Track Bike - Argon18 Electron, Giant Omnium or Planet X
 

Newbie here, looking to start track riding in a velodrome (to be finished constructing soon, merely a 5 min. ride from my home). Been riding a pro road bike for few years, but need to change gears for winters with the Velo as an option.

So, looking to get my first track bike, 3 have caught my eye (5 actually, but keeping the BMC and Pina out of the equation to save my wallet, and marriage).
Which one would you recommend?
- Giant Omnium
- Argon 18 Electron
- Planet X Comp Track

Omnium and Electron are Alum bikes, while the PlanetX CompTrack is carbon. From what I've heard that carbon doesn't make too much of a difference in track. Still, PlanetX does look cool there. Keeping within that budget of $1,300-1,500 eliminate the Pina XTrack, BMC TR02 or PlanetX TOR.

I'm too old to race too much, am 40 now, but I do occasionally venture into competitive road events (maybe 1-2 a year). But I'd like something that I can build endurance as well as compete if/when I want.

I'm a short 5'6" guy that likes compact frames. I have ridden Specialized, Trek and Pinarello, and love Pina the most. Currently ride a Dogma 65.1, and absolutely love the setup. Trek was alright before, but the reach was a bit too much for my short body-build.

So, looking to get opinion to choose between the Omnium, Electron and CompTrack. Any suggestions welcome.

Why don't you just get what you want, and if your wife leaves you then good riddance. You only live once.

LOL, have thought that many times, but then again, that's a discussion for another time. :thumb:

Have you checked out Dolan? The DF3 I believe is in your price range too and is a good looking bike.

I don't really see a question being proposed though so I agree with TT, buy the bike you are going to want to ride the most.

Been there done that. I was married for 9 whole months to a woman like that. She basically decided that after we got married that she would let me know when I was allowed to purchase something. Now I am married for a second time to a woman who's better looking, treats me a million times better, and only occasionally voices some concern about what I purchase, but never says no. She is actually concerned with my happiness. Try finding one of those, good luck!

That being said, my biggest fear in life is that when I die my wife will try to sell my things for what I told her I paid for them........
Most of the time she doesn't ask because she doesn't want to know. She's well taken care of so it's not like were eating Ramen Noodles so I can buy bike parts. That and I have a history of being able to resale things at little to no loss.

Nice bike, wasn't aware of that one. But DF3 is hard to find, and DF4 kind of goes out of budget for now.

The main question is if I have to chose one, which one should I choose between the Omnium, Electron and CompTrack?

Thx.

A more important question:

As an adult man, why are you incapable of making up your own mind?

The bigger question is: Why do people like you exist on every forum/board**********

All I am asking is an opinion. Like I mentioned I like compact frames, And Trek's road geometry doesn't fit me as well as Speesh or Pina.
And I don't have experience with track bikes. Maybe Omnium is more compact, or maybe Electron. How do I know if I can't ask experienced riders elsewhere???
Maybe one frame cracks or softens up more than the others. Maybe one comes with better components that I'm not aware of.

If you have nothing useful to add, please don't feel compelled to help. I'm not insisting that every one of the forum members trying to add up to their post counts have to add something.
/Rant Over, Sigh\

Join a club associated w/ the velodrome, rent a bike, take the "beginners course", do some intro races and see if track racing is for you before spending a $ on hardware.
Being a new endeavor the track will no doubt be in a big publicity/recruitment mode and should provide all the services you need to test the waters.

Each 'drome has it's own personality that is a combination of track length, surfacing and wind conditions.
All unknowns at this point to match particular machines to those requirements as well as your own.

Only a season of racing will prove what works best for that track, at your level, in the events you choose to ride.

Good luck.

PS
The Track Racing sub-forum will have the most pertinent information on the subject, and may have someone who will also be racing at your new 'drome.

-Bandera

Thanks Bandera, Some good pointers there.

Yes I have registered for 2 certification courses, and an intermediate course on racing the track. In total I'll have 20 days of instructional riding in the Velo. The cost of renting a bike is $15 a day, so that means I'll be spending $300 just on rentals during this time. If I need to ride some more, I could be easily short of $500 during the winter.

I'm thinking to use that $500 spent on rental can towards the bike, so in case things don't pan out, at least I'll be able to recoup some of the costs.

That's a great suggestion. It's a new Velo, so nobody knows how it'll behave. It's indoors, so wind shouldn't be the problem - I guess.
Perhaps I can start my training program, rent for first few classes, and then decide.

In the meanwhile I gather all the info that I can to help me choose when the time comes. The Velo opens on November 29, and my training starts in 3rd week of December. Then by January I should be making this purchase.
Cheers.

Good plan, paying $15 to wreck someone else's bike sounds like a bargain to me. ( It will happen, no getting around it.)

A well established track will have an assortment of used machines ranging from slightly crashed/obsolescent to horribly and repeatedly wrecked that move around in teams as riders "upgrade" to the latest fad and newbies realize that this is an activity that demands rigor and bow out. The process will start immediately at your new indoor 'drome and nothing depreciates faster than a used/abused track bike. Except for the beat to death NJS ex-Keirin frames commanding Stupid $ for street-cred among the "fixie" crowd downtown.

-Bandera

Moved from Singlespeed to Track Racing.

Awesome thanks.

Here's a nice compact geometry carbon track frame that's pretty affordable: Dixie Flyer Bicycles

How did you ever come up with those 3 frames?

They seem to be randomly chosen?

The PX is a bottom of the line Carbon Sprint frame famous for noodle like flex in the fork and rear end

the Giant is an excellent Enduro frame that's made of aluminum and known for being a great bargain frame for- you guessed it- Omniums.

The Argon is a super obscure expensive carbon frame. In 7 years at the track I've seen 1 or 2... Certainly not a beginner rig- and nobody's choice for a "first track bike"

now ow that this thread has been moved to the Track Sub Forum- I think you'll find most people are going to suggest you pick a bike based on:
* it's geometry- both for the type of riding you will do and your fit needs
* its material- and how they suit your needs as a racer Vs budget restraints

Am I the only one who had to check the date to make sure this wasn't a zombie thread from 2004?

My route: find something cheap on craigslist to get started and see if you like it. I picked up a langster with 2 sets of wheels and some extra chainrings for $400. That's cheaper than your renting fees above and if I wanted to sell it I'm sure that I could get the $400 back out of it all day. Fit is close with a stem swap and I was able to ride without issue all summer on it.

Still dragging on:

http://www.bikeforums.net/singlespee...fat-tires.html

-Bandera

Is it a full moon?

Argon is not obscure if you are in Canada :P Its a $700 aluminum frame, 1200 complete bike. There are at least 10 of them at the local track. And since I assume he is talking about Milton, it will be the rental bike. So why not wait and ride it a few times first.

The omnium is a nice bike as well, lots of local dealers for it. About the same price and build as the argon. Can't go wrong with either I think.

Planet X, not sure where to get it local. Might as well buy a chinese frame and build your own if you go that route.


My vote is for the Argon, nice bike, and you get to try before you buy if you rent one a few times. Its a growing brand, likely will be in the Tour next year.

Ah! Thought that was the Carbon Argon


youd be more likely to spot Bigfoot than an aluminum argon in the US

Rent at first.

But if purchasing, support Canadian engineering/design and get the Argon. Great looking bike.

Lots of Argons running around Toronto (on the street). I've only seen one carbon one at local velodromes in my area.

actually reading your OP it sounds like you have never been on the track anyway, so I really suggest renting a few times first, there is no rush. Some people don't actually enjoy it. I call these crazy people. But they exist.

Unfortunately the local used market is pretty slim still, but usually a few Jrs moving up to bigger bikes if a 52 will fit you.

Thanks for some great suggestions. I picked up these three brand based on the looks, and visible geometry. I know sometimes they don't ride as they appear.

Yes, I've never been on track, but have competed on road levels intermittently for a few years (with a couple of medals). So, I'm quite confident about my bike handling. And with long winters as we have them here, I hate to be riding on my trainer in the basement every winter. I'm quite confident that I'll be riding in the Velo much more than I rode in my basement.

Though I'm not sure how competitive I'll be in the track biking.

GTrob as a good point, when the Velo opens, they may have a few Argons to test ride. (And yes, I was talking about the Argon Electron alum bike, not Electron Pro). Probably I'll test ride the bike 3-4 sessions, and then make my decision.

With the Velo just coming up here, there're unlikely going to be a used market for track bikes in the first couple of years. Maybe a lot of people, perhaps like myself, who decide in the coming years to upgrade may sell their older bikes, but right now there aren't many choices of pure used track bikes locally (yes, there are many fixies ridden in urban locales, but not what i was looking into).

Both Electron and Omnium are available in local stores. But for PlanetX (or a Chinese frame) will of course have to be bought online. But then it also comes to buying all the track components separately, and currently they're also not readily available locally. There's going to be a bike store in the Velo when it opens, so I'll wait and see what kind of equipment/components they carry.

For now, all your comments have been feeding me great info and pointers. It's theory time for now. Practicals start in a month and a half. LOL.

You are riding a fixed gear properly set-up on the road Now, Yes?

From my very old school perspective the club converted road bikes to FG ~70GI in the autumn for base miles in the winter.
It's not the same but having FG experience and working to develop an efficient high cadence pedaling style before you get on the track can't hurt.

I'll now bow out and let the current generation of competitors take over.

-Bandera

Yes, I've ridden fixies on road in my hay-days, but not for a while now. So, yes I do have some experience with the fixies.
I love to keep high cadence anyways, can decently spin at 120rpm, and can average 95-100 rpm for 50K at good speeds... I understand that it should help in the track riding. Can't wait, have been counting down the days left to track riding.

The Velodrome opens on November 29.
My first riding session is booked for December 6.
The two certification courses are on December 11 and 13.
And the Intermediate Structured Track Training begins on January 11.

That will be my program for the winters...