Hi My name is Paul. I am new to like, everything! I don't know much so I am joining for more education.

I purchased a Giant Adventure Roam bike thinking that I would be doing a good mix of riding, but it looks like I'm doing more road riding. How do I make it more of a road bike than a hybrid. I am thinking all you do is just change the handle bars and wheels correct??

Thanks,

Paul

Change the tires...

Road bars may help, but your gearing is probably the biggest. I don't know what your bike runs, but check with a local bike shop and see if you may want to try a different ring up front or on the back cassette. A good bike fit will also make things MUCH more enjoyable on your rides, as will proper riding gear. Don't let the high cost of stuff scare you, there's a reason shorts and shoes, etc. can cost a small fortune, they feel much better on long rides. Also, if you get hooked on being a roadie, start saving for a really nice light weight road bike.

Welcome to BF! IMO... when you try to customize and accessorize one kind of bike into being another kind of bike, you’re wasting good money. You won’t turn a plow horse into a race horse. Changing the tires and putting on a pair of the narrowest road tires the rims will accept might be a good and relatively economical idea, but that’s as far as I’d take it. Beyond that, I’d suggest just doing your best to ride it until it falls apart and saving up for a good road bike while you’re doing that. I had a hybrid 15-20 years ago. I did a lot of around town type riding with it and I even did a couple centuries on it. The killer fashionistas looked at me with horror and disdain at the local club century weekend, but I enjoyed the ride and I survived their attitudes as well. You may be surprised how long and well your hybrid will serve you as you develop your riding abilities and needs. IMO you don’t need a costly road bike when you’re starting out. Thus endeth today’s sermon...

I agree with this. While you could switch out the suspension fork for a solid fork, swap out lighter wheels and narrower tires, change the gearing, and put drop bars with brifters, this will cost many hundreds of dollars, perhaps as much as the Roam cost in the first place, and you still might not be satisfied.

BTW, gearing on the Roam isn't that unreasonable. the 48T front chainring is plenty big and if you are spinning out on the biggest gear on the Roam, you might want to consider turning pro. The large 34 tooth cassette is pretty mountainish, but not necessarily a bad thing. There are plenty of touring bikes that use similar gearing. I was riding a hilly area about 15 miles north and west of my house yesterday and would have appreciated an extra gear or two on my Salsa Casseroll, which has a triple with a 26 tooth small chainring, but a closer ratio 12-25 road cassette. I was using the easiest gear and still suffering up the hills. On days like that (on the road), I think sometimes of giving up my close ratio cassette in favor of something more mountainish. Or maybe I just need to lose 30 lbs and get stronger.

IMO, you have two options.
1. Ride the bike pretty much as is. Maybe switch out tires to something narrower, like 32 mm, but that is it. Ride it for a year and do your research. When you are ready, buy a road bike, either traditional drop bars with brifters or a true flat bar road bike, if you hate drop bars. Then keep the Roam as a bad weather bike or loaner.
2. Sell the Roam now and get what you can for it and buy a road bike.

Welcome, Paul.

Wow thanks for all the advice! Ill probably get narrower tires for now than save up for a good road bike.

Gear, I understand gear and you pretty much get what you pay for.

Thanks for the advice, I cant wait to learn more!