dannyq

Seems like everybody who races has a very expensive bike (expensive to me is more than $1400-$1500)
Does anybody race with a entry-level bike?
I guess the man means more than the bike.

-VELOCITY-

Well I "ride" with an entry level bike because it's the only bike I currently have. Trek 1000.

crd15

HA this brings up a funny story.. There was a team a couple years ago that bought a bike from walmart and stripped it and put all new components on it. The bike weighed nearly 50 pounds.. They came in 6th in the Ironman.. its not about the bike.. sounds like ive heard that somewhere. I race with a 06' specialized allez elite triple.. works fine for me and the things pretty fast

bonzo_351m

My brother's friend did Tri's with a Trek1200 for a few years. It never bothered him or slowed him down at all. He won a new bike at one of his races so he eventually stopped using it. I think he won a TCR. He was darn excited because that was a huge upgrade.

dannyq

The reason i'm asking is I have a entry level bicycle ( '05 Opus Solo) and I want to get invovled in racing but i'm kinda nervous that my bike isnt good enough! (I worry about the dumbest things)

superdex

engine>bike.

Go race.

flyingscotsman

Unless you are at prime phyiscal condition, who cares if you bike weighs a pound more.

Dead Extra #2

Your bike is fine.

crd15

Theres no point in taking a lambo to a drag race with a go cart. Try the entry level races (c level). They have plenty of bikers that have never raced. As you get better and move up to b league or A league.. then get a better bike but it would be a shame to spend 10,000 on a bike and not like racing. Good luck

vantassell

50 lbs??!! I don't know if i believe that.....

Do you have a link to a story/article?

floyd landis

I think having a bike that costs $$$$ is more a mark of your status than anything else,can you say yuppie.Do you know anyone under 30 who has a 4000.00 bike?The bike you have 15yrs ago would have been top of the line it's all about percepitions.

dannyq

Thanks alot guys, I was actually kinda worried about it, but I feel way better now.
I love my bike, so i'm going for it.

My girlfriend says I pay more attention to my bike than her!

Nachoman

[QUOTE=crd15] . . . . . it would be a shame to spend 10,000 on a bike and not like racing. /QUOTE]

It might even be a shame to spend $10,000 on a bike even if he did enjoy racing.

recursive

Yeah... wait, can one really know one's self?

Anyway, you can pretty much race anything. I've seen at least a few Trek 1000s.

Edit: I've definitely seen that Walmart bike Ironman project. I vow to find it.

Also, I've successfully raced a $500 bike.

.:Jimbo:.

Yep! I race a sickly obese 23 pound Scott speedster s50 as of now. Full shimano sora, even with a triple!

I actually had planned to buy a new race bike shortly after picking up the Scott And leave the Scott for training and commuting, but i bought a second track bike instead. Thus, I now must use the Scott for my races.

Worst of all, i actually forgot to tune my bike and prep it for my first race of the season, and showed up to central park for my race with not only a bell, comfy specialized bar phat gel, and egg-beater mountain pedals, but i even ran my continental 4 season 28 section tires with a mere 80 psi!

flyingscotsman

She's right you know.

Then tell her to come riding with you or trade her in for a new model (girlfriend that is)

Savagewolf

I ride a Trek 1000 myself. The only upgrade that I've done is to add clipless pedals. An entry level bike is more than enough for you to compete. Like others have said, it's all about the engine. You could put me on a pro's bike, and him on mine, and he'd beat me everytime.

If you put in the time and effort, you'll get better and start passing some of those that have spent the $$$ but not the time. Of course, you'll also race against those who have spent the time to get better and the $$$ for the better gear. You'll still be competitive though.

substructure

2004 C'dale R400 here. Well, just the frame left of the original. Everything else was upgraded. She still weighs 20 lbs. So I'm going to train harder and drop 5 more pounds of body fat to compensate.

I've done three races so far, and I promise the bikes are all over the spectrum. You'll see feather-weight $5000+ bikes and guys rolling up on beat up commuters that need to be oiled something bad like. It doesn't matter. Like stated before: It's the engine for the most part.

dannyq

I've been trying!

My Opus was 23.9lbs when I first bought it, but i'm trying to upgrade some things to make it lighter.

donrhummy

So a $1300 bike is entry level? I beg to differ. $700 is entry level, $1300 mid-level (albeit the bottom of mid-level), and $2500+ is top-level (with $5000+ as elite, in it's own world stuff that very few people buy).

flyingscotsman

Trying to trade the girlfriend for a new model or trying to get her to ride?

DigitalRJH

For 4 years I rode with an entry level. $700 Iron Horse Triumph, with Sora components. I think it weighs 25 lbs. I now use it as my bad weather / indoor trainer / pull my kid's trailer bike.

frankieN

I went to the Vuelta al Tachira in Venezuela this year. Kind of like the Tour de France back a few years. You could mingle with the riders as they were about to get started and you could wander on the buses to speak to the riders as they were getting ready to go ride. These pros were mostly from Venezuela and Colombia and let me tell you the equipment was almost laughable. And yet these guys rode like animals. These pros are hungry and just hoping to get signed by some European squad a la Rujano, a Venezuelan who signed a few years ago and actually came in third in the Giro and shook some things up in the mountain stages. I saw low level Shimano and Campy and some frames you can't even get in the USA. The love of the bike and hunger to proceed in any event must really drive these guys.

recneps

I know a dude who kills it on some bike with tiagra, I soloed to victory in the cat5 race today.

spry

Which rides better eh?