UKC

Hi all

I've been after a road bike for a while now. Have a Boardman Hybrid PRO which is great but after something a bit comfier for longer rides.
I have just joined a cycle (Salary sacrifice scheme) at work that allows me to purchase a bike of upto £1000 at Evans Cycles.
Looking on their site they have lots of bikes. Wondered if anyone has bought recently from Evans or could offer advice on which bike you would choose for the available £1K
Ive seen a Jamis for £900 (was £1200) which looks very nice.

Ta
Lee

In reply to lee birtwistle:

http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?n=588341

You're going to get tons of conflicting advice, including "don't pay less than 2k" which isn't very helpful.

I'd look for an alu frame with carbon forks, Shimano 105 or Sram Rival components. Probably full retail around 1000-1200. Maybe not with Evans but a few LBS's will do a cheeky deal marking the price down to 1k and you pay the rest in cash.

I'd advise a compact front setup (slightly lower gears at the front) unless you're somewhere super flat. Most road bikes seem to come with compacts these days anyway. Don't get a triple, a compact gives nearly the same flexibility with less weight and a smoother shift. And looks better. =D

In reply to Bob_the_Builder:



But funnily enough, the person who asked the very same question in that thread eventually paid something on the way to that sum (and ignored my excellent advice to boot!). He'll have to pay a fortune now when he really gets into it and, as he will, feels that he owes it to himself to upgrade to another that's much better

In reply to Bob_the_Builder:
>

A grand gets you all the road bike you'll ever need though maybe not all the road bike you'll ever want.

In reply to felt:

Why did you suggest getting SPDs and then switching to road pedals?

In reply to Bob_the_Builder:

So you have SPDs for the alu road bike for winter/wet/urban commuting and SPD-SLs or equivalent for the second bike, the summer/dry carbon one. I wouldn't want to, for instance, ride around London with road shoes, and I like keeping them pristineish, whereas the SPDs are pretty grotty from rain/mud of wet/winter roads and are perfect for urban commuting.

In reply to felt:

Fair enough. I ride eggbeaters with mountain shoes for "bike rides" and just use clips and straps for commuting. I actually have some Keos in a ziplock bag somewhere but no road shoes yet.

In reply to felt:


I know, sorry. I was able to stretch a bit and got a great deal from an LBS with everything in for 2000.

In reply to TheDrunkenBakers:

Don't worry, the bike looks really nice. Enjoy!

In reply to TheDrunkenBakers:

It just means you're allowed less time to get filthy fast! =P

In reply to felt:


But that's because the poster was a keen and competitive runner who wanted to change to a lower impact sport, and also to cycle and train with his mates who were already keen cyclists. Hence the advice was appropriate and that's why it was acted on. The OP in this thread apparently has different needs so different advice is appropriate

In reply to kevin stephens:

Good points!

In reply to lee birtwistle:

Hi all

I have decided on this bike.
Jamis Quest Elite 2014 Road Bike (Was £1200 - now £900)
With the Cycle sheme at work it will cost me £560

Had a look at one today at Evans in Nottingham and it looked and felt great.

Ta
Lee

In reply to lee birtwistle:

Looks like a nice bike and well set up for long rides ... enjoy!
Cheers
Mark