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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2016 7:57:00 GMT
Yay!!!!!
Bit of a cold introduction to it though1 degree at the moment rising to 8 though. Enjoy!!
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Post by joek1973 on Nov 5, 2016 9:16:49 GMT
Yay!!!!! Bit of a cold introduction to it though1 degree at the moment rising to 8 though. Enjoy!! Haha yep! Had a great ride, although my fingers and toes are frozen now! Turns out MTB gear isn't quite enough for road cycling in winter. Back to Decathlon for full length gloves and over boots! |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2016 14:07:21 GMT
Nice one Joe and it came with a cardboard bike stand as well  |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 7, 2016 4:55:13 GMT
Looking good! Welcome and enjoy the first ride.
I'm new to road bikes too and the first few rides I found the posture and the feeling of being slightly stretched out slightly difficult to get used to after a lifetime of mountain bikes and latterly hybrids where you're more upright.
I found it a fairly steep learning curve and I had a slightly hairy moments. Notably on my first descent as I was gripping the hoods so tightly my arms locked, which is a proper rookie error. I'd also recommend practising braking from the hoods more thoroughly than I did as that feels a bit unusual too and takes more force than I'd anticipated.
I found that I got used to the drops and the posture very quickly and now and find it more comfortable than my previous bikes. The lightness, agility and responsiveness are light years away from my old hybrid. It is also far sturdier than I'd imagined too. I spent the first week or so, religiously avoiding slight depressions in the road but was amazed how well it stood up to a trip down some tracks and how it stands up to cobbles.
The one component I've upgraded is replacing the moulded brake blocks with cartridge style ones to sharpen up the stopping power. I have the 520 and stock pads weren't great, I'd be interested to hear how you find the 500 SE brakes.
Have fun!
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Post by joek1973 on Nov 7, 2016 16:06:28 GMT
Looking good! Welcome and enjoy the first ride. I'm new to road bikes too and the first few rides I found the posture and the feeling of being slightly stretched out slightly difficult to get used to after a lifetime of mountain bikes and latterly hybrids where you're more upright. I found it a fairly steep learning curve and I had a slightly hairy moments. Notably on my first descent as I was gripping the hoods so tightly my arms locked, which is a proper rookie error. I'd also recommend practising braking from the hoods more thoroughly than I did as that feels a bit unusual too and takes more force than I'd anticipated. I found that I got used to the drops and the posture very quickly and now and find it more comfortable than my previous bikes. The lightness, agility and responsiveness are light years away from my old hybrid. It is also far sturdier than I'd imagined too. I spent the first week or so, religiously avoiding slight depressions in the road but was amazed how well it stood up to a trip down some tracks and how it stands up to cobbles. The one component I've upgraded is replacing the moulded brake blocks with cartridge style ones to sharpen up the stopping power. I have the 520 and stock pads weren't great, I'd be interested to hear how you find the 500 SE brakes. Have fun! I know what you mean about the descents! I went out with a friend and found he was a much more confident descender than I was, even though I felt like I was going flat out (30mph), he was still going 5mph faster! But yeah, having never gone that fast on the MTB, the speed takes some getting used to. Trying to remember to lean forward a bit so as to not lock the arms up, otherwise I'll just be sat bolt upright all the time. The brakes seem fine for me so far - I haven't really anything to compare them to other than my MTB and they're way better than that. They seem very effective for my needs (which is just rides around my local area, mixture of some small steep hills and rolling countryside) so I'm happy The only thing I may consider doing next year once I've had some time to get used to the bike is to swap to 25c tyres for comfort as I'm hoping to do the London-Brighton charity ride next September. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 7, 2016 21:44:03 GMT
I know what you mean about the descents! I went out with a friend and found he was a much more confident descender than I was, even though I felt like I was going flat out (30mph), he was still going 5mph faster! But yeah, having never gone that fast on the MTB, the speed takes some getting used to. Trying to remember to lean forward a bit so as to not lock the arms up, otherwise I'll just be sat bolt upright all the time. Yep, i know what you mean about confidence. I tend to go out with my wife who is much more experienced on a road bike and has ridden far more regularly and used a far wider range of bikes than me, from foldable bikes to trail bikes. She's faster downhills as she's nearly completely fearless and I tend to 'comfort brake' rather more than she does, so we are pretty evenly matched on the flats and I can usually beat her up a climb (just!) she leaves me for dead on descents. I have the 25mm tyres on my 520 and whilst I haven't ridden a 23mm tyre, the 25mm feels comfy and gives a good ride! |
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