sfbay

Hello,

This is my first post after intro.

I am a 26 yr old new biker, riding 15 miles a thrice a week.
I am new into biking and having a lot of fun in the bay area, Palo alto area.

I am planning to upgrade to a more real road bike thats affordable.

I have only 3 requirements and need your advice.
1)Im a short guy, ~5.7
2)Need dual brakes, not fully comfortable to bend all time.
3)A light bike.

Is this a good bike to buy from. Any bike you like?
Save Up To 60% Off Road Bikes, Bicycles, Mountain Bikes and Bicycles with Bikesdirect.com, New with full warranties

Thanks,
Sam

cale

I think your link is messed up because it leads to a introductory page, not a "model" page. What do you mean by dual brakes? Do you mean a old fashion style with the levers under the hoods and the levers across the top bar? I don't think they sell that sort any more. I like the Dawes Lightning 1500 for riding in the hills surrounding Palo Alto/Bay area.

TrojanHorse

Most road bikes only have the integrated brakes / shifters and many riders ride "on the hoods" so you're not bent over but you can still brake. Perhaps you're talking about interrupter brakes (aka cross brakes)? They're not really that necessary for normal riding but if you want 'em, they're available.

As for bikes direct, those bikes are alright if you are comfortable doing your own wrenching. You'll want to go over the bike and check fasteners / lube when you get it, but if you're comfortable doing that they can be a great deal.

Stucky

You can install interrupter levers on any road bike, as long as it doesn't have brake cables routed inside the handlebars.

wiggle.com | Cane Creek Crosstop Brake Levers | Brake Levers

Any bike which comes with interrupter levers/safety levers already installed as a standard feature, will likely be of very poor quality. (I used to like those levers when I was young, as I used to ride on the tops of the bar all the time- but now I never ride the tops- I only ride the hoods and the drops... Believe me, you get used to riding in the proper positions very quickly- and then there is no need to ride the tops. Having the levers will only encourage you to ride the tops, and you'll never give yourself the opportunity to acclimate to proper riding positions)

tekhna

Once, a long time ago, I thought I wanted interruptor levers too.

Stucky

Yeah- the sad thing was, back in the 70's when I was a kid, all the BSO's came with turkey levers. Having the levers meant I could always ride the tops- so I had no motivation/opportunity to put my hands anywhere else (which always seemed uncomfortable). It wasn't until I got my first real road bike as an adult, with no safety levers, that I was forced to spend more time riding the hoods or drops- and then I was amazed at hpow quickly I got used to riding in those positions- to the point where literally, within days, I had no desire to ride on the tops anymore.

sfbay

Thank you all for your responses.

I will ride in proper posture this week and decide if I need safety levers or not.

dawis 1500 looks good.

datlas 

"New Cyclist" and "Bikesdirect" probably not a great combination. I suggest you visit your local bike shop and take a few test rides. What's your budget?? It sounds expensive, but a decent entry level bike is going to cost $700-900. You can brake fine from the hoods so you don't need "dual" brake levers.

rms13

Unless you have really small hands like my wife No matter what we tried she could never get enough leverage to operate brakes from the hoods to be able to confidently stop the bike quickly enough.

a1penguin

At 5'7" you are not short by bicycle size standards. You are probably in the 50-52cm size range and should not have any difficulties with reaching the brakes from the hoods. The tough reach is when you are in the drops. As a beginner, it will probably be a few hundred miles before you feel comfortable riding in the drops. There is a variety of handle bar sizes and shapes to suit your needs. While you might feel like you would ride with your hands on top of the bars, it won't be long before you find yourself riding 90% of the time on the hoods where your hands naturally rest on the break levers.

While you are on a budget, Go Ride Bikes in Redwood City and Chain Reaction bikes should have a decent selection of 2014 bikes on sale. If you or a friend or family member donates blood, Stanford Blood Center always has 10% off Sports Basement coupons that can be used for purchasing bikes. I'm not sure what the local craigslist market is like, but probably not a lot of good deals.

mirandaspits

I'm 5'6" and my road frame is 54cm. 52cm may feel a bit cramped, at least it does to me.

sfbay

Thanks friends. I went to a bike store today, loved the canondale sora 7.

I will look for better prices online, if not I will purchase it from the store. Any good websites to order canondale from?

Professor ZZZ

My advice/anecdote: My entry into road cycling, following an invested 4 years of brakeless fixed riding/commuting (phase), was to pick up an entry level bike (aluminum frame/carbon fork) and then upgrade all the parts. currently I'm sitting on a Schwinn Phocus 1600 with the only stock components being the frame and headset. I've used the acquisition of needed parts as motivation to stay on the bike late into Fall/Winter. If my taxes return shakes out, I'm planning on picking up a Specialized Allez smartweld frameset. Then I'll have a solid, self-built, self-wrenched Specialized road bike with all of the components that I've hand picked for my needs. It seems to be working for me...

RoadGuy

There are lots of good used bikes available in your area on Craigslist for very reasonable amounts (over 1000 bikes posted for sale in the private ads section since yesterday). Seeing how you already have a bike, you should know what a proper fit is, and you should have no problem going to look at some bikes by yourself.

Here are a couple of newer bikes posted today. Prices seem a little high to me, but it's SF, and CL. CL prices are posted high so you can bargain down.

[h=2]Specialized Sirrus Road Bicycle - Medium Sized, Aluminum Frame - $300 (oakland lake merritt / grand)[/h]https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/bik/4906276856.html

[h=2]2010 Specialized Allez Steel and two Raleigh folders - $400 (glen park)[/h]https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/bik/4937751305.html

I also saw a Trek 1100 54cm (about a 1991-1992) for sale (triple crank with a bonded aluminum frame and steel fork) that looks like it's in pretty good shape for sale for an asking of $375, which is high (it's worth $250-$300 in most markets). I have one like it (older 1990 model) that I brought last year for $40, and have replaced just about the entire drivetrain (except for the crankset and bottom bracket). It's turning out to be a real nice ride.