Buying my first road bike

[Jrd.]

Hi all,

I am looking to buy my first road bike. I did a lot of mountain biking in my teens, and years down the track have decided to take up cycling again in my mid 30's.

I am looking at getting a drop bar road bike, and have a budget of up to about $2000. As it is my first road bike I don't want to break the bank, but I also want something reliable, good quality and something that I can be doing upwards of 100kms a week on. I'm about 190cm and 100kgs so will need an XL sized bike.

I am located in Sydney, and will be heading to a few different bike stores to see what sort of stock is available (I've read about the current shortage of stock).

Any advice on the above criteria would be greatly appreciated. I have been reading through a few threads on here, seems like a great community. Thanks in advance.

[Warnesy]

That’s a pretty good price point. Quick search on bike exchange between 1800-2200 turns up a heap of nice looking aluminium roadies kitted with 105 gearing.

My first (and only for 6 more months) roadie is aluminium with Tiagra and it has now clocked over 10k.

[blizzard]

Are you going pure road or wish to do some gravel fire roads? Giant and Merida generally offer the best value but ultimately the choice may come down to what's in stock in your side.

For group sets I would look at 105 or Tiagra as minimum. If you want disc brakes, make sure they are hydraulic rather than mechanical. The main advantage with discs for you would be the ability to run bigger tyres at lower pressures for comfort than the rim brake equivalent.

[g-boaf]

Hi all,

I am looking to buy my first road bike. I did a lot of mountain biking in my teens, and years down the track have decided to take up cycling again in my mid 30's.

I am looking at getting a drop bar road bike, and have a budget of up to about $2000. As it is my first road bike I don't want to break the bank, but I also want something reliable, good quality and something that I can be doing upwards of 100kms a week on. I'm about 190cm and 100kgs so will need an XL sized bike.

I am located in Sydney, and will be heading to a few different bike stores to see what sort of stock is available (I've read about the current shortage of stock).

Any advice on the above criteria would be greatly appreciated. I have been reading through a few threads on here, seems like a great community. Thanks in advance.

Do you need disc brakes? If you could stretch a bit more, the Canyon Ultimate is a great all around bike:

https://www.canyon.com/en-au/road-bikes ... be=BK%2FBK

They are comfortable, handle nicely, not too heavy - good looks, especially the grey one. All fairly standard components so nothing hard to service. Unfortunately September availability for some sizes.

It's a shock seeing how costly bikes have become since a few years ago. Giant even is pretty expensive now too.

I haven’t ridden anything but top spec (or near to it) Canyon bikes, but those ones I have ridden were great. And the CF Evo I’m lucky to have is one of the best bikes I’ve ever had. Really trouble free.

[AndrewCowley]

Current day prices are an outrage. 105 is no longer an affordable option if on a budget.

[Zippy7]

I think the issue is that there is very little supply.
Pre-covid, you could always pickup a deal at the local shop for the current model. If it was last years model, it was even better (30%+ discount!!). All those discounts are gone, and the RRP had been creeping up quite a bit over the last few years.
If you're comfortable, get a used bike on gumtree or bikeexchange. XL are hard to shift as not that many people can fit them. Get a mate to help you inspect and bargain hard

[owly]

Small number of XL carbon road bikes up to 2k on Syd Gumtree. One negotiable Madone for 1500 with 28hole rear wheel.

Would need a spoke count to suit your weight I guess.

[Jrd.]

Thanks so much for all the advice here. It's all been very helpful!

[Duck!]

The main advantage with discs for you would be the ability to run bigger tyres at lower pressures for comfort than the rim brake equivalent.

Er, no. Tyre clearance is dictated by frameset design, not brake type. The advantage of disc brakes is consistent performance in all conditions, and with hydraulics, far better contol of the brake power (modulation) and much less input effort required.