Originally Posted by
Doge
@
spectastic - bad news early is good news. The bad news is you will buy several bikes. The good news is you can budget for it.
Before carbon (and huge R&D mold costs) it was common for racers to have different bikes for different events. The "in" thing was have a bike fit to your dimensions. I did that, and was not so impressed as things like material, position mattered way more.
Anyway, the type of riding you do has a lot to do with the bike you ride. That exciting Tour of California this week, Sagan road a different bike up Baldy than he did in the final stage (I think Tarmac then Venge). When he road Paris-Roubaix he didn't ride a Roubaix, he road a Tarmac. How you ride should determine what you ride, but more importantly the position you ride. Mathematics and physics can prove things on paper, but riders do not ride like calculations are calculated. They move side to side, surge and distribute power differently. Anyway net...
If money is not an object - buy several bikes.
If it is...fool around with things like stems, bars, seat position, wheels and save the bucks on changing frames right now. Work on position and try to figure out what kind of rider you are. The frame is the 1st or 2nd most important part, but changing it is a much bigger decision than doing the other smaller stuff from both a cost and time perspective.
according to cervelo, the tipping point where a lighter weight bike out performs an aero bike is 5% grade. it's not mentioned how much delta is in the weight or the aero drag, or the weight of the rider. but that's on a solo effort. the argument against aero in a peloton is that drafting takes away a lot of that resistance (30%? or somethin lik that?) in any case, it's been tested quite a bit, that aero bikes shave minutes off a long effort, whereas light bikes shave off seconds, and this is still true on hilly stages.
I may just say screw it, and buy a light bike and an aero bike, along with a cross/touring/commuting bike, a mtb in the future, and possibly a tt bike if I become competitive in that realm. a lot of **** to store and take care of..