Buy a time trial bike.

Won't I need a normal road bike to train in, group rides, etc?

Buy a TT bike, around $2-5k. I know, seems horrendously expensive, but trust me, you WILL use it as a 3:10 marathoner shooting for performance and it will serve you well for years. Get your last bike first and save a ton of money in the long run. Only buy the ridiculously expensive uberbikes that are $15k+ if you have cash to burn.

I will bet bet that once you spend a few weeks on your bike training, you will instantly be at advanced-intermediate to FOP bike speed in terms of AG. Nowhere near as fast as a KQ level guy, but your running legs & engine will likely mean you will easily drop the average AGer despite minimal bike experience. Don't worry though - there's still a huge gap between a FOP AG cyclist and a KQ-level or OA race winning cyclist. But you won't be a 'beginner' speed level cyclist.

Good luck on your KQ quest - keep in mind that it has gotten really hard (in my opinion) to KQ and is only getting harder. KQ >>> BQ for difficulty.

Too much bike for your current level? Not sure what you mean. In the context of road bikes, "Beginner" and "Intermediate" are words meant to distinguish the commitment level, and therefore budget, of the targeted buyer. It has nothing to do with the skill level needed to operate the bike. A road bike is a road bike; if you can ride a $500 road bike, you can ride a $10,000 road bike.

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"They're made of latex, not nitroglycerin"

To clarify I meant, maybe I would not notice the difference in speed, weight, power, or comfort and thus am paying more for what I'm not ready for (assuming $ wasn't an issue for a mortal bike)

If you want to do triathlons, I would go for an actual triathlon specific bike. To that end, I would also go towards a more middle of the road one, not too cheap and not super expensive. This is coming from my own experience getting into the sport in 2016. I would pay for a professional bike fit first, then get a bike that you know you fit on well.

I did it backwards. I bought a Fuji Norcom, which has been a fine bike, but it is a little cheaper and not as nice or fast as other bikes I could have bought. Also, I don't feel like I fit on it quite right, even though I have been professionally fitted. It just doesn't seem like a good match. The one nice thing is I got a great deal and 20% back at Performance Bike. So now that I am looking to upgrade, I haven't lost that much money. But live and learn.

However, looking back, I wish I would have just spent a little more time looking around and researching. And I wish I would have spent a little more money for something like a Cervelo, Felt, or Trek. Slowman put out a series of articles on entry level triathlon bikes (Cervelo P2, QR, Felt, and I think Canyon) earlier this year. Take a look at those. Any of those bikes are fast right out of the gate, and with some minor upgrades will be just as fast as the top end bikes you see the pros riding.

Just as a point of reference, a couple of years ago I moved up from an aluminum frame road bike (Specialized Allez) to a carbon frame Trek Domane with 11 speed Shimano group set. It made a world of difference in my desire to get on the bike every morning and do my best. I took the time to make sure the Trek really fit me and that was a big difference in the outcome.

Then I wandered into the world of triathlon starting with a borrowed Cervello P3 which is a good bike but because it was a loaner it didn't really fit me that well. I just took delivery of a new Trek Speed Concept and paid for a pre-purchase fit and a follow up session to fine tune it. The difference between those two set ups is huge and it's not all based on the equipment. Fit is everything, just like ski boots.

Spend a couple of days reading the bike fit articles on Slowtwitch and let the info sink in for a while. It's not super complicated and you can become an educated buyer and not end up with the wrong bike. My advice would also be to ask yourself what your goals are in the triathlon realm. Do you want to be on the podium? You'll need a dedicated TT bike. If your goal is just to get fit and have some fun doing it then a road bike with aero bars would be good enough.

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TT/tri is too much bike for you at this stage. Plus long rides on a TT can make cycling imbalances worse depending on how you sit on the seat (another discussion).

Also would not fix a $500 well-used bike. A side note with my frame repair and with carbon hockey sticks they never have the same response/feel after repair, imo.

I repaired a downtube crack and the ride got harsh, the rear triangle went noodly.

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Yes my goal is to podium my age group. I know I need a dedicated TT bike. I figured to have both a good road bike and a good TT bike. So now that my road is damaged. I have to replace the road or get a TT. I agree 100% on the fit. So the question is normal road and TT later or an aero road bike

Yes I believe the TT is too much right now that's why I was looking at aero roads. Yeah I'm torn cause the bike is worth more than 500, that's just the deal I got from my buddy

Agreed on the fit .There's a fitter that does pre fits to find the right bike. Would you go straight to TT and have no dedicated road bike?

What about a normal road bike? Or are you saying do all riding on a TT

I was in your shoes last year and I opted to get a decent road bike (Used BMC Teammachine). I debated back and forth between TT bike and road bike.

At the end of the day, I wanted a bike that I could ride anywhere... trails around the city with our cycling clubs, long distance rides with my friends, and triathlons. Having a versatile bike that would allow me to participate in all these different types of rides made the training fun, which in turn motivated me to train and ride more. I've done a handful of olympics and a 70.3 this year - at my skill level, I don't think having a TT bike would have resulted in a significant improvement. Of course, there are times where for sure the TT bike would be faster (especially that flat 70.3), but the bike would have been stuck on my trainer all season and I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much. I love my BMC.

The alternative route - get a solid TT bike and then buy a budget road bike (ie: a $1000-$2000 Trek). Ultimately for me, at the time based on my limited experience, I just couldn't justify spending $3k+ for a TT bike that would sit on my trainer all year and that I would only use 3-4 times outdoors in races.

I know you weren't asking me specifically, but I'll answer for myself.



I would either go TT bike now, or an affordable (probably used) road bike now and save some for the TT bike later. Spending more on an aero road bike now as your long term solution isn't a cost effective solution if your goal is triathlon. It won't make you that much faster. This is not to say that if you go shopping for a cheaper/used road bike now and come across a great deal on an aero road bike that you shouldn't get it. Just that you shouldn't allocate significantly more funds towards an aero road bike that would prevent you from getting a TT bike in the near future. If your goal is to qualify for Kona, you will NOT do it on an aero road bike at your age unless you're some genetic freak.



Personally, I wouldn't. I don't do triathlon anymore, but when I did, I did a lot of training on my road bike. Usually did a hard group ride with roadies once a week and also did had a big hill climb that was a great training area. Those were great motivations for me to train...I never really looked forward to the rides on my TT bike. I get super bored riding in the aero position all the time. It's one of the reasons I don't do triathlon anymore, so maybe my advice isn't valid...LOL.

Get the TT bike.

I used nothing but my TT bike for years. I did everything with it. Group rides, friend rides, races, training, trainer, etc.

I eventually got a cheap road bike to use for commuting, but that's about it.

I know you are worried about the situation of not being welcomed on a group ride since you have aerobars, but in my experience, only the most tightly knit or most competitive serious road racing groups worry about this. I've ridden with multiple tri and bike clubs all over Norcal and Socal, and I've never had a single problem with bringing the TT bike - I in fact saw a lot of them in the groups in LA every time I rode with them.

I'd say go with a road bike if you know for sure you're going to gravitate more toward training and racing with the pure competitive roadie cyclists. But if you're commited to tri, get the TT bike.

I do all my riding on my Cervelo P2. The only reason I ride a bike is for triathlon training so I don’t see the need for a road bike. Group rides around here are fine with TT bikes. If you’re goal is to do well in triathlon, go ahead and get the bike that’s going to better your chances of that.

So if you want to get serious about tri and maybe qualify for Kona one day then at some point you are 100% going to need a TT/tri bike. An aero road bike is better for triathlon than a regular road bike, but it's still not as good as even an entry level tri bike which will allow you to ride a much more aerodynamic position.

BUT....the majority of triathletes also own a road bike. TT bikes are great for solo rides on quiet roads (or on the trainer) with a good amount of visibility. But for everything else - group rides and rides on busier roads where you want to be able to rapidly brake or take evasive action - you need a road bike. So most people end up having both. If you want to get into some group riding, and/or you live in an area where you're going to be riding some busy roads, then I would recommend buying a road bike now, and adding a TT bike later. That's what I would do, I think group rides are awesome, both the social aspect and how much harder you push yourself riding with people who are stronger than you, if all my riding was solo I'd get very bored.

Just don't be under any illusion that one bike is going to do both things well. You can get a road bike like the Aeroad and turn it into a TT bike - jack the seat right forward, drop the front end, get a longer stem, stick some aero bars on it. But in doing so you're going to make a mess of how it handles, and you'll end up with something that you can't really use as a road bike any more. If you're adamant that you can only afford or have space for one bike, and you want to do triathlons, then get a TT bike. Otherwise, get yourself a road bike (doesn't have to be expensive - an aluminium frame with Tiagra or 105 components will be just fine) and then add a TT bike later. As you get into the sport you'll find it's often useful having 2 bikes around anyway. One for outside and one to leave on the trainer. Or one for nice weather and racing, one as a wet/winter bike with more puncture-resistant tires and some fenders. Or just one as a spare when you discover a puncture or other mechanical problem 5 minutes before you're due to head out and ride.

Our roadie group doesn't care what you ride so long as you take your turns (sitting up) and don't use the aerobars in traffic. Aerobars sitting a few lengths off the back of the group is fine if you want to when in that position.

It's just considered rude to take your turn while in the aero tuck since you're not giving the guys behind you anything. It's also rude to aero tuck mid-pack due to your hands not being near the brakes.

So, I'd say TT bike and just be a good groupie on your group rides.

Your group is more tolerant than the ones I ride with then! Personally I wouldn't particularly enjoy doing a long ride all on the base bars. Not a particularly comfortable position, not as many options as a road bike for shifting position around to relieve tired muscles, and my road bike handles better. Not sure about the argument for not being allowed on the aero bars even when on the front either - people routinely ride at the front on the drops, and aero position isn't really any lower than a good tucked in drops position. Besides, according to the various Kona threads, there's significant draft advantage even 12m behind somebody in the aero position...

I think a lot of it also depends on where you live and train.

If you're in the burbs or in certain areas of Florida and California then I can see how you'd be able to use your TT bike as an "everyday" bike. But if you live in a downtown urban area (like me in Toronto) it would never fly. You're just asking to get hit by a car, trip over a streetcar track, hit a pedestrian, ride over someone's dog, etc. You need the reaction time and maneuverability. Nobody I know rides their TT bike in the street here - TT bikes are on trainers all year round until race day and the weekend trips out of the city if you have a car. None of the riding clubs here allow TT bikes - not an elitist thing, purely a safety thing.

If your ultimate goal is Kona then without a doubt at some point down the road you'll need a TT bike. But based on your comments, it sounds to me like you also want something versatile for now.

I agree with everyone that you shouldn't spend money on a high-end road bike (like the Canyon Aeroad) if your goal is TT. Get a decent road bike (used bikes offer fantastic value if you know what to look for) and then add a TT bike later.

Here in Japan, I have no problem riding my tri bike through the densly-populated towns and cities, but[/b][/i] I would never even contemplate getting down on the aerobars in that environment. Climbing mountains on the tri bike is no problem - though it's obviously not as fast as a dedicated road bike. Descending likewise.

No bike in itself is a danger or a death trap - it all depends on how it's ridden. If budget allows for only one bike, and you're serious about tris, I think a tri bike is a viable option. My road bike hasn't actually been on the road for more than two years.

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