Question for Triathletes (Read 1138 times)

I think your husband told you that you are required to have a tri bike so that that's what you get him! No, you don't NEED a tri bike. I've seen people ride mountain bikes and real clunkers in triathlons. With that said, any bike will do really. But... there is a big difference in how these bikes perform. I'm wondering if you get a really inexpensive bike to begin with that he will be turned off completely because of how poorly the bike feels. Kinda like taking up running while wearing a $10 pair of Keds Sneakers. That doesn't mean you have to spend a ton of $$$ though either. I would suggest going to a bike shop. Many will have used bikes for sale. Explain to them what you are looking for and what your budget is, and they can probably set you up with the bike best suited to your needs. Most importantly, they will fit your husband with the properly sized bicycle, which is very important. A touring bike is one that is designed more for a smooth ride rather than performance and speed. It's like the difference between a cadillac and a porche. The particular one that you are looking at... well... I would say you could do better elsewhere. Best of luck to you in your search, and congrats to your husband for wanting to give this a go!

Thank you! I will check out that site

another vote for the good local bike shop. a good one will not push you toward a $5k bike. you can ride almost anything w/ two wheels in a tri. lots of newbies ride hybrids/mtn bikes the first time around then spend $ when they get addicted. a local bike shop can set you up w/ a bike that fits you and your budget. a ill fitting bike is a pain in the arse - literally. good luck and have fun. PS BT is a good site as is trinewbies.com, triathlete.com, active.com or slowtwitch.com each forum has it's own personality but all have good info

I'd stay away from that Craig's List bike - it's very old, and inaccurately described. A used bike is frequently a risky choice for someone new to cycling, unless you can get it through a bike shop that will fit it to you properly (and won't sell it to you if it doesn't fit you). My standard advice for a new road bike is to allow $1000. That gets a very good starter bike, along the lines of a Trek 1000 (or 1.0, as I think it's called noe), as well as a helmet, air pump, and a few accessories and clothing items. That's really a pretty generous allowance - you could definitely do better, with a little effort. Definitely go to a real bike shop, in any case. For a "first bike" I'd stay far, far away from a "real" tri bike - they have very different geometry and rider position from road bikes, and have very twitchy handling as a result. They can also be tremendously uncomfortable. One of the many great ways to enjoy riding is on group rides, and tri bikes are generally shunned from those rides, due to the twitchy handling and to the forward-pointing aero handlebars - they have a tendency to impale people in crashes. Aerobars are banned in mass-start bike races for just that reason; you won't see them in the Tour de France, except on time-trial stages where the riders start one-at-a-time. With a regular road bike, once he's more comfortable riding and has built up some bike-specific muscular strength, he can add some clip-on aerobars, adjust the saddle position, and will then have a sort of intermediate between a road bike and a tri bike that he can get most of the tri-bike benefits without the potential issues. did

My husband started doing tris just this past April. He had originally planned to ride a dirt bike for the tri, but was told and found out for himself that road bikes don't roll as well on pavement. He actually found a local bike store that had a handful of bikes for rent. The store owner is a triathlete and understands that newbie triathletes might not want to purchase a bike until they know they're going to stick with the sport. I think he was charging $50/month for the bike. The bike my husband rented was a road bike.

I told my husband about all of this great information and of course he denied ever having said that a tri bike was required. That was his argument for the last month over why he could not afford to get a bike