Hi I am a 22 year old avid runner, who has recently been convinced i needed to give Tri a try. I raced 2 races last year on a Mtn Bike with slick tires. After a full winter of training, it seems i am in this for the long haul. I am ready to invest a little money into a bike, and was wondering if anyone could recomend a good bike and a good bike shop to fit me in the atlanta/athens/north georgia area.
Also, if anyone wants to comment on a great bike, that would be good to. I am abotu 6’4" so i figure i will not buy a tri bike. I have done some research, and think that i will problably go with a road bike with a shorter top tube that i could put aerobars on later on if i wanted. I think a road bikes seat angle would be more comfortable for training and for longer races (i am interested in getting out of sprints and into ironman distances maybe next year). Plus, being 6’4", the aero tuck just sounds like it will hurt my back
I understand your concerns - being a big guy on Tri geometry. But dont limit yourself. There are plenty of good tri-bikes out there with a good amount of flexibility. I"m 6’2" and found a 78 degree QR quite uncomfortable - but I’m quite happy on my 75 degree Elite. Also, folks on this forum will tell you that a Cervelo Soloist will give you just about any option you need for road/tri conversion.
I’m in michigan - cannot reccomend any fitters in GA, but theres a guy in Dearborn… I hear he’s OK.
Check out All 3 Sports on Rosswell Road in Sandy Springs. They will have everything you need and get you fit correctly.
When I worked at a bike shop in Georgia, I used to reccomend that the tall guys contact Elite. They do custom frames fairly inexpensively, or so I was told. The guys I sent there were very happy.