not about running, but biking (Read 761 times)

My hubby LOVES his Specialized Roubaix Pro (all carbon frame), but I don't know how appropriate it would be for a tri. I think it's considered a touring bike, more than a racer. He has done some 100 mile rides on it. If you want I can get you in touch with him. Otherwise maybe someone at a higher-end bike shop or running specialty store could give you some help. k

The MOST MOST MOST important thing is you buy a bike that fits you. Don't be overly tempted by discounts, pretty colors, brand names, etc. (I have a lot of bikes and used to work in a pretty high-end bike shop.)

That's a good point, just like with running shoes! When my hubby bought his bike he went to a really good store about an hour away. They did a bunch of computerized fit tests and they really knew what they were doing--he couldn't be happier.

Hm, okay. The first thing I would do is go to one or a few reputable local bike shops and just start test riding bikes and talking to the employees. Hopefully you can manage this as it looks like you're in New England and there might be snow on the ground... riding a bunch of different bikes will give you a feel for different frame materials and constructions and just what generally feels comfortable to you. A good bike shop employee will help you with a bike just like a good running store employee can help you with shoes. The main difference between a road bike and a tri bike is the positioning - the tri bike will put you much farther forward, where a road bike tends to put you in a more neutral riding position (you'll likely be sitting back more and be a little more upright). Tri bikes come with aerobars on them - if you look at pictures of triathletes, you'll see them crouched with their forearms horizontally resting on the aerobars. You can get separate aerobars and just clip them onto road bike handlebars. You can definitely do a triathlon without any aerobars and just on your road bike. I would tell the employee you'd like to get a road bike, but make sure you let him/her know you're thinking of doing tris. Also make sure you save enough cash to budget for a helmet, and possibly other things like padded shorts, gloves, a tire pump and some spare tubes, and maybe bike shoes. I'm just sort of writing off the top of my head (slow Friday at work), so once you start looking and have some more specific questions I'll be glad to help answer.

If I want to get into trying Tris ... what's the minimum I could spend on decent equipment? As in everything, bike, those pedal-shoe-thingies, helmet, whatever. And I mean minimum, as in bottom of the line, just barely decent.

A bottom-of-the-line but definitely decent NEW road bike will run you about $550-600, though maybe less on sale or closeout. It is certainly possible to find a used bike with a better frame and parts on Ebay or craigslist or bike classified sites for (sometimes much) less, though. Helmet - $20 for a pretty heavy one, $35-50-ish for something reasonably nice. Don't go anywhere without one. Random extra necessary things like a spare tube, tire levers, a pump, a bag to put things in, etc will probably be about $35. Shoes - $60-ish. If you have to buy pedals too (not all bikes come with them), about $40. Your ass will want bike shorts. They run about $30-40. You might want gloves too and those are like $15ish. You can get most of this stuff on sale from various internet sites for like 50% off the prices I listed if you know what you're looking for. If you decide to make the plunge let me know and I'll tell you where some good shopping can be had! Bikes are the most expensive parts of triathlons - a lot of people will do their first on a borrowed bike or an old mountain bike or something along those lines. Man I tried to keep it short, I really did. ps. most male triathletes seem to shave their legs.

what's the minimum I could spend on decent equipment?

I was very patient over the past several months and here's how I made out: First up, you have to know what size bike you need... saving money means nothing if the bike doesn't fit... There are plenty of options on Ebay... but I focused more on Craiglist .. less choices, but all local choices. In the end, I got a 10 year old Cannondale R600 -- ten years ago it was $1000, the same vintage goes for $300-350 on Ebay... I paid $125. It also came with LOOK pedals (worth $75). Shoes, gloves, helmet, etc... ran me $250. Took the bike to the shop for a tune-up, new brake cables, pads and chain.: $100 In the end, I've got a great setup with a bike that's under 20 lbs and everything I needed for less than $500 But patience was the key.... nearly drove me nuts many many times... and there were many bikes that were *almost* right. *** Look on ebay, craigslist over the winter... many cyclists can't handle the boredom of training indoors.***