bikes are fine. I have no problem with someone having a high dollar bike provided:
1. they buy the bike KNOWING what it is and understanding what it is.
2. they buy the bike KNOWING of the cheaper alternatives.
3. their kids aren't starving to death.

I get more than a little pissed when I see someone on an all out racing bike who has no business on one. I quit going to a LBS after he attempted to sell one of these to an overweight guy in his 60s new to riding. I ran into another guy who had a brand freakin' new $5000 racer thrown in the back of his Chevy S10 who stopped me to ask me if I knew of any safe places he could learn to ride. Yet again, another out of shape guy probably spending his retirement money. A third guy I know - again completely new to riding - built a full carbon triathlon bike from parts he ordered online b/c he "wanted the best." He can't even ride the stupid thing.

Can we agree that someone NEW to riding needs a bike appropriate for them? Assuming money is no object, I would think someone brand new to riding probably needs a more comfortable & predictable bike with platform pedals.

For heaven's sake...I had to Google the bikes to make sure I was reading what I thought I was reading. Specialized own website calls the Tarmac "a pure and unbridled race machine. " Uh... why is this being sold to a newbie?


I don't think I fall into either camp above... I fall into a third camp that does't really care what other people ride. I just buy & ride what works for me at the lowest possible price. On the other hand, if you're wearing matching lycra, have $300 shoes on, are riding a $9000 bike and half my age, don't get mad if I laugh at you if I pass you on a hill. There's a word for people who pay to look like someone they see on TV.

On a completely unrelated note, I find adult costumes at Halloween to be an interesting concept.

PaulRivers

CactoesGel - none of the things the other poster claimed about carbon fiber are really true. Especially on the entry level carbon that you're looking at, carbon fiber is overbuilt to be durable. They make full on high end expensive mountain bikes out of carbon fiber now. Stuff that's designed to be crashed into a rock.

Aluminum and Steel frames have gotten to be made out of such thin material that they haven't been "easily" repairable in quite a while. It was a debate that happened 5-10 years ago, when people found that the claims that steel or aluminum could be repaired easily no longer held up. They're so thin, if you got an actual hole in it it's hard to say if it's possible to repair it safely.

The most important part of the bike for your safety is the front fork and front wheel. I've ridden a frame that cracked while riding it - it's a triangle so it doesn't just fall apart. If the rear wheel for stays crack, there's a good chance you have a second to react and put a foot down or something.

But if the front fork or wheel explodes on you, you don't have time to react at all. That's the most common cause of broken collarbones. And you know what? Almost all steel and aluminum bikes come with a carbon front fork nowadays. So you end up with carbon in the most important part of the bike anyways. (And like I said - they're overbuilt on your average bike so as to avoid problems with minor crashes, etc).

The only valid point I saw is that it's true that sometimes you find out after riding for a while that you want a different bike - a different size (size is the #1 most important thing when buying a new bike), a different style, etc. But if you sell a more expensive bike, you typically get more money back.

I think the Synapse is a great choice. So is the Domane. The Tarmac is a matter of taste - it's a more race-specific bike, so it's handling is faster (twitchier) and it generally needs more flexibility in order to ride it comfortably. The popularity of endurance bikes like the Synapse and Domane are because most people found them more enjoyable to ride. The Domane is still a full on race bike design, just not as twitchy or leaned over as the Tarmac.

P.S. Most clipless pedal crashes happen at almost zero speed - you think you're used to them, you pull up to a stop, and don't quite unclip in time...not that that happened to me or anything *cough* *cough*. :-) You do risk damaging the aesthetics of your bike and handlebar tape, but usually not the bike itself. :-)

schiiism

Before I decided on a higher end secondhand road bike, I was visiting bike stores to test ride their mid range aluminum bikes. At one Performance, I saw an obese older woman being fitted to a $2800 WSD racing bike--I only knew the price because I had been drooling over that bike for months. She was clearly a new rider who looked almost scared as she was getting fitted for it. I almost said something because I felt she had been upsold into buying a bike she wasn't ready for, but it's not my business how other people spend their money. Just a sad thing to see that bike shops sometimes put their own profits above the wellbeing and safety of their clientele.

PaulRivers

I find pushing the Tarmac to be a little questionable because of it's twitchy race handling, but otherwise money is the only inherent reason to buy a cheaper bike for a beginner. For most people that's a pretty big reason.

But you have a good endurance bike like a Domane or a Synapse, and if you know you're going to stick with it I see no reason not to just start off with a very good bike assuming you can afford it.

I guess that's not to say that the OP might not consider lower priced bikes as well. But lower priced bikes aren't easier to ride for a beginner or anything.

halfspeed

Why the provisions? Why is it any of your concern whatsoever?

If I have money to spare in retirement, I plan to waste it on all kinds of crap that you might find inappropriate simply because it pleases me to do so.

Not necessarily.



Did you miss the part about the n00b OP being an avid runner? There's a good chance he's already competitive, fit and likely to get frustrated quickly with a comfort bike.

Quote:

I don't think I fall into either camp above... I fall into a third camp that does't really care what other people ride.

The rest of your post belies that claim.

Quote:

I just buy & ride what works for me at the lowest possible price. On the other hand, if you're wearing matching lycra, have $300 shoes on, are riding a $9000 bike and half my age, don't get mad if I laugh at you if I pass you on a hill. There's a word for people who pay to look like someone they see on TV.

Great. Another Cat 6 racer.

Quote:

On a completely unrelated note, I find adult costumes at Halloween to be an interesting concept.

OK.

Roopull

Wow, you spent a lot of time crafting that retort.
Primarily because I hate to see people get ripped off or put in dangerous situations.


Dude, why so defensive?
I don't rightly care how you spend your money... I certainly don't want you getting ripped off, which was the point of my provisions. Clearly, you didn't read it that way.



If that's the case, great...
Thanks for the label. Take a breather... I get the feeling you have some very nice bikes & find anyone questioning said purchases to be annoying. To be clear, if you know how to ride them, I don't care what you get. In fact, I kinda' dig guys who get the souped up bikes in the same way I dig seeing a Lamborghini on the road. I don't have any animosity towards the owner.

However, when it comes to bikes, I most certainly have animosity towards people who try to steer a novice or beginner rider towards a bike that is certainly not suited to beginners.

rms13

The bottom line is that a lot of people get upset when other people can afford things they can't. That's the true spirit of this thread. Nobody here is truly concerned about OP or about strangers they don't know spending money on bikes they may or may not be able to afford. People get envious when others can afford things they can't especially when they think those people don't deserve or haven't "earned" it

laf

I believe the op cant go wrong with any of these bikes.

Is it too much for a first road bike ? Dont know, but why cant someone get nice things if he can afford it ? The op said that he a runner so he's probably in great shape overall. he will outgrow a cheap bike too quickly.

Lets say i win several millions in a lottery, the first thing I will do is to walk into a Porsche dealership and leave with a 911. Who cares if its too much ?

I dont believe the salesman will tell me I should buy a Honda Civic.

Roopull

I respectfully disagree... These aren't even all that expensive.

Sure, there is bike envy out there, I don't deny that. But, to assume that the retorts are all out of jealousy and NOT an actual concern for someone is just plain wrong.

It's a sad world you live in if you don't believe people are actually capable of being concerned for each other.

Roopull

Again... I don't think this is at all about envy. At least, it isn't for me.

As for your analogy, the 911 is perfectly safe for most drivers. However, if the dealership tried to sell him a Porsche 911 GT1, you might have a bit of a problem.

Many exotic car manufacturers even provide special classes - sometimes for free - so the buyer will know how to handle their cars. Sadly, many of these machines simply end up tooling around town below the speed limit or sitting in a garage like a piece of art.

I get the feeling that there are plenty of very nice bikes - right now - hanging on hooks in garages because they weren't the right bike for the buyer.

rms13

The funniest part of this thread is that OP already decided on the Synapse several days ago. And if he has $2000 to spend on a bike and he wants an endurance bike (and since he test rode these bikes I'm sure he knows what he wants) than he made a great choice on a great bike that will last for years and not need to be upgraded

SundayNiagara

IF there were qualified sales people in bike shops, there would be a lot less of these threads. I've been in about a half-dozen bike shops over the last several weeks and have yet to find a bike sales person who knew what he, or she were doing. Most are cycling enthusiasts who don't know the first thing about selling.

Roopull

I am actually taken aback when I run across a bike shop proprietor who is both informed and interested in fitting the right bike to the shopper. It's just... rare.

Methinks the "you're just jealous" responses are sometimes coming from people who got hosed by some clever salesman, knows in retrospect they got hosed, and is now in the position of having to defend their admittedly dumb purchase.

That being said, if I were being criticized blindly for having a nice anything, I'd probably be a bit defensive... but, I don't think that's happened in this thread.

vzwire

I'm new here as well as someone else said...
#1 I'm not a child. Don't tell me (anyone) how to spend my hard earned money.
#2 I find it hilarious for those that say you "MUST buy a used craigslist bike for your first bike. Really?
#3 Maybe the stress of you saving $500 is nothing but a VIP section on a Friday night for me (or the OP)
#4 To the guy who said he gets highly pissed when "noobs buy high end bikes". Again, really? Get over it. You are assuming because he drove an S10 he shouldn't be riding a high end bike??? Maybe the guy works his arse off and 5k is nothing to him.
#5 . Worst thing about this forum- same guys that go bananas over someone buying a big-box store bike gets upset when someone else buys a high end bike from a LBS they they can't afford.

Now... Children....Flame me to death.

Cycling snobs plague this forum. There are more good than bad, but still infected nevertheless.
This thread started off fine... But then went south quickly due to the snobs. It's disgusting really.

SundayNiagara

Bottom line: He, or she who asks the most questions, gets the most sales. KEEP YOUR OPINION'S OUT OF IT!