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Main
Date: 17 Mar 2007 07:15:45
From: glibdud
Subject: Assistance with bicycle selection
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Hi folks. Recently I've found myself needing a lower-impact form of
exercise, since my knees aren't what they once were. I decided that
cycling sounds about right for me, and with the spring weather
starting to show through in patches, I'm starting to get excited about
it. I haven't been on a bike in over a decade (since my high school
years), so I know very little about the technology these days. I've
spent several hours scouring some very good web sites, and it sounded
like the best type for me would be a hybrid. I went to local bike shop
to ask about them, and was shown the Giant Sedona and Cypress (which
appear to be identical except for the tires). They look like pretty
good bikes, but even narrowing it to those two I'm having a hard time
deciding which would be better for me. Part of the problem is that I
don't know the full extent of what I'm going to be getting myself
into. Perhaps I could get some help from the group.
Probably 90% of my riding will be split between road (commuting) and
crushed limestone (a nearby rail trail). I'd like to eventually work
my way up to longer (50+ mile) rides. It would be nice to have a
little flexibility in terrain capabilities for when I ride with
friends, but I'm guessing that's a trade-off with efficiency for the
longer rides (is that correct?). I definitely won't be taking this
bike on rough trails or on loose sand.
So based on that, could anyone help me choose between the Giant
Cypress DX (700x40C tires) and the Sedona DX (26 x 1.95"), or tell me
why I should look at something else entirely?
Thanks in advance,
David Murphy
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Date: 19 Mar 2007 15:31:57
From:
Subject: Re: Assistance with bicycle selection
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700x40 is fine for most rail trails. I frequently ror the D&R canal
on 700x35 on a cyclocross bike. That would be my recommendation. You
can get skinny tires for the road and fly and then put wider tires for
rail trails and rough roads. Much more comfy than a hybrid and
lighter. If I went with a hybrid I would stick with a 700c wheeled
bike
On 18, 1:03 pm, "glibdud" <glib...@hotmail.com > wrote:
> On 17, 10:26 am, Just A User <k...@up-yours-spammer.net> wrote:
>
> > Okay David, first you sound a lot like I did a couple of years ago. You
> > sound as though you are going to be starting out on relatively short
> > rides say less than 15 miles. But you also say that you might like to
> > build up to longer 50+ mile rides. Any bike should be able to do both
> > rides, however, the hybrid bikes you are looking at are well let's just
> > /heavy/ by bikes designed for longer distance standards, like a road
> > bike. However most road bikes wouldn't do very well on crushed
> > limestone. So if you really want to ride on crushed limestone trails,
> > the hybrid maybe your best bet, and for versatility I would suggest
> > getting a bike with 700c sized tires as you can get replacements in a
> > wide variety of widths.
>
> > Ken
>
> On 17, 12:39 pm, "nash" <zwepytzkehil...@jetable.net> wrote:
>
> > For a 50 mile ride the bigger the wheel and the narrower and higher psi the
> > better.
> > My GT has narrower 100 psi. MTB but I would definitely take the Trek road
> > bike on a trip like that. GT is a convertible bike too. With shocks or
> > without with a button push. You might try a 29". Ask about the pros and
> > cons on that.
>
> Thanks to both of you for the responses. To be a little more specific
> about the question on my mind, is there any such thing as a
> "conventional wisdom" for minimum tire width on different terrains? Is
> the 700x40c fine for crushed limestone? What types of terrain am I
> likely to miss out on if I go with that over the 26x1.95"?
>
> David Murphy
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Date: 19 Mar 2007 08:02:36
From: glibdud
Subject: Re: Assistance with bicycle selection
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On 19, 9:32 am, "SlowRider" <jrogers80...@hotmail.com > wrote:
> On 18, 11:03 am, "glibdud" <glib...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Thanks to both of you for the responses. To be a little more specific
> > about the question on my mind, is there any such thing as a
> > "conventional wisdom" for minimum tire width on different terrains? Is
> > the 700x40c fine for crushed limestone? What types of terrain am I
> > likely to miss out on if I go with that over the 26x1.95"?
>
> I don't think you can really go wrong with either the hybrid or the
> MTB. Both will allow you try a variety of ride types: long road
> rides, mountain biking and commuting. If you think you might want to
> go longer than ~50 miles, then the hybrid might be a better choice.
> If you think you might enjoy technical mountain biking trails (lots of
> big rocks/logs), then a suspended MTB might be a better choice. For
> everything inbetween, I think either one will suit your needs.
Thanks. I was leaning toward the Cypress (700x40c), so that sort of
reinforces that. You reminded me of one other thing I haven't put much
thought into yet. I believe the DX model I'm looking at has a front
fork suspension. Is that a bad thing if I plan to do mostly flat
rides? How much maintenance do those require?
-David Murphy
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Date: 19 Mar 2007 06:32:11
From: SlowRider
Subject: Re: Assistance with bicycle selection
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On 18, 11:03 am, "glibdud" <glib...@hotmail.com > wrote:
> Thanks to both of you for the responses. To be a little more specific
> about the question on my mind, is there any such thing as a
> "conventional wisdom" for minimum tire width on different terrains? Is
> the 700x40c fine for crushed limestone? What types of terrain am I
> likely to miss out on if I go with that over the 26x1.95"?
I don't think you can really go wrong with either the hybrid or the
MTB. Both will allow you try a variety of ride types: long road
rides, mountain biking and commuting. If you think you might want to
go longer than ~50 miles, then the hybrid might be a better choice.
If you think you might enjoy technical mountain biking trails (lots of
big rocks/logs), then a suspended MTB might be a better choice. For
everything inbetween, I think either one will suit your needs.
-JR
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Date: 18 Mar 2007 10:03:44
From: glibdud
Subject: Re: Assistance with bicycle selection
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On 17, 10:26 am, Just A User <k...@up-yours-spammer.net > wrote:
> Okay David, first you sound a lot like I did a couple of years ago. You
> sound as though you are going to be starting out on relatively short
> rides say less than 15 miles. But you also say that you might like to
> build up to longer 50+ mile rides. Any bike should be able to do both
> rides, however, the hybrid bikes you are looking at are well let's just
> /heavy/ by bikes designed for longer distance standards, like a road
> bike. However most road bikes wouldn't do very well on crushed
> limestone. So if you really want to ride on crushed limestone trails,
> the hybrid maybe your best bet, and for versatility I would suggest
> getting a bike with 700c sized tires as you can get replacements in a
> wide variety of widths.
>
> Ken
On 17, 12:39 pm, "nash" <zwepytzkehil...@jetable.net > wrote:
> For a 50 mile ride the bigger the wheel and the narrower and higher psi the
> better.
> My GT has narrower 100 psi. MTB but I would definitely take the Trek road
> bike on a trip like that. GT is a convertible bike too. With shocks or
> without with a button push. You might try a 29". Ask about the pros and
> cons on that.
Thanks to both of you for the responses. To be a little more specific
about the question on my mind, is there any such thing as a
"conventional wisdom" for minimum tire width on different terrains? Is
the 700x40c fine for crushed limestone? What types of terrain am I
likely to miss out on if I go with that over the 26x1.95"?
David Murphy
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Date: 19 Mar 2007 21:44:55
From: nash
Subject: Re: Assistance with bicycle selection
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700x40c
its 700Cx40mm Metric dude. So you will not get more confuzed.
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Date: 17 Mar 2007 16:39:03
From: nash
Subject: Re: Assistance with bicycle selection
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"glibdud" <glibdud@hotmail.com > wrote in message
news:1174140945.471062.58440@y80g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
> Hi folks. Recently I've found myself needing a lower-impact form of
> exercise, since my knees aren't what they once were. I decided that
> cycling sounds about right for me, and with the spring weather
> starting to show through in patches, I'm starting to get excited about
> it. I haven't been on a bike in over a decade (since my high school
> years), so I know very little about the technology these days. I've
> spent several hours scouring some very good web sites, and it sounded
> like the best type for me would be a hybrid. I went to local bike shop
> to ask about them, and was shown the Giant Sedona and Cypress (which
> appear to be identical except for the tires). They look like pretty
> good bikes, but even narrowing it to those two I'm having a hard time
> deciding which would be better for me. Part of the problem is that I
> don't know the full extent of what I'm going to be getting myself
> into. Perhaps I could get some help from the group.
>
> Probably 90% of my riding will be split between road (commuting) and
> crushed limestone (a nearby rail trail). I'd like to eventually work
> my way up to longer (50+ mile) rides. It would be nice to have a
> little flexibility in terrain capabilities for when I ride with
> friends, but I'm guessing that's a trade-off with efficiency for the
> longer rides (is that correct?). I definitely won't be taking this
> bike on rough trails or on loose sand.
>
> So based on that, could anyone help me choose between the Giant
> Cypress DX (700x40C tires) and the Sedona DX (26 x 1.95"), or tell me
> why I should look at something else entirely?
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> David Murphy
For a 50 mile ride the bigger the wheel and the narrower and higher psi the
better.
My GT has narrower 100 psi. MTB but I would definitely take the Trek road
bike on a trip like that. GT is a convertible bike too. With shocks or
without with a button push. You might try a 29". Ask about the pros and
cons on that.
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Date: 17 Mar 2007 10:26:50
From: Just A User
Subject: Re: Assistance with bicycle selection
|
glibdud wrote:
> Hi folks. Recently I've found myself needing a lower-impact form of
> exercise, since my knees aren't what they once were. I decided that
> cycling sounds about right for me, and with the spring weather
> starting to show through in patches, I'm starting to get excited about
> it. I haven't been on a bike in over a decade (since my high school
> years), so I know very little about the technology these days. I've
> spent several hours scouring some very good web sites, and it sounded
> like the best type for me would be a hybrid. I went to local bike shop
> to ask about them, and was shown the Giant Sedona and Cypress (which
> appear to be identical except for the tires). They look like pretty
> good bikes, but even narrowing it to those two I'm having a hard time
> deciding which would be better for me. Part of the problem is that I
> don't know the full extent of what I'm going to be getting myself
> into. Perhaps I could get some help from the group.
>
> Probably 90% of my riding will be split between road (commuting) and
> crushed limestone (a nearby rail trail). I'd like to eventually work
> my way up to longer (50+ mile) rides. It would be nice to have a
> little flexibility in terrain capabilities for when I ride with
> friends, but I'm guessing that's a trade-off with efficiency for the
> longer rides (is that correct?). I definitely won't be taking this
> bike on rough trails or on loose sand.
>
> So based on that, could anyone help me choose between the Giant
> Cypress DX (700x40C tires) and the Sedona DX (26 x 1.95"), or tell me
> why I should look at something else entirely?
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> David Murphy
>
Okay David, first you sound a lot like I did a couple of years ago. You
sound as though you are going to be starting out on relatively short
rides say less than 15 miles. But you also say that you might like to
build up to longer 50+ mile rides. Any bike should be able to do both
rides, however, the hybrid bikes you are looking at are well let's just
/heavy/ by bikes designed for longer distance standards, like a road
bike. However most road bikes wouldn't do very well on crushed
limestone. So if you really want to ride on crushed limestone trails,
the hybrid maybe your best bet, and for versatility I would suggest
getting a bike with 700c sized tires as you can get replacements in a
wide variety of widths.
Ken
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