Triathlon bike. What to look for.

Just signed up for a couple of triathlons for the upcoming season. Been training for awhile and need to pick up a road bike. Not looking for a CF aero super lightweight, but rather something that will get me through a couple of triathlons and some heavy training miles.

STI shifters?

Carbon fork?

Any advice is appreciated.

budget?

Yeah.....

budget.......half of what I paid for textbooks this semester so about $700

length....starting with sprint but would love to move to ironman if my shoulder and ankle can hold up. Not looking to make that leap for awhile yet.

More concerned about training on it a couple times a week so clip on aeros are fine with a road bike. Alos would love to get one of the trainers to strap the back wheel into for the winters around here. Watching television and getting cardio in is about the best thing besides an armchair and beer.

Really should have clarified that I was looking for a raod bike to use in a triathlon or two and not a tri specific bike. My fault. Just found out that tri bikes existed. Knew mountain bikes, but never cared for anything with skinny tires before.

First thing - to make sure which kind of bike you want, a road bike or a tri bike. Tri bike geometry is optimized to put you in the most aerodynamic position possible - flat back and in aero bars. Road bike is a jack of all trades and you can put clip-on aero bars on a road bike, but the position to use them will always be a compromise in comfort and aerodynamics.

I'm of the opinion that road and tri bikes should be primarily sized by cockpit length, not leg length. Not everyone agrees about road bikes, but tri bikes absolutely should be sized this way. Proper sizing is more critical on a tri bike than a road bike.

That said, since you posted that you want a road bike that can do double duty, in your price range I'd look for a nice used Cannondale CAAD 9 - great reputation. A screaming deal, that is still ~150% of your budget, is the Fuji Roubaix 1.0 with SRAM Rival. If you're a member of the Perfomance club, there is a 10% credit towards future purchases as well.

If you're sticking to $700, I'd keep my eyes peeled for used aluminum racers with Shimano 105 or SRAM Rival components. That's where the bang-for-the-buck is in the market right now.

One more add from Performance that is closer to your budget: http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1096518_-1_1615509_1613512_400306

I don't know much about GT bikes, but I'd include SRAM Apex on my list of acceptable components, especially on a budget. I use a long cage Apex rear derailleur on my road bike when I head for the mountains to allow me to use an old/fat man wide range cassette. The Apex part work great.

I have been scanning my local Craigslist adds for awhile now for a good used road bike. I have managed to find a Scattante cross bike and a Cervelo tri bike in my size. Keep an eye out for used bikes and you can save a lot of money that you can use toward entry fees.

I borrowed a bike for my first tri. You'll learn a lot during your first year.

Getting the right fit is key to any purchase.

The true jack of all trades. Wide wheels and tires off road, skinny tires on road. If, God forbid, you were only allowed to own one bike, this type would be the one to have.

another question: How much do you weigh?...

Seriously important question, as us Clydesdales have different requirements and restrictions on bikes... (Carbon fiber is BAD for big boys... Cracking a Carbon fiber fork is not fun...)

I started with a trek 1000 off of craigslist for $350... replaced parts as I saw fit and learned what I needed... (aero bars, wheels, etc)

My triathalon total: 2 sprints and 1 Olympic... so keep in mind, my advice is limited for tris, but I do like to roadbike 50-100miles/wk during the nice months...

Assuming somebody's not morbidly obese, weight isn't a problem for most bikes and training (high spoke count) wheels. After all, this guy



rode one of these



at St. Croix and Kona in the mid-90s.

Darryl Haley, formerly a 300 pound offensive lineman decided to try triathlon after his NFL career ended. He did kaboom a cassette (or maybe it was still a freewheel then) at St. Croix on a hill called "The Beast" at a weight of ~285, but no major problems after that IIRC.

I've got an extra one I'll sell you! http://tallahassee.craigslist.org/bik/2810252681.html

Basic road bike with either Shimano 105 or Sram Rival components. I did my first sprint on a $400 used road bike and did a century on the same bike.

Once you complete a few and figure out if you want to do more, then you can buy a tri bike. Join your local tri club and see if they are doing any swap meets, or have a classifieds section (that's how I got mine)

Yep, hands down the most versatile bike in the fleet. I have 700 x 32 tires on it. Took off the knobbies. I ride a rails to trails route with a packed limestone surface a lot. It took the place of my hybrid for this. Still maintains a good road speed. Great bike.

330x

Triathlon bikers are the most fickle, gear swapping, gotta have it breed of cyclists

Straight from Trek's website: http://www.trekbikes.com/faq/questions.php?questionid=104

Is there a weight limit for your bikes?

Yes, we do have a weight limit on our bikes and they are as follows:

Rider weight limit of 275lb:

• Road bikes with drop type handlebar
• Triathlon, time trial or Speed Concept bicycle
• Cruisers with large 26" tires and swept-back handlebar, Bicycles that fold.

We all know you're a huge dude, but how many folks are there riding road bikes at >250? No insult intended in my comments - I apologize if you took it that way.

FWIW, Cervelo doesn't assign a maximum weight to its bikes. I have a buddy who goes 260 when he's not training who has a ton of miles, first on a P3SL, then on a P3 (formerly P3C).

You're going to be hard pressed to get a new bike with a Shimano 105 groupset for $700. Either look for a quality used bike or try bikesdirect.com. A few of us on here are happy with their road bikes.

I think the issue with triathlon bikers is they can't upgrade the swiming or running tech that far, but they sure can try to buy their way up the bike leg status.

http://y-rocket.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-to-carry-water-bottles-on-bike-for.html

While body position is the greatest source of drag, it all matters and the slower you are, the more it matters i.e. the more time you save. Most folks don't understand that because they don't understand math.

So, yeah, being anal about water bottle mounting is silly if you're have a crappy bike position - fix the big things first, but the two aren't mutually exclusive. Round (cylinder) shapes, like the straw sticking out of an aero bottle have very poor drag coefficients.

I lost (got 2nd) in a 20K TT two years ago, by ~18 seconds - a pretty good margin. More than half of that difference (I later learned) was due to the extra drag I incurred by wearing gloves and a watch.

Dude, as a triathlete you should be rolling in a speedo and a Timex IM Sleek.

Seriously, racing in the Summers here, I taped up my helmet holes and never wore a shirt except during early season races and the one IM that I did.
I think I milked every bit of speed out my weak legs. (BTW the above bike from craiglist I posted, was not my stem/risers but a friends who borrowed the bike).

Above post is right, Trigeeks are quick to cut a check for supposedly more aero frames wheels, etc.. when they could adapt to an aero, forward position for free.

Where are you holding your nutrition?

For short-course, you shouldn't need more than just a bottle and maybe one gel. Bottle can go on the bike and the gel could go in a bento box, tape to the top tube, stuck in the leg of tri shorts, etc.

Even for long course, you can grab enough from the on-course aid stations in an M-Dot or Rev3 race.

Correct on the short course, the only short one I've done I just used the on course water, no need for food on a 5k.

Long course, I like use my own nutrition. I keep my salt tabs/gel flask in my tri top.

I'm not sure that I've ever seen water on the bike for short course. Most long course races require you to wear a shirt don't they?

In any case, being the red-haired, blue-eyed, specimen that I am, you won't catch me doing even a short-course topless.

Does anyone know how the part carbon part aluminum bike frames from the early 90's hold up? Looking at a decent deal on one, but something tells me the carbon fiber may be coming loose in the joints and that could end badly. Specifically its a Trek 2300 with carbon top, seat, and down tubes with aluminum lugs and stays from 1992 or so.

Well then... imagine the time this guy (from the link) could save by getting rid of the fat stack of spacers from beneath his stem.

Trek were the gurus of glued tube frame setshttp://www.ebay.com/itm/Trek-carbon-fiber-2300-ZX-road-racing-bicycle-bike-Red-Shimano-105-49cm-/350526684239?pt=Road_Bikes&hash=item519d04bc4f#ht_2653wt_689

Sprints: water in the aero bottle, gel in shorts pocket(don't remember using many in sprints). Half IM: water in aero bottle, 2000cals carboPro w/ gatoraid in bottle on seat tube. Gels in shorts pockets one every 45mins.

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