UKC

The other half has just booked flights for May next year and uncharacteristically listenED to my advice not to bother taking her fancy road bike but to hire one there . To be honest I think my confident assertion that " everybody does" would be more honestly be taken from the world according to UKC . A few questions then :
1. Several well stocked shops in pollensa ?
2. Worth booking well in advance ?
3. Any need to check sizing on whatever brands they have or just trust that they are so good at it they will find a bike that fits ?
4. Any recommendations for hire shops ?
Ta.

In reply to mike123:
My wife has been three time using hired road bikes (booked in advance).

She recommends:

https://www.pollensacycling.com/

They get delivered to where you are staying.

In reply to mike123:

I'm not sure 'everyone does' is correct. I've been several times and have always taken my own best bike. It takes me half an hour to build or pack away my bike, to hire a bike of equivalent spec would be about 40 -50 euros a day. I know my bike fits perfectly and why would I own a top end bike and then leave it behind when going to ride some of the best roads in Europe?

Wife paid 90 Euros for 5 days hire for a Spez Tarmac Carbon bike..

This time (they got back Monday) they hired from a different company from Pollensca - she thought they were not as good service as Pollensca.

In reply to mike123: Pro Cycle Hire is a popular option with some quality bikes but for a real VIP experience try pinnarello experience dot com - the bikes and service is second to none.

In reply to mike123:

It might dpend on how tall she is. I wanted to hire a bike in Majorca but really struggled to find anywhere that had good spec bikes in a size small enough to fit a 5'2" woman. Might have been different if I'd looked more than 2 weeks before my holiday but I ended up taking my own bike instead - at least that way I knew I'd be comfortable on the 90-100 mile rides I was planning.

I'm pretty handy with bike fettling though (definitely helps) and managed to borrow a bike bag so it cost me less to fly my own bike out than to hire.

In reply to mike123:

I don't think I've ever been as miserable as I once was on a hired bike. Nothing wrong with the bike, but the saddle and I were incompatible. Don't bother now. Take a nice bike, a hard bike box and handirack inflatable roof bars. The whole lot goes on the roof of the hire car. Takes ten minutes to get the bike on the roof. Just make sure you get a bike box with one reasonable flat side.

Plan works equally well with a soft bike bag and a seasucker bike rack. Takes about 15 minutes in the rental car park to get a bike on the roof and a folded bike bag in the boot. Downside is baggage handlers. Boxes/bags without handles that you can get a really good grip on are best (can't be thrown as easily).

Both types of rack fit any car with a metal roof.

Or, a people carrier taxi if you're not going to be driving far.

In reply to nniff:


That's so easily solved by taking your own saddle...

In reply to ChrisJD:

You're right, of course, but these memories linger! Fortunately the numbness was less persistent.

In reply to mark catcher:
I think procyclehire have really slipped in recent years. Have heard tales of damaged bikes, crap service and people having to hang around whilst "mechanics" take ages to set bikes up.

We fell out with them when they took over an hour to swap a tyre that had a hole in so kept puncturing. We took it back and they tried to say "it's because you've used a patched tube".

"Er...it's your tube".

"No, we never use patched tubes".

"Well all these other bikes have patched tubes in the saddle bag".

"Oh".

In reply to yesbutnobutyesbut:

I didn't take my best bike when I went to Lanzarote, although I thought about it long and hard for exactly the reasons you mentioned. In the end, as I was only going to be allowed 2 days of riding (there with family), I decided it wasn't worth the grief and risk and hired a decent spec one from an ex-pat company for about 20 Euros a day.

Pre-booked the size online and took my own pedals. Bike was perfectly adequate, although didn't feel as stiff as mine - not sure if due to wheels or frame. Chance to try out something different, anyway.

In reply to mike123:

http://www.huerzeler.com/en

These are the guys to go with. Used two or three different shops and always had excellent service and really good bikes! Not quite Pinarello Dogma's but full carbon with ultegra groupo. quickly fixed any issues i've had.

In reply to mike123:

Well worth hiring a bike out there but the selection of decent women's bikes isn't huge so would recommend booking in advance and taking care with the sizing. We initially rented carbon Kuotas from Pollensa Cycling, Good service, and the bikes were nice, but I struggled with the bars/braking as the bikes we got were unisex. After a bit of research and quite a bit of expenditure I managed to get a Trek Silque from Tramuntana Tours in Port de Soller, it was a bit of a hike to get there but was the only carbon womens bike we could find at that short notice (easter). Made a huge difference though and helped with descending some of the big passes with a bit more confidence. Loved Mallorca!

In reply to mike123:

Hire if I were going.

Having seen baggage handlers drop two bikes in soft bags 7ft onto tarmac.

Pulled them off the top of a baggage cart from above head height and let them fall horizontally to the floor.

Just glad it wasn't one of my bikes!

In reply to Nbrain:

That's one for the list .
I have no idea what spezialanglbot is, but I like the sound of it .

In reply to mike123:

Thanks all . I'll make a list of hire shops , both good and bad and let her decide .

In reply to mike123:

https://www.tramuntanacycling.com/en/about/recommended-bike-hire

worth a look, and for anything else out there

In reply to mike123:

And make sure she takes her own saddle and pedals.

In reply to mike123:

Our club regularly goes to Mallorca ( Puerto Pollensa) and most of the people hire a bike when they are there - though pre-booking is worthwhile to make sure they've got one the correct size.

Typically a half decent road bike ( full carbon with 105 or Veloce groupset) costs about 30% more for a weeks hire than the airline charges to get it there and back. Anything more exotic will cost significantly more - and if you've not booked in advance that is what will probably be left! If going for 2 weeks, it's probably cheaper to take you own. Taking your own saddle is recommended, and unless you use Look Keos, take your own pedals as well.