Best road bike up to 1k?

bitemybanger

Im getting a bike on the cycle to work scheme and want to know what is the best bike i could get for up to a grand? will be using it more for evening and weekend spins than commuting.
like the look of the Giant Defy 2 even tho its €1,070.
some nice Specalized, Kellys, and Cube bikes but am new to road bikes so need to know which would be best for me.
I have a Giant Terrago MTB so Giant sticks out for me, what about the others??
Cheers in advance

stuartanderson

I went through a few road bikes from a flatbar racer to cross bikes .
I liked the shimano nexus 8 speed on the ideal ocean but the frame had no clamp for seatpost it's integrated and failed .
Nexus are great where you can change gear without peddling .
There are load's of option's out there for you .
I settled on a kelly's definate a trekking cross , and can thoroughly recomend the frame and gear component's , mine is the black 2008 with high vis paint incororated with reflective tyres , sensible saefty get seen feature , the shimano brakes seem dull , that's my only complaint .
It's been used for a daily commute to work with no problems whot so ever .
In ireland i'd recomend mud guards tho , if getting one ask for that in the price .
Choice is a terrible thing . hope you get a bike to suit your needs
http://www.kellys-bicycles.com/index.php?id=ie_product&product_id=21326&countries_id=103&countries_name=ie&cat_id=243&subcat_id=250

banger01

I got one and would recommend it

funkyjebus

stuartanderson wrote: »

I went through a few road bikes from a flatbar racer to cross bikes .
I liked the shimano nexus 8 speed on the ideal ocean but the frame had no clamp for seatpost it's integrated and failed .
Nexus are great where you can change gear without peddling .
There are load's of option's out there for you .
I settled on a kelly's definate a trekking cross , and can thoroughly recomend the frame and gear component's , mine is the black 2008 with high vis paint incororated with reflective tyres , sensible saefty get seen feature , the shimano brakes seem dull , that's my only complaint .
It's been used for a daily commute to work with no problems whot so ever .
In ireland i'd recomend mud guards tho , if getting one ask for that in the price .
Choice is a terrible thing . hope you get a bike to suit your needs
http://www.kellys-bicycles.com/index.php?id=ie_product&product_id=21326&countries_id=103&countries_name=ie&cat_id=243&subcat_id=250

The op is looking for a raod bike, thats not really a road bike, now is it.

OP, best value are the boardmans in halfords. the components for the price is near unbeatable. check them out and compare. aslo read reviews on bikeradar. planet x online are also very good value.

stuartanderson

funkyjebus wrote: »

The op is looking for a raod bike, thats not really a road bike, now is it.

OP, best value are the boardmans in halfords. the components for the price is near unbeatable. check them out and compare. aslo read reviews on bikeradar. planet x online are also very good value.

Was bumping this thread with my answer .
Sorry me bad , he didn't state he wanted a racer either , i can guarantee the cross will out perform the racer on commuter routes AKA road's concrete cycle path's etc , trust me i have not had a puncture on the trekking cross on road's , comfort an confidence is what i look for in a road bike . Along with high visability for safety on route .
The bike i recommended i have .
I see racer's on the road avoidind the cycle path's as it's smoother on the road .
My view , not looking to confuse the OP but give option's like was requested , no conflict here ..
I'd not like to be given bum advice . Stuart .

funkyjebus

stuartanderson wrote: »

Was bumping this thread with my answer .
Sorry me bad , he didn't state he wanted a racer either , i can guarantee the cross will out perform the racer on commuter routes AKA road's concrete cycle path's etc , trust me i have not had a puncture on the trekking cross on road's , comfort an confidence is what i look for in a road bike . Along with high visability for safety on route .
The bike i recommended i have .
I see racer's on the road avoidind the cycle path's as it's smoother on the road .
My view , not looking to confuse the OP but give option's like was requested , no conflict here ..
I'd not like to be given bum advice . Stuart .

hey, im not having a go. just making sure all is clear for the op. fair play for coming on and offering your 2 cents, however for the sake of the op, i have to say its bad and inaccurate advise. firstly Its in the title that the op wants a racer, best road bike ( fyi a road bike refers to a racer, not a general bike for use on a road). not a chance that bike could out perform a road bike on a road. sure you cant go through big pot holes. but on the upside a road bike is lighter, more aerodynamic and agile and doesn't lose power through unnessesary suspension (unless off road) to name a few.

im sure its a grand bike and does you fine, but its not what the op appears to be looking for and may confuse and its erronous to say that would out perform a road bike on roads and cycle lanes. a decent road bike would destroy it.

no offence, but the op deserves the facts.

Captain Havoc

funkyjebus wrote: »

not a chance that bike could out perform a road bike on a road. sure you cant go through big pot holes. but on the upside a road bike is lighter, more aerodynamic and agile and doesn't lose power through unnessesary suspension (unless off road) to name a few.

a decent road bike would destroy it.
.

There's only one way to solve this debate

funkyjebus

Captain Havoc wrote: »

There's only one way to solve this debate

well, i didnt want to be the one to suggest it. could be seen as bullying, picking on the mtb kid in the corner!!

stuartanderson

funkyjebus wrote: »

well, i didnt want to be the one to suggest it. could be seen as bullying, picking on the mtb kid in the corner!!

Where were you with you'r word's of wisdom for the first twenty day's while this thread went unaswered ..

funkyjebus

stuartanderson wrote: »

Where were you with you'r word's of wisdom for the first twenty day's while this thread went unaswered ..

none of your business. only my OH can ask me questions like that!!

is that a serious question? i obviously didnt see thid thread until your reply bumped it. better late than never. but if it appeases you, i apologise for my tardiness.

i was unaware there is a time frame for postiing on boards. btw, where were you?

dont take it personal, my comments were not meant as such.

stuartanderson

funkyjebus wrote: »

none of your business. only my OH can ask me questions like that!!

is that a serious question? i obviously didnt see thid thread until your reply bumped it. better late than never. but if it appeases you, i apologise for my tardiness.

i was unaware there is a time frame for postiing on boards. btw, where were you?

dont take it personal, my comments were not meant as such.

No that was'nt a Q ..
Next you'll be telling me a high nelly is not a road bike .
It's all in the thread title , thank's for you'r input .

blorg

In fairness Stuart the OP was asking about a road racer (he mentions the Giant Defy in his post which is a racer) and a trekking/hybrid bike is not really comparable. Different bikes can be suitable for different people and usages but in this case he is looking for a racer. "Road bike" in cycling generally does mean "racer." Nothing wrong with your bike and no-one is having a go, don't take it so personally.

funkyjebus

stuartanderson wrote: »

Next you'll be telling me a high nelly is not a road bike

I willi indeed. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_bicycle

no need to thank me, the input was for the op not you.

English Bob

My advice would be to go along to your local bike shop and sit on a few bikes first.
Depending on your body shape, flexibility and experience of riding a road bike will mean you will have to choose a frame style that 'fits' you.
Due to the popularity of cycling sportives there are a large number of bikes with compact gears so this would be another thing to decide on, and depending whether you are intending to race would influence your choice of frame material.
It sounds (correct me if I'm wrong) that your intention is to use the bike for training more than commuting. The roads where you are riding would also matter with your choice of bike. At the 1000e mark you may be able to pick up a bike with carbon forks and a decent enough groupset but there's no point going for a bike that doesn't suit your purpose, so, go talk to your LBS.