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A friend of mine is looking to purchase a new bike. He is a 50 year old male, 6'2" (with relatively long legs and a short torso). He is a decent athlete, has been running for many rears, but is sorely lacking when it comes to flexibility. His lack of flexibility is not going to change much. He expects to race a few triathlons a year - mostly sprints and Olympic distance events. He is, and will remain, a "middle of the pack" guy, but like all of us would like to go as fast as he can. He will be doing no group rides, and therefore will not be drafting. All of his training rides will be solo efforts on a local trail with very little turning (by solo, I mean no pace-line or drafting). He lives in pancake flat, west central Florida, so he will be doing absolutely no climbing.
Yesterday while shopping for a tri bike, the salesman steered him away from the tri bikes and suggested that he would do better with a road bike since he is not very flexible. My friend thinks this may just be because the shop has many more road bikes and most of the few tri bikes on the floor had pretty drastic drops from the seat to the handlebars. My question is - are there certain models of tri bikes that a less flexible person would be comfortable on, or would he be better off with a road bike (or does it even make a difference?). Any helpful comments would be appreciated. Thanks.
that Salesman did him a service. I would suggest a road bike a well, as as the flexibility develops he can convert, but in the mean time he can throw on a set of jammers to get used to the feeling of the aero position without strain or learning bike handling on a twitchy front end, like most tri bikes have compared to a road bike
It sounds like a road bike may be his best bet, although I wouldn't say that is always the case for everyone (I owned a cervelo dual for 3 years and rode it exclusively, but I had different aspirations and physical capabilities). If he's not looking to be competitive, and can't bend himself into an aero position, there's no real benefit and several drawbacks to owning only a tri bike.
I would recommend he finds a quality road bike that fits his dimentions, and that he would be happy to own for the long haul. Once the cycling bug bites, he may find his options limited if he's stuck with a tri bike, but he can always ride the road bike in training and racing triathlon.
(FWIW, I've owned both, and the next bike purchase will be a road bike, even though I may return to racing tri's - probably a Cervelo Soloist, just for the versatility. If he's willing to spend $2K, it wouldnt' be a bad choice for him either.)
The devil made me do it the first time, second time I done it on my own - W
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sphere: May 4, 08 11:35
If he's actually interested in going faster on his super-flat courses, how about he devotes a little effort to getting more flexible, and then gets a tri bike?
-C
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Any run that doesn't include pooping in someone's front yard is a win.
Actually, a road bike with clip-ons will be *twitchier* than a triathlon bike, due to the difference in wheelbase--the tri bike will have a slightly more forward (edited, thanks Diesel) wheelbase than the road bike.
There are plenty of tri bike options for people who can't have a lot of drop. I know that Giant's Trinity Alliance has a slightly longer and more forward wheelbase for more stability in the aero position, and their larger models have a relatively tall headtube. If your friend is not climbing, not riding in groups, and plans on doing most of his training in the aero position, he should get a bike that best allows him to do that, which would probably be a tri bike with a long wheelbase, a shorter toptube, a taller headtube, and some spacers.
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Rahzel: May 4, 08 19:39
Jammers, no full clip ons. Jammers dont extend past the drops.
He has been riding a road bike with clip-ons for the last 2 years. He recently crashed the bike and thought it would be a good time to get a new one. He was ok with the clip-ons and was hoping there would be a tri bike that wasn't so aggressive in its drop that he might be comfortable on.
I would suggest the Kuota K-Factor for a tri-bike. It has a tall head tube and can be set up fairly comfortable as TRI Bikes go. A buddy of mine has one and loves it.
I fit your description of your friend 4 years ago. I'm 54, 6'0", 200lbs. and I considered myself a pretty stiff guy. ( not a stiff, just stiff ) I got into tri's and I got a Klein road bike thru a friend and put clip-ons on it and away I went. To make a long story short , last year I signed up for LP and bought a Kuota K Factor. I love it and I have slowly lowered the bars as I have gotten better and more flexible. I looked at almost every bike out there and I was fitted twice and the only bike that came close was the Kuota. ( the bike that actually came the closest was my Klein?????? but I wanted a cool looking "tri" bike, like my friends had ) I feel I could have done LP with my Klein and done well too but having the bar end shifters on my Kuota does make a big difference to me.
On a side note: I probably did more research on buying that bike than I did buying my last car.........
Let us know what he gets.
How about a Titanflex? Seems like they were designed specifically for your friend. He could set this up in a relaxed mode and go steeper as he became more flexible. He Wouldn't be limited by fixed geometry.
due to the difference in wheelbase--the tri bike will have a slightly longer wheelbase than the road bike
Check that. Reverse.
Oops, youre right, thanks for correcting me. However, though the wheelbase is shorter, both wheels are further forward, which makes for more stable handling in the aero position.
Incorrect again.
They are farther back in relation to the rider's ass.
I believe what you're trying to say is that a 78 degree'd tri bike is "typically" (assuming it fits properly) is going to have a larger front center, but a short rear center over a 73 degree'd road bike.
I have been looking for a similar discussion/solution. I have so far raced in my road bike but I am contemplating another 1/2 or full and I don't think I am flexible enough for a tri bike...