Suitable type bike for cycling to work?

ghogie91

Hi All,

Never cycled to work before, I am looking for a bike that will make the journey quick and fast!

What type of bike would be most comfortable but quick too?

My budget it about 7/800 euro

I am getting slightly confused after going on bikestore.ie

Lumen

How far is it?

Are you going to cycle in normal clothes?

ghogie91

Its a 7k cycle to my work

No i will have the work clothes waterproofed in a bag for when I get in

This bike will also do me to cycle to like training, gym etc basically trying to phase out my car as I live in town and dont really need it if I get this cycling going

alls that stopping me is total inexperience

MB Lacey

I bought a Specialized Sirrus maybe 6 years ago and I'm still commuting 20 kish each day to work on it, never any problems, it's light and quick and very easy to cycle and maintain.
Cycleways in Dublin stocks these.
For commuting short distances I'd say you're better with a hybrid bike (doesn't have drop down bars), you might prefer a road bike though.
This is going for €659
The main advice I'd give is go into bike shops and sit on the bike for size and learn what you like and don't like in a bike.
Good luck.

Lumen

If you get a hybrid, avoid suspension forks. Simple and cheap is good, like this:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=81001

If you get a road bike, consider something which will take full mudguards as it makes wet cycling much less unpleasant. Like this:

http://www.wheelworx.ie/trek/trek-1-2-2012

ghogie91

Now both of those posts are exactly what I was looking for clarification on!

That trek 1.2 looks like the business, is there any recommended shops? Im in athlone btw

ghogie91

Both of those posts are exactly what i was looking for

I really think that trek 1.2 is the business, is there any recommended shops in ireland? Im in athlone btw

chinwag

From a Google search earlier on I noticed there are bicycle shops in Athlone.

ghogie91

chinwag wrote: »

From a Google search earlier on I noticed there are bicycle shops in Athlone.

There are two alright

But the choice in these shops is limited afaik

daragh_

ghogie91 wrote: »

There are two alright

But the choice in these shops is limited afaik

Planet X Ireland are based in Athlone. Might be worth dropping over to them.

http://planetxireland.com

ghogie91

I wont directly across the road from planet x believe it or not and didnt know it had anything to do with cycling haha

This is the bike I have I got it about 3 or 4 years ago and its basically new cause of how little use it got

ghogie91

ghogie91 wrote: »

I wont directly across the road from planet x believe it or not and didnt know it had anything to do with cycling haha

This is the bike I have I got it about 3 or 4 years ago and its basically new cause of how little use it got

This

Seaneh

ghogie91 wrote: »

There are two alright

But the choice in these shops is limited afaik

Buckelys on the dublin road is a really good shop and the lads in there know their stuff.

They could look after you.

ghogie91

Seaneh wrote: »

Buckelys on the dublin road is a really good shop and the lads in there know their stuff.

They could look after you.

Do they take trade ins? As in my bike in the post above?

Seaneh

ghogie91 wrote: »

Do they take trade ins? As in my bike in the post above?

no idea, you'd be better off shifting it yourself in adverts or something, the trade in value would be pretty low.

thebouldwhacker

Why do you want to change? The bike you have now is perfect for your 7km cycle. Normally one would swap mtb tires for slick road ones but if your cycling for fitness the extra rolling friction will be good for you. You even have lights and mud flaps on it already so you can use it now, this morning. Pump it up and go.
Don't be putting it off Just do it, get cycling.

ghogie91

Sound Job,

Beginner cyclist here,

Nearly made friends with the back of a merc last night, just about stopped myself flying over the handlebars :O

petethedrummer

You could put slick tyres on it to reduce the rolling resistance but wait till the snow passes.

ghogie91

Yeah slick tyres were what is was looking into. I presume this would be a valid request in any bike shop?

These reduce rolling distance? how do you mean? whats the benefit of this?

seamus

Rolling resistance == resistance to rolling

Higher rolling resistance means that you need more effort to get the bike up to speed and more effort to keep it there. Less rolling resistance means that the bike accelerates easier and cruises along much more efficiently.

While there's an argument which says that running with higher rolling resistance is better for fitness (because you have to put in more work), they can also suck the fun out of the ride by needlessly limiting your speed downhill and further sapping speed from the bike when you're fighting a strong headwind. If it's less fun, then you're more likely to leave the bike at home and you lose the fitness element.

Slick tyres are a good idea at least for the first few months while cycling becomes part of your routine.

thebouldwhacker

The less contact a bike has with the road the better. Slicks focus traction on a single point of contact thus giving good grip with minimal contact. An mbt has big fat grips which make a lot of contact with the road thus are great for forest tracks as they will keep you in your desired direction but are not good for the road as you have to pedal harder.
Hence people swap mtb for slicks, but if your cycling for fitness why make it easier?

ghogie91

Thanks for the replies all, I have contacted both bike shops in my area and they both can supply them

I am not cycling solely for fitness, the idea of exercising to get to and from work is good, but I just want to start commuting to try not use the car as much, I train 6 days a week and want to cycle to training also

ghogie91

Update on the slick tyres.... class altogether, like cycling a new bike

nattyguest

Would people recommend the Cube Town 2013

http://www.theedge-sports.com/store/product/61686/Cube-Men%27s-Town-2013/ for €679

over the Specialized Sirrus?

http://www.theedge-sports.com/store/product/58008/Specialized-Specialized-Sirrus-Graphite/ for €569.95

Sirrus seems to be talked about a lot more across the web. Advantage to the town is that it's pre-fit with much of what I need, though I could get the items equipped on the Sirrus and match the price (more or less). Commute is from Tower, Cork (near Blarney) to Blackpool, Cork City and is 10km in length.

Thanks for the advice, I'm really out of my depth here but been reading the previous posts and reviews, etc.

monkeypants

I have a cube myself, but based to the websites, I'd go with the specialized. Suspension forks are not required for a commute, they just make the bike heavier. You can fit a carrier and panniers. As for the dynamo powered light, that's also extra weight that you don't need. Lights are...light and can be picked up quite cheaply.

ghogie91

My housemate is actually going to get Specialized bike through the BTW scheme, since its going to take a week or two for the papers to be finalised and all that jazz I wont be able to report on it,

I can in a week or so, let ye know how my bike compares to it and how it looks and cycles

Lumen

I love my dynamo lights.