Sarah Ulmer has pulled out of the TT, citing back problems. 3 million Kiwis and numerous pervs like me will be absolutely spewing.

I need a little help guys on a purchase of a bike, as many of ya know, im still getting into cycling and Im at uni (which means I dont have enough money for cycling) but some funds have rolled in. this is what im looking at

Why you ask? Because its local so I can go and have a look at it. Secondly whats the point of me getting an expensive roadie, when most of the improvements in my cycling will be from me improving, not from upgrades in components.
I also would be pretty scared in leaving an expensive roadie at uni, it only takes one thief to realise what it is.

What do you guys think? Am I misguided in my thinking?

Make that 4,000,000!

B U G G A !!!!!

I heard on the radio this morning Sarah was voted as the hottest chick in NZ in a radio poll of girls who love girls. Everyone loves Sarah :p

totally misguided, who would ride a Gitane ??? ;););)

I wasn't counting the 1,000,000 who prefer sheep :p

Sarah Ulmer hot lesbo action. Yum.

Seconded. Only ciggie posing ******s ride Gitanes. :p

while I dont mind a bit of brand slanging, this isnt really helpful to me

yeah, something like that, but it's a great road coz it has stuff-all lights, it's fast, good scenery, and plenty of Bianchi-clad peanuts to mow down!! :p

crikey!!! There's 5 of them now???!!! I bet they cried when Ulrich went back to T-Mobile, and the Bianchi theam was 'no more' :)

Maybe they've just got a good sense of humour, like those guys who go to the cricket dressed as Ritchie :p

Well it's a bike. What do you want to hear? If you like it and can afford it then buy it. Simple.

I just had a look at the Comm games website where they provided a nice profile of the TT course, it looks pretty flat, even the "hills" - so I guess if you are a weekend warrior out for maximum poseur value, a flat road is good 'coz you can cycle relatively quickly and look good. :D

One of the commentators mentioned 2000+ people cycle on Beach Rd each Sat and Sun, sounds bloody crowded to me.

Nope, but I'm wagging work on Thursday for the MTB's (which is literally over my back fence) and dragging the family into town on Sundy for thr RR.

advice. As Ive said, I know jack shizzle. Brand bashing doesnt help me.

But your other advice, seems to hit the nail on the head

EDIT: but how much is too much for it?

late last year, a mate of mine bought a brand new 2004 Gitane with full Shimano 105 (except for the brakes) for ~$1400, so I'm not sure a 2nd hand Tiagra model would be worth half that.

whadda you guys reckon?

here ya go. It looks like it's a 2003

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...ng_en%26sa%3DG

Kotter,

a second hand mach1600 is worth next to nothing. Do not buy it at $500. I wouldn't pay $200 for it.

For uni you are MUCH better off on a singlespeed setup with 46x17 or 48x17 freewheel or fixie if you're brave. Any crap wheels. Probably flatbar best. Can be standard frame, cruiser, or MTB frame depending on what other uses you have planned for it.

The idea is to ride a bike that you like but is not appealing to potential thieves. The single speed will test you legs on the undulatin terrain around waratah/jesmond and over Scenic Drive on the weekends.

Doesn't your best mate Maurice sell second hand bikes? :D

yeah, the more I think about......a 2nd hand Tiagra gruop-set would be worth virtually nothing, so maybe it's worth no more than $400

yeah, but I try not to see him much. He has a *few* bikes for sale, but they are fairly expensive. Sorry I cant tell you what he has on sale atm

I guess what I was getting at is you might find much better value in the Saturday paper. A nice bike that's SS or can be easily converted to SS shouldn't set you back more than $80-$120. Doesn't have to have nice shiny spokes and gleaming paintwork if its promary function is commuting to UNI for 3 or 4 years.

You just need a beater bike that's ultra reliable, rain hail or shine.

The bike Ive got could be converted to fg pretty easily (horizontal drops) but where would I get the parts, wheel set, gears, new crank?
or I guess this would go pretty cheap ebay item

Too exxy. Find a second hand beater somewhere so you only have to change minimal stuff. Use the wheels that come with it, just put new rubber and tubes on if needed. New grippy brakepads too.

Ebay doesn't always have what you need/want, and has been a bit exxy on most track gear this summer.

Kenyan (Chris Frome) leads 40km TT after half field gone through in 53:58

jeez, some of these poor buggers can't even afford clip-on tri bars?

or don't they want them?

Ouch!


Man, at first glance, I thought Jock was talking about me. Off topic, our stuff is supposed to be delivered this week.