davie_gillie said:
The wheels on the giro are pretty poor, I was told upgrading them would cost around $800 for another set, hopefully the guy at the store was wrong, nearly half the price of the bike. Not sure on the model, but still, its a fair hike for some wheels....
shame about the wheels. In terms of speed and ease of riding, wheels are pretty important in helping you go faster/tire less quickly. The weight of the wheels, and then aerodynamics of the wheels/spokes, are important, because you'll be turning over the wheels constantly. If you havent already bought the Giro, then i guess you've got 2 options-- get the bike, and look for 2nd hand wheels (i personally love my Mavic Ksyriums), or don't buy a new entry-level bike, but go for a 2nd-hand carbon bike which doesn't seem like it has done much (this may be tricky if you're not sure what signs of wear to look for-- i bought my 2nd hand Giant rather naively. I had no idea about crank length and as a result got looooong cranks on a small bike).
checking the 'true-ness' of a 2nd hand wheels might require a knowledgeable bike buddy. I think this is just checking if they spin in a straight line (no wobble). Sorry im not too clued in here
you can give
www.cycle2max.com a go for a 2nd-hand trading post.
anyway, given that you started this thread a while ago, and you probably are having a great time on a new bike already, don't worry about your first bike-- it's hard to get everything right when you can't learn everything.
davie_gillie said:
One more thing, is there much in the jersey's you wear? Do they count for much on the road, because I have heard some pretty serious '*****ing' about what other riders are wearing. I would just go for a quirky one myself...
Gillie
my 2cents on jerseys:
With all the money you spend on bikes, you still have to look respectable out there. If looking good means a lot to you, and you want whatever is more expensive locally, go shopping online for jerseys (
www.probikekit.com).
Here are no-no's:
- jersey/knicks in a denim-pattern print (i once saw a man wear knicks like this. So wrong)
- leopard spots (there was a leopard print jersey in the local op shop. $6, i was tempted, but it looked that bad)
- Prize jerseys: Tour de France/Giro d'Italia/Vuelta Espana/Jacobs Creek etc. yellow, green, pink, white or polka dot jerseys. These are won by champions, you can't just buy into being King of the Mountain! But if you do wear one, you gotta make sure you can sprint like an animal or climb like a mountain goat.
- World champ rainbow stripes: as above. World champs earn their stripes! I don't see how there's pride in buying one and wearing it. Unless you got it on sale, and use it as a cheapo ride-to-work jersey (hard to imagine).
Here's what i think is controversial:
- National champ stripes/jerseys: again national champs earn their colours. But personally i'd love an Australian team jersey to wear in support of our team! Or the aqua Kazhakstan one that Vino wears
Here's what i think is ok, and can look good if you pick something nice:
- pro team jerseys: a lot of people get the blue Gerolsteiner kit because it looks great. But this can also br determined by what's on sale on probikekit.com!
- your work/company jersey
- bike shop jerseys (if there's one who gives you good deals)
- join a local cycling club and buy the club jersey (not very useful unless you're keen to race)
Or most simply, just buy two plain jerseys to start off with (Castelli, Netti), as long as they have at least 2 pockets at the back. Assoss make good quality knicks but are $$$!! Ditto Pearl Izumi. eBay might be an option too
