what bike do you race on

templer27

Just curious,lots of you guys race i presume.What bikes are good enough to race on.I am not a bike racer by any means,but could if i wanted to race and win on a planet x bike.

I know its not all about the bike no pun intended.Would i have to be a much better cyclist to win on a planet x bike or a focus cayo?I mean its so much cheaper than a giant tcr or a trek madone are they much better bikes or does it really matter.:o

DirkVoodoo

From my limited understanding, if you are good enough to be winning races then the bike is less important than it might be for someone clinging on to the back of the pack.

Obviously every little advantage you can give yourself, either physically or mentally is worth it, so if you feel better on a 5k bike rather than a 2k one, go for it.

As for the planet-x, I seem to recall Quigs Snr mentioning ages ago that he was seeing more and more of them at the tougher races (category a?).

horizon26

So I could race on my cayo if I changed my chainset to a 39/52.Bet I would not win a single race,my fault though.I wonder how competitive the bike would be?Maybe if Igot the izalco from wiggle,and its a reasonable price would that improve my chances.

DirkVoodoo

I'm pretty sure if I grabbed a local league racer, a strong rider who wins lots of races (I don't know many really) and took him off his prize Colnago, he would be as competitive and likely to be in the mix on a planet X.

I don't know what kind of riders you guys are, but to think that suddenly buying a better bike makes you a champion is a bit mad, no? You will race just fine on a Planet X, whether you win or not will not be due to the bike.

horizon26

Your right of coarse silly thread:o

blorg

Really does not matter, it is the rider not the bike. Once it is half decent the bike will make a tiny tiny difference.

The Planet X and Focus Cayo are very good bikes, the PX I think is better though. If racing a double will be less likely to drop the chain which does make a difference.

I have a Planet X as my winter bike and a Litespeed Archon as my summer one and to be honest I don't think there would be any difference between them in a race.

papac

All other things being equal a better bike will make a tiny difference.
Now you just have to find out what all those other things are and make them equal.;)
Spend less- train harder.

awwwwww yeeaaahh

http://www.velobum.com/images/ridley/OrionTeam_09.JPG

csb1989

The winner of the Ballinrobe 2 day this year was on a planet X, he had no complaints if I remember correctly !

Also, I used to race on a giant defy 4 with shimano 2200 gears, wheels that must have been filled with lead, and a gross weight that would but a cow to shame- still fine tho

definitly try some racing first, and maybe reward yourself with something nice if you still feel you want/ need it

Quigs Snr

Martin Irvine will be riding for Planet X next season (Junior has more details), as will one or two other elite Irish riders apparently.No doubt they will be riding Planet X Pro Carbon SL bikes for road stages and Stealth's for TT's like the rest of their pro riders in the UK. Do feel free to turn up at an A race and take Irvine on and see if the planet X is fast enough !

Once the paramedics stuff your lungs back in come back and let us know what you think. To summarise, they are not that fashionable these days, a little dated looking resembling the Giant frames of 5 years ago and the frame is not ultra light (but can be built into a light bike), but don't let that fool you. If you are racing on a PX bike and get beaten, its your fault, not the bikes fault.

mloc123

Just keep throwing more money at, don't worry about training... you should fit in around here

Zipp101

Ye,you just have to chuckle when you see a guy on a 4k frame,super record groupset and Lightweight wheels the first guy out the back..

Lumen

Zipp101 wrote: »

Ye,you just have to chuckle when you see a guy on a 4k frame,super record groupset and Lightweight wheels the first guy out the back..

Loser! He wouldn't have got dropped if he'd bought Di2.

Home:Ballyhoura

csb1989 wrote: »

The winner of the Ballinrobe 2 day this year was on a planet X, he had no complaints if I remember correctly !

Have a look at this one I found for ya while looking through Ballinrobe 2 Day 2009 race pics. I'm not sure if you can make it out but the guy second on the climb was on a Planet X SL Pro Carbon and the rider in about 5th in the Avonmore kit is on the same bike (Planet X) just in the blue colour who was eventually the overall winner of the event. As others have said, there is absolutely nothing wrong with those bikes, really nice! I even have a Planet X Stealth TT bike myself and love it. The white colour looks lovely in my opinion if you are willing to look after it! Best of luck

P.S. I'm in the picture too! Haha...:cool:

quietobserver

nice pic, i see myself in that picture too.

DirkVoodoo

Great photo, what bike is the guy at the front on?

sy

Home:Ballyhoura wrote: »

P.S. I'm in the picture too! Haha...:cool:

Nice photo Ballyhoura, see you like to hug the white line;)

IM0

sy wrote: »

Nice photo Ballyhoura, see you like to hug the white line;)

actually Id say he's the one looking at the camera

Chips Lovell

me@ucd wrote: »

actually Id say he's the one looking at the camera

Ballyhoura's the guy on the Orbea.

niceonetom

Ok, so we've established that I won't be able to blame my rubbishness on my planet-x frame next season.

But what about my wheels? Will the pathetically shallow profile of my shabby aluminium rims be enough to blame my shortcomings on? I need something to a)excuse my crappness and b)justify future upgrades.

blorg

niceonetom wrote: »

Ok, so we've established that I won't be able to blame my rubbishness on my planet-x frame next season.

But what about my wheels? Will the pathetically shallow profile of my shabby aluminium rims be enough to blame my shortcomings on? I need something to a)excuse my crappness and b)justify future upgrades.

I don't think wheels make a lot of difference at all. Your training and after that position would be a lot more important (which is why I went out and got Zipp 404s.)

Chips Lovell

niceonetom wrote: »

Ok, so we've established that I won't be able to blame my rubbishness on my planet-x frame next season.

But what about my wheels? Will the pathetically shallow profile of my shabby aluminium rims be enough to blame my shortcomings on? I need something to a)excuse my crappness and b)justify future upgrades.

You need to get your excuses in early. Look at Lumen, he's been laying the ground carfully for months now, talking about his back. Now, next season, when he says, "I was going great in last night's race but my back started giving me gip in the last lap," no one's going to question him.

niceonetom

el tonto wrote: »

You need to get your excuses in early. Look at Lumen, he's been laying the ground carfully for months now, talking about his back. Now, next season, when he says, "I was going great in last night's race but my back started giving me gip in the last lap," no one's going to question him.

Yeah, the sandbagging there is rife. That training log is turning into the psyche-ops battlegroud I predicted. I'm so weak. I'm sore. My bike doesn't fit me and the kids don't like the noise the turbo makes. All this talk of 'watts' sounds like the elaboration of a bad liar too.

I'm watching you Lumen.

Like. A. Hawk.

csb1989

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

Great photo, what bike is the guy at the front on?

Its an aluminium cinelli, not sure which one exactly tho... 105 grouppo on it too.