I see so many posts on here that attempt to compare one bike to another.
I do understand that thinking... or maybe I don't. What I think is going on here is a comparison that is something like, "Bike A is $2000 and has a Dura-Ace front and rear derailleur, Visiontech, etc and Bike B has Ultegra front and rear derailleur, Profile, etc and is $2300. Which should I buy?"
Let me make these suggestions:
If you buy into the belief that the single largest factor influencing bicycle performance is bicycle fit and positioning then I propose you stop making these comparisons between bikes and adopt a different selection process:
Now, this may not have the curb appeal, emotional involvement of picking a bike but there's the thing:
Six months after you have taken delivery on the bike and you are out on a ride you'll have this experience where you realize, "Wow... this thing is like a part me. It feels like it isn't even there..." That is the impression that will leave you with the most rewarding buying and ownership experience in the long term.
I see people do "research" when buying a bike, try to find answers to unanswerable questions and navigate a convoluted and conflicted set of opinions and just spin off into indecision. That is not a rewarding buying experience or shopping experience and rarely yeilds truly optimal results.
A big part of the reason people do this is cynicism about the parties selling tri bikes. There seems to be the prevalent attitude that a given LBS or bike fitter may have an association with a given brand that is largely founded in a mercinary motive. In other words, the guy is "pushing" one bike or brand over another. No question, those alliance exist. The bottom line is, can you/do you trust the fitter to deliver on the promise of optimizing your fit and thusly, your ownership experience?
One of the smartest things Dan Empfield (founder of this website and forum, arguably inventor of the triathlon bike) ever said was something t the effect of (paraphrasing) "Shop for a bike shop rather than a bike" I buy that 100%. To it I will add, "The single most important determining factor in your ownership experience is fit and positioning."
Compare shops and dimensions, not bikes.
Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com
I do understand that thinking... or maybe I don't. What I think is going on here is a comparison that is something like, "Bike A is $2000 and has a Dura-Ace front and rear derailleur, Visiontech, etc and Bike B has Ultegra front and rear derailleur, Profile, etc and is $2300. Which should I buy?"
Let me make these suggestions:
If you buy into the belief that the single largest factor influencing bicycle performance is bicycle fit and positioning then I propose you stop making these comparisons between bikes and adopt a different selection process:
- Use the Slowtwitch dealer locator to find a bike fitter.
- Contact the fitter and get some sense of your degree of trust in them There are alot of very good, experienced fitters out there and a lot of new fitters who have jumped on the bike fit bandwagon ver the last three years and really need some additional experience and education. Get a sense of which one you are dealing with.
- When you find a fitter you trust (because they have produced repeatable, favorable, tangible results for other consumers) then schedule a fitting.
- Consult with the fitter about which bikes are optimal for your body dimensions. This is usually the part of the thread where a person chimes in, "Yeah, but with the right stem, seatpost and few headset spacers you can make anything fit." You know what? That is true. You can "make" anything fit. However, if your real goal is to find the optimal fit then forcing the fit by using a too-short stem, 4 cm of spacers and a zero setback post with a saddle tettering off the front of the rails is really less than optimal. Find the bike with the correct head tube height, the best top tube length and the optimal seat tube angle- or, more correctly, let your fitter find it for you.
- Then, follow your fitters recommendation.
Now, this may not have the curb appeal, emotional involvement of picking a bike but there's the thing:
Six months after you have taken delivery on the bike and you are out on a ride you'll have this experience where you realize, "Wow... this thing is like a part me. It feels like it isn't even there..." That is the impression that will leave you with the most rewarding buying and ownership experience in the long term.
I see people do "research" when buying a bike, try to find answers to unanswerable questions and navigate a convoluted and conflicted set of opinions and just spin off into indecision. That is not a rewarding buying experience or shopping experience and rarely yeilds truly optimal results.
A big part of the reason people do this is cynicism about the parties selling tri bikes. There seems to be the prevalent attitude that a given LBS or bike fitter may have an association with a given brand that is largely founded in a mercinary motive. In other words, the guy is "pushing" one bike or brand over another. No question, those alliance exist. The bottom line is, can you/do you trust the fitter to deliver on the promise of optimizing your fit and thusly, your ownership experience?
One of the smartest things Dan Empfield (founder of this website and forum, arguably inventor of the triathlon bike) ever said was something t the effect of (paraphrasing) "Shop for a bike shop rather than a bike" I buy that 100%. To it I will add, "The single most important determining factor in your ownership experience is fit and positioning."
Compare shops and dimensions, not bikes.
Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com