I only got into biking after leaving Iowa, but I agree with the idea here - if I ever move back to the Midwest I’m getting a gravel bike for sure.
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- Thread starter Cydkar
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I only got into biking after leaving Iowa, but I agree with the idea here - if I ever move back to the Midwest I’m getting a gravel bike for sure.
I'm pretty much all in on biking. It's my number one hobby. I started out exclusively on mountain bike but purchased a road bike several years ago to commute to work. I raced mountain and road for a few years but it wasn't for me. I ride into work (36 miles round trip) about 70 days a year. I also do long road rides or mountain bike rides on weekends. I've also done RAGBRAI a couple of times and would love to do it again. Last year I did about 3,500 miles.
All of that being said, I've tried riding indoors and it just crushes my soul. I can ride outdoors every month of the year here so I do that as much as possible. Regarding the power meter, that's a lot of money for what would only be a curiosity for me. If I want to judge my fitness, I'll find a Strava segment and see how I compare to the last time I did it.
All of that being said, I've tried riding indoors and it just crushes my soul. I can ride outdoors every month of the year here so I do that as much as possible. Regarding the power meter, that's a lot of money for what would only be a curiosity for me. If I want to judge my fitness, I'll find a Strava segment and see how I compare to the last time I did it.
i'm on Strava but only for the last month or so for indoor record keeping. I'll log on as soon as I can and look for some local segments! Thanks for the idea!
I'm on Zwift which makes the indoor palatable and I also watch some TV. It's definitely not the same but reaching different goals keeps it acceptable.
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BMC road bike
Crux for cross and gravel
Fatboy...ride all year around.
Looking to add 2019 Diverge X1
Have Kinetic trainer, hate every minute on it. I do use it, but prefer to ride my crux or Fatboy in winter. Regarding PM, I haven't seen the need for what I do. Rather use that money on upgrading rims I guess.
Crux for cross and gravel
Fatboy...ride all year around.
Looking to add 2019 Diverge X1
Have Kinetic trainer, hate every minute on it. I do use it, but prefer to ride my crux or Fatboy in winter. Regarding PM, I haven't seen the need for what I do. Rather use that money on upgrading rims I guess.
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Yeah, trying to get my head around how that works. Everything thing I've seen is positive. BTW, you do know there is a recall on that. It's a simple fix for your shop.
Rims are your single best upgrade as far as speed and just performance. Anytime you can reduce rotational mass, you're better for it. Check out HED alum....great product for the price.
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Thank you re: rim suggestion. I did get the recall fix done and had them put the stiffest spring in while they were at it. It will be a while to see if that was a good choice. Easy to switch back if not. I had no intention of buying the bike but I rode it and it was so comfortable. Roubaix is a road bike but on a gravel bike it's an ideal use of tech. I'm 50 and road harshness is low on my list of enjoyable things.
I too am ready to move from a hybrid to a road bike....I think. I believe could move my joy for riding a bike to the next level if I got something beyond my hybrid. Probably an age thing. Hope someone weighs in on your question regarding good suggestions for not-so-crazy expensive road bikes.
When I have time I'll chime in on this although far from an expert. You can get a nice bike for under $1k and don't discount a used bike either.
This was always a fun ride. Now that I'm in the DM metro I'll do the taco ride from Orlondos to Cuming Tap once and awhile, that about sums up my biking resume.
Yeah. I'm coming up on 40 now. When I was younger I logged a ton of miles on a bike but the last decade or so I've been limited to occasional light trail riding with the family. I'm excited to get back to long rides and loops. I know there are some great trails around Des Moines and I've never been on a good majority of them.
I'd like to do some light competition stuff, too. I did one of the first years of the Great Ames Adventure Race way back in 2007 or 2008 and I want to come back and do that again. Fun course.
In my experience the type of person who can get into indoor riding workouts also tends to be the type of person who could enjoy training with power and doing intervals to increase fitness. Using power was the only way I could tolerate indoor riding. Seeing my power numbers increase over time was super encouraging. Strava's great too, but honestly finding a good segment where you can ride full out (without needing to worry about traffic) for a given time interval can be a challenge. And of course wind conditions and traffic conditions can make it hard to really compare efforts on different days.
With all that said, I don't use my power meter anymore because I don't ride enough to keep any high end fitness.
Don’t be afraid of bikesdirect.com. Same frames as the name brands (all from the same factories in China/Hong Kong) and the component specs are unbeatable for the price. I bought a fat bike from there just to strip for the components and brakes and have the rims and tires as backups in case of emergency.
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Interested in selling it? Not sure I'm in the market or not but, I mean, it's clearly just collecting dust.
Not an expert but had a similar decision a couple years ago...here's my rambling stream of consciousness:
Do you really need a road bike? If you are just going to ride in town or local trails, say less than a 20 mile rides, you might not even need a road bike. I have a Specialized Sirrus hybrid and a Raleigh Revenio carbon road bike. Got the road bike about a year and a half ago thinking I wanted one for longer rides, also thought I might do a few days of RAGBRAI. Last year I split rides between the two bikes about 50/50. The road bike is easier effort on longer rides but around the lakes for 90 minute fitness rides the hybrid is just fine. If I didn't go any longer than my fitness 20 miles rides around the Mpls lakes I probably won't need the road bike. Probably half my road bike rides last summer weren't far out of the hybrid comfort range. The hybrid is more comfortable on some of the ****** pavement and I love the disc brakes. Nearly augered in when I hit an unnoticed bump on a path behind Cedar Lake on the road bike. Also, for any of the local trails that are gravel I generally still opt for the hybrid, better tires at 700x30 than the road bike at 700x25 for gravel although the 25's would be okay I don't like getting the Raleigh all gritted up.
There are a lot of decent road bikes for around a $1000. If you can find models from previous years in your frame size there are some deals. Eriks here locally always seems to have "new old stock" from the previous year or even older. My Raleigh was a lot less $ than a carbon Trek or Specialized with the same components (or better), think it was new old stock 2-years old. As discounted it checked in at around $1000. My Specialized hybrid was also a previous years model. Sometimes you'll see a less popular brand like my Raleigh, for similar or less money but the component set is like two steps up.
Whatever you buy you are likely to need to purchase a better saddle. At least my experience is the ones that come with bikes sorta suck.
Yikes, I guess I was bored here on this cold late afternoon!
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We typically go a little North to Root River, MN area and ride that series of trails. We have stopped in Decorah also (stayed at the hotel off the hwy/on the trail) In late July is great tooling around Decorah on that loop, some scenic hills, 12-ft corn, limestone hillsides. Beautiful area
