Recommendations for a road bike newbie - Page 3 - Cycling Mob: Road Cycling, Mountain Biking and More

03-08-2005, 12:12 PM

8 Mar 2005 10:38:20 -0800,
<1110307100.743934.250900@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups .com>, "Bill H."
<[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote, in part:

>As a personal example, I bought a new mountain bike last year. I went
>to a few different shops (3, to be exact) and told them basically what
>I was looking for and what I had to spend. The first shop I went to
>let me take a couple Gary Fishers for a test drive. I ended up getting
>the Marlin, even though the Tassajara had better components. The
>problem with the Tass, even though it was still in my budget, was that
>it was just a little too uncomfortable to ride. Had I done my primary
>research over the Internet, I would probably have gotten more
>recommendations for the Tass because of the components, but would have
>still had the comfort problem. So trying out the bikes in person told
>me a lot more than I would have learned online.

Now that's weird. The forks, handle bars, stems, rims, spokes, tires,
saddles, seat posts, grips, frame sizes, geometry and material is
identical on both bikes. IOW, anything that would affect comfort.

I'm guessing the shop didn't set-up both bikes the same when you did
your test rides. It could have been something as subtle as tire
pressures or saddle tilt. Unless there's an as yet unknown factor
about different colours being more comfortable for some people than
others.
>
>I'm not dismissing Usenet as a resource. It's great for a lot of
>things, but I think trying out something in person is the only way
>you'll really decide on a bike.

Bingo. You found your bike
--
zk

03-08-2005, 12:12 PM

Tue, 08 Mar 2005 19:06:46 GMT,
<aJmXd.3326$[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].com>, "S o r n i"
<[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].rr.com> wrote:

>> What an *******. The guy came here looking for advice. Why don't you
>> give it to him (if you have any) or shut up and shove your "I am the
>> alpha nerd" attitude up your ass.
>
>While you've summed up Snooty Putz quite nicely, he *wasn't* flaming the OP
>(Rangersfan), but rather Bill H.
>
>Carry on...

Wow, how astute you've become in such a short time.
Velo Psycho is to be forgiven. It's probably too difficult following a
thread with his web-browser.
--
zk

03-08-2005, 12:20 PM

In article <1110296830.571469.215060@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups .com>,
"Maggie" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:

> Woo Hoooo...... That was harsh sweetie!!! Speaking as an honest
> somebody who knows nothing about bikes....that was truly harsh.

When you look at the remark to which Zoot was speaking: "Nobody on
this message board can help you anywhere NEAR as much as a good,
local bike shop" and read it literally, /that's/ a pretty harsh
dissing of a number of extremely knowledgable and helpful
contributors here -- Mike, Mark, Jobst, and others.

At first blush it looks as if Bill H. is saying absolutely nobody
in r.b.m is as qualified to offer advice, suggestions or
recommendations as any bike shop staff whippersnapper (remember
the "you have to be kidding" thread?) But I think Bill was
actually speaking in terms of matching customer to purchase in
an in-person venue.

cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

03-08-2005, 01:50 PM

Zoot Katz wrote:

> Now that's weird. The forks, handle bars, stems, rims, spokes, tires,
> saddles, seat posts, grips, frame sizes, geometry and material is
> identical on both bikes. IOW, anything that would affect comfort.
> I'm guessing the shop didn't set-up both bikes the same when you did
> your test rides. It could have been something as subtle as tire
> pressures or saddle tilt. Unless there's an as yet unknown factor
> about different colours being more comfortable for some people than
> others.

The saddles on the two bikes were different. If they were both
identical when they came to the store, maybe they swapped a different
one on the Tass but the Tass was literally painful to ride whereas the
Marlin was only different from what I was used to.

I remember saying to them "I would go with the Tass if you guys can do
anything about the saddle." and they said 'Uh, no. You'd have to buy a
new saddle' which sold me on the Marlin. Color wasn't really an issue
- they were both fine with me.

-Bill H.

03-08-2005, 02:00 PM

Tom Keats wrote:

> At first blush it looks as if Bill H. is saying absolutely nobody
> in r.b.m is as qualified to offer advice, suggestions or
> recommendations as any bike shop staff whippersnapper (remember
> the "you have to be kidding" thread?) But I think Bill was
> actually speaking in terms of matching customer to purchase in
> an in-person venue.
>
>
> cheers,
> Tom

Tom,

Yes, that's closer to my point. In retrospect, my original reply seems
to have made the fault of sacrificing clarity for brevity, which wasn't
my intention at all.

Hopefully my subsequent post clarified my position accurately enough.
I know there is a ton of information on here and I certainly value it.
I seem to have ruffled a few feathers of those who think I'm wholly
dismissing their knowledge and experience. For the record, I think
this is a great resource for all riders. I also think that a personal
preference might quickly come up after a quick spin on a bike that
could affect a purchasing decision more than the opinions and
experience of others.

-Bill H.

03-08-2005, 03:52 PM

8 Mar 2005 13:50:03 -0800,
<1110318603.019502.161660@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups .com>,
"Bill H." <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:

>
>The saddles on the two bikes were different. If they were both
>identical when they came to the store, maybe they swapped a different
>one on the Tass but the Tass was literally painful to ride whereas the
>Marlin was only different from what I was used to.

I suppose that's another possibility. The specifications on the Gary
Fisher site claimed they're the same.

I'd feel comfortable by knowing the shop didn't try up selling you by
swapping out the saddle on the Marlin and give you another go on the
Tassajara. Or maybe not so comfortable with shop staff too lazy to
swap out a saddle for another test ride.
--
zk

03-08-2005, 04:36 PM

"Rangersfan" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message
news:1110296337.971682.235450@o13g2000cwo.googlegr oups.com...
> I have an excellent bike shop less than a mile from my house. The only
> problem is their selection of bikes is limited to just a few models. I
> know their recommendation will be limited in scope to those bikes. I'd
> just rather have a recommendation not limited to the particular stock
> of any one bike shop.

Hey, try being short(er). I ride a 50 or 52, depending on manufacturer, and
I've yet to find a bike shop with either size in stock. Lots of 54s and 56s,
but never one in my size for a test ride, and I have a high end(Waterford,
Litespeed, Co-Motion) shop just up the road.

03-08-2005, 04:42 PM

In article <1110319202.986764.31320@l41g2000cwc.googlegroups. com>,
"Bill H." <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> writes:
> Tom Keats wrote:
>
>> At first blush it looks as if Bill H. is saying absolutely nobody
>> in r.b.m is as qualified to offer advice, suggestions or
>> recommendations as any bike shop staff whippersnapper (remember
>> the "you have to be kidding" thread?) But I think Bill was
>> actually speaking in terms of matching customer to purchase in
>> an in-person venue.
>>
>>
>> cheers,
>> Tom
>
> Tom,
>
> Yes, that's closer to my point. In retrospect, my original reply seems
> to have made the fault of sacrificing clarity for brevity, which wasn't
> my intention at all.

Well, miscommunications are bound to occasionally occur, both
transmitting and receiving. Then when they get figured-out
and resolved we can have a friendly, mutual, acrimony-free
chuckle about it, and continue on.

> Hopefully my subsequent post clarified my position accurately enough.

I think it did, quite well.

....

> I also think that a personal
> preference might quickly come up after a quick spin on a bike that
> could affect a purchasing decision more than the opinions and
> experience of others.

I wholeheartedly agree. I believe sometimes there can be
a love-at-first-sight destiny thing at play.

cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

03-08-2005, 07:04 PM

On Tue, 8 Mar 2005 12:20:16 -0800, [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] (Tom Keats)
wrote:
>
>When you look at the remark to which Zoot was speaking: "Nobody on
>this message board can help you anywhere NEAR as much as a good,
>local bike shop" and read it literally, /that's/ a pretty harsh
>dissing of a number of extremely knowledgable and helpful
>contributors here -- Mike, Mark, Jobst, and others.
>
>At first blush it looks as if Bill H. is saying absolutely nobody
>in r.b.m is as qualified to offer advice, suggestions or
>recommendations as any bike shop staff whippersnapper (remember
>the "you have to be kidding" thread?) But I think Bill was
>actually speaking in terms of matching customer to purchase in
>an in-person venue.

Of course, that's true if your LBS is a good shop and knows road
bikes. Varies by area, of course; there are some places where there's
almost zero interest in road bikes, either by the local riders or by
the staff of the local bike shops. If the OP is from one of those, it
would be a good idea to check out the web and usenet resources first.
Not a bad idea if you don't know the local bike scene, since it helps
decide if the shops know what they're talking about, or just pushing
what is in stock.

Has anybody suggested Mike's article on test driving road bikes yet?
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] is worth reading
before venturing forth into the wilds of bicycle retailing.

Pat

Email address works as is.

03-08-2005, 11:02 PM

Tue, 08 Mar 2005 21:04:23 -0600,
<[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]>, Patrick Lamb
<[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:

>Of course, that's true if your LBS is a good shop and knows road
>bikes.

Then you get into the ultra-snob shops where if you aren't buying the
latest stupid-light composite full tech type bike you're treated like
a affliction and they're just as happy to see you leave.
It happens with any of the genre specialty shops.
You aren't riding a crusier or looking for a twisted sissy-bar?
Get out. We'll sell you lighted skull valve caps but you don't have
Shrader valves. So, get out.
--
zk