Your road bike.

[bikehikeskifish]

Mine is 10+ years old. Raced 4 or 5 years, and ridden mostly as a winter commuting bike otherwise. Yes, it should be expected to hold up to tractor roads and root hopping. In fact it should be almost as good as an non-suspension MTB.

I've ridden mine on all the fire roads around Tower Pond and Lake Massabesic in Candia many times. I wouldn't take it on the FOMBA singletrack myself.

Tim

 

[brianW]

Last year the winner and second place in the Sumter Metric Century (SC) mt bike race, rode cyclo-cross bikes. Speaking to Nate the winner before the race he said he was either crash hard and bust his bike or do really good.

The course was about half rooty, rocky singletrack with multiple creek crossings and the rest a combination of forest service roads and pavement. He did it in 4hrs 29 min.

Many mt bikers I know ride cyclo-cross bikes during the winter here in GA and SC because the trails tend to be to wet to ride. They ride a combination of forest servise roads which are gravel and regular paved roads. We have come up with the term "pavel" rides for this type of riding.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

If I could have only one bike, it would be a CX frame w/ dual wheel sets - one with road tires, one with CX tires.

Tim

 

[jrichard]

Now the question is materials. From googling around, it seems to be controversial. With a mountain bike I use AL, but maybe the extra give in a steel bike is better for CX? Or does it matter?

It seems there's also the matter of fitting. $700 for laser-guided fitting isn't in the budget, but I'm told that road bike fit is more important than mountain bike fit. Can most local shops get the job done well enough, or should I head to a big out-of-state shop like Wheelworks?

 

[bikehikeskifish]

I personally have not found a satisfying experience with NH-based bike shops. Nault's in Manchester is OK. Goodales in Nashua depends on who you get - Ron Bingham is a good person to deal with. I had a friend who got a bike there and the BB was cross threaded. They had to put a 4-foot pipe on the wrench to remove it and of course the BB shell was trashed making the frame worthless.

It's hard to go wrong at Belmont Wheelworks. I have not been in there in a while, but they are generally considered the best shop in Boston. They can be a bit unhelpful/snooty, or have in the past. I have had mostly good luck at The Cycle Loft in Burlington, although since Jerry Slack sold the place my luck has not been as good - good, and better than NH shops - but not outstanding. S & W sports in Concord has a pretty decent reputation but I cannot speak from personal experience. Peter White Cycles in Hillsborough is also a shop with a good reputation.

I would put CX fit in the same league as road bike fit - you are going to ride it on the road some, and you aren't bouncing around like you do on the MTB. Any decent shop will take a bunch of measurements, and fine-tune your final bike with you on a trainer. Peter Mooney at Wheelworks is a master at fit.

Stu Thorne at http://www.pinnaclebikeworks.com/ is local expert at CX and CX bikes. I bought my frame off him - he road it to a master's national title. I have a Hot Tubes, made by Toby Stanton in Worcester, MA.

I mostly mail-order things these days and do all of my own work.

Tim

 

[jrichard]

So a trip to Boston it is.

I mostly mail-order things these days and do all of my own work.

Mail order is how I maintain my bike (just maintenance and replacing worn parts). I was tempted to mail order a frame and parts, but it seems like that would be more expensive than off the shelf -- and I have no idea how to fit myself, from what I've been told it seems like one part spreadsheet variables, one part black magic.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

So a trip to Boston it is.



Mail order is how I maintain my bike (just maintenance and replacing worn parts). I was tempted to mail order a frame and parts, but it seems like that would be more expensive than off the shelf -- and I have no idea how to fit myself, from what I've been told it seems like one part spreadsheet variables, one part black magic.

I wouldn't buy a whole new bike mail-order myself.

Tim

 

[jniehof]

I have not dealt with Peter White in-shop, but he is a very helpful and knowledgeable presence online, particularly on the ICEBIKE list. Were I in NH looking for a shop, I'd try him first.

Down here, you can't really go wrong with Wheelworks, but I'm also pretty happy with the Boston Landry's, and knew (and trust) a few people who worked at the Natick store as well.

 

[Davehiker]

I started riding an "at least" 20 year old junker 10-speed last fall, and discovered that is both uncomfortable and dangerous. For Christmas I bought myself a Trek 7000 "hybrid". I'm a cheapskate, and it was just about the cheapest bike in the store at $350, but I think it will suit my needs well. Last fall I was riding 10-30 miles once or twice a week mostly on roads, with a few dirt former railroad tracks thrown in. I've only ridden the new bike a few times so far, but it's really a huge improvement. Maybe if I stick with it, a good road bike will be in the works, but I just can't see myself in spandex.

 

[Paradox]

I am on my second Trek Madone.

I have a Cannondale touring bike which is very stable and comfortable for me. I use that for commuting and general fitness.

 

[iceNsnow]

studded mtbike tires

I just switched to my studded tires for my mtbike. (I made them using old tires w/ sheet metal screws and some EPDM for a liner.) And decided to do some long unmaintained road riding to get to some more distant bushwhacks in the Adirondacks.
Anyone interested?

 

[RickB.]

Litespeed Tuscany and Seven Odonata are my go-to road bikes. I have a couple of steelies, too, including a 'Nag MXL, but find titanium's ride characteristics to be ideal for my (not everyone's!) needs.
But I agree with others here that CX bikes are great as all-around rides. I have a beat-up LeMond Poprad that always puts a smile on my face. And for the carriage roads at Acadia, there is nothing better!