http://www.feltracing.com/08/product.asp?catid=1504,1510&pid=8716
Anyone have one? Thoughts/opinions?
I can get a team deal on one so am seriously considering it.
clm
I don’t ride one, but they are pretty sweet…
Brad
Are you going to race it? I’ve got a 2007 and like it for handling. Wheels are budget wheels (I use a HED track disc and front trispoke instead). The gearing it comes with is a little small for my tastes for racing (48x15, 22.7 mph or so at 90 rpm), so I bought a 49 and 50 chainring and 13 and 14 cogs.
A couple of my teammates have the Fuji track bike (Track Pro). It’s $200 less (our team gets deals on both Felts and Fujis), which actually caused teammate #2 to get it over the 2008 Felt. Felt looks cooler (got a lot of positive comments at the track), but functionally I doubt there’s much difference.
I concur. The felt track bike is a nice looking bike and handles well on the track.
However there is no need to worry about getting another wheelset as its good enough to learn on and get good on.
The gearing is fine. A 48x15 is enough to win just about any race on the track. Remember one of the things you ride a track bike for is to learn how to spin. Cadence is huge, being able to smoothly spin at 120rpm plus will only help YOU!
Are you going to race it?<<
Yes. Which is why I want my own and not have to rely on the rental bikes they have at the track. They have decent bikes, but like today, the bike I had (Bianchi) had a stem that was way too long so having my own bike will make racing more fun.
clm
I concur. The felt track bike is a nice looking bike and handles well on the track.
However there is no need to worry about getting another wheelset as its good enough to learn on and get good on.
The gearing is fine. A 48x15 is enough to win just about any race on the track. Remember one of the things you ride a track bike for is to learn how to spin. Cadence is huge, being able to smoothly spin at 120rpm plus will only help YOU!
I’d say that depends on the event and your abilities. I certainly wouldn’t want to be spinning a 48x15 @ 120 rpm for a 20k scratch race. My cadence is naturally lower, so even low 100s gets old after awhile for me. I will typically run a bigger gear (low 90s) for longer events.
Are you getting ready for Masters Track Nationals. They’re only six months away. You can earn yourself some Stars & Stripes trim for your jersey 
Well, they are being held at our track!
the other one looks sweeter 
tk1
.
Well, maybe I’ll get that for the second bike.
OK, I admit… I have no clue about these track bikes… But some are aero with aero bars and some are old school looking with drop bars like this Felt. Whats the difeerence? I mean is there a difference in the type of race they are used?
Also I like the Specialized ones too.
Buy it, it’s very good. I couldn’t quite afford it myself though 
One thing I would suggest though, the head tube is longer than I’d like for pursuiting purposes. You may find you want a downward sloping stem for adding tribars for the 500 and pursuit.
Don’t worry about the basic wheels. You can run the front off your tri bike (assuming it’s 700c) for the masters champs, just use an allen key skewer. You can usually pick up a good deal on a track rear wheel on ebay and the like. They last well, and are well looked after. Alternatively, use your charms to blag some wheels for the champs. If your local track is like mine, people are more than happy to share gear.
The regular track bikes, like the pictured Felt, are used for bunch racing, match sprinting, and local track leagues. Aero bars are only allowed for the time trials (500m for women and 1000m for men) and pursuits.
The aero shaping of the frame is mostly irrelevant, unless you specifically want every last advantage.
You can run whatever wheels you like. Which is why most of the field in any major race will be on a disc and some aero style front, but front discs are limited to pursuits and TTs.
http://www.feltracing.com/08/product.asp?catid=1504,1510&pid=8716
Anyone have one? Thoughts/opinions?
I can get a team deal on one so am seriously considering it.
clm
Cathy,
There are a number of reviews on fixedgearfever.com as well as RBR and other consumer sites. Hellyer should be a fine track to use 48x15t, perhaps pick up a 16t cog for warm up, and if you are going to try the timed events, maybe a 50t chainring.
The fitting of these bikes should be done where the person doing the fit has experience. The size on the seat tube sticker is largely irrelavant as the steep angles reposition the cockpit in such a way you’ll find the same top tube length doesn’t always equate to the same reach if you use your road bike fit for example. The Felt 52cm is a very very short bike with its 520mm top tube, in comparison this is shorter than most others 49cm bikes.
The other thing you’ll find is the Deda track bars have enormous drop and reach. They are a “cool” spec as they make the bike look legit and are one of the few true track specific handlebars availalbe to us for OEM; however, one look at the bikes of the pros and you’ll find most mass start people use standard road bars, not sprinter bend. Again, if you have a favorite bar on your Prodigy, just use that, perhaps 1 or 2cm narrower depending on your comfort level.
The Felt is an aggressive bike, much quicker handling than the rental fleet of Bianchis. Rather than tell you how great it is, which I’d be happy to do, I’ll tell you that the Bianchi Pista Concept is also a great choice if the fit, color, etc suits you. The Fuji, Trek, and entry level Langster are a step behind in my mind as the components all have some drawback if you continue to develop track riding as one of your hobbies/sports. I’ve read that the FSA carbon pro crankset and Mavic Ellipse wheelset use non-standard chainlines in their design, I’ve also experienced the two piece drive side crank arm have movement between the spider and the arm itself with the FSA design. Jamis has a new track bike out this year that looks nice although I worry about the utility of the non-round seatpost, I do not know if they make different offsets to suit the different seat angle preferences of the rider. Some UCI track events do not use the 5cm setback rule and as such, many sprinters will run their saddles much further forward. This may not be possible with a dedicated aero-offset post.
Please let me know if you’d like any additional information on the Felt or any other production track bike. I was involved in the development programs at a few different velodromes and have had the good fortune of reviewing the virtues of many different brands’ offerings. If you have a specific event or preference for fit, I may be able to help you select the best bike for the discipline.
Best Regards,
-SD
Very nice looking track bike. Cannot add anything of substance but am interested in how this works out for you so please post again with updates.
I love the Felt road bikes and have narrowed down to a couple of models for my next road bike–once I hit the ground in Atlanta I’ll be in the market too.
best of luck to U with this, and please update.
v/r
is there an event that would complement tri training or time trialing or are they just too short ? Isn’t there a longer pursuit than 1k?
Also I watched masters nats in Indianapolis one time and there was an event where a lot of guys were on the track for a long time…any ideas what that was?
is there an event that would complement tri training or time trialing or are they just too short ? Isn’t there a longer pursuit than 1k?
Also I watched masters nats in Indianapolis one time and there was an event where a lot of guys were on the track for a long time…any ideas what that was?
Sure:
There is a 4km pursuit, and many tracks also have “hour records” for their indivdual record book, although it is not contested regularly. The 4km pursuit ususally consists of constant wattage output, or close to it after the first lap. The local Home Depot Velodrome is hosting 200m, 500m, 1km, 3km and 4km TTs next week, but most tracks do not contest these events regularly.
I’d say that the 4km event could suit the steady state training you do for TT and triathlon although it seems to suit ROAD sprinters well also. The training itself would all benefit your tri/TT event however. Track riding improves your overall cycling prowess as much as any other cycling specific workout. The other great thing about the track workouts is the conditions and distances are easy to cover and measure. If you were doing 2 mins on, 5 mins off, or whatever the effort, it is easily repeated w/o traffic, etc. Also the wattage is easier to estimate due to the “constant” conditions.
The Master’s Natz would host a points race, scratch race, and Madison. (mass start endurance events) All of these would be 30mins-1hr+ depending on the distance covered. (10km - 40km)
-SD
The longer timed events are the individual or team pursuit. 3k for women and 4k for men. For masters age groups these are reduced slightly.
The kilo and 500tt are called time trials, cos you’re not trying to catch someone.
The scratch race, points race, and madison are long endurance events. typically 10k or 20k. They can last up to an hour.
Roll on the world champs. GB to win quite a lot of rainbow jerseys
I’m surprised people at this discussion about gearing…I know optimal gearing for each track is different, but 48x15 is not going to be a small gear for a woman in a mass start race. Also, a 50x15 is probably a tad tall for events like a 3k pursuit or something, unless she’s just a masher. Most men I race against (p/1/2) run the same gearing, so it’s not just me.
As for the felt, I’ve seen a few of those (but not a lot…the track racers like their custom rides) and they look like fun bikes. However, at entry level track bikes, I don’t think there’s too much of a difference between one and the next.
I’m surprised people at this discussion about gearing…I know optimal gearing for each track is different, but 48x15 is not going to be a small gear for a woman in a mass start race. Also, a 50x15 is probably a tad tall for events like a 3k pursuit or something, unless she’s just a masher. Most men I race against (p/1/2) run the same gearing, so it’s not just me.
As for the felt, I’ve seen a few of those (but not a lot…the track racers like their custom rides) and they look like fun bikes. However, at entry level track bikes, I don’t think there’s too much of a difference between one and the next.
I agree at the club level 48x15t should be ok (I hope I agree, I selected the gear to use!) for most mass start races, perhaps even lighter outdoors if it is breezy. I suggested a 50x15t given the pedigree of the OP and her triathlon roots. I susepct she’ll be in the 85-90rpm range for a 3km.
Most of the men I’ve raced against are running 49x14 or 50x14 with a few guys going even bigger. The roadie guys on the track are turning huge gears here. My old home track(s) had 86" gear limit (Bloomer) and 81" (FCV) for the longest time, not sure if they still enforce those rules.
-SD