Which bike?

[Slenver]

OK, I have a newbie question. Quick background...

I've never really been much for exercise but, approaching middle age I did what everyone's supposed to do and bought a bike to try and get fit. I'd do anything to get a bit fitter and trimmer except, y'know, cut down on drinking, eat sensibly, start running etc etc.

So I bought the best bike I could afford under the govt's ride-to-work scheme, despite living 110 miles from work, which was a full-carbon Orbea road bike. This is a few years ago now. I used it a handful of times and then stuck it in the garage. It was stiff and uncomfortable and cramped and flighty and everything else. And I realised I didn't like the whole road-bike riding position and the general feel of the experience. Wasn't for me.

Fast forward a few years and, weirdly, I've not got any younger or slimmer, and that diet wine I like so much doesn't seem to work at all. If anything it's making things worse. So, I dust off the bike, flog it and buy a mountain bike with the intention of starting again, but on something comfortable that I'll actually use this time. Our local National Trust property has just finished an all-weather path that runs through hills and woods and all that nature shit and seems like just the ticket. So this is what I do.

And though it's not turned me yet into some lycra-clad bike nutter that sits on forums discussing bikes (oh, wait etc) I do quite like it. I love the bike which is everything I wanted a bike to be. It's a Vitus Nucleus VRX btw, which I got for a good deal, inc. the previous owner's fitment of tubeless tyres, dropper post, good pedals etc. It's great. It's light and handles brilliantly and I love it. Turns out bikes have moved on from the Falcon Pro BMX I had as my last bike in 1984. Who knew?

But anyway, lockdown locks down and the park gets closed so, reluctantly, I find a road route, bemoaning the fact that I'll get run over. But turns out that I prefer it and have recently started going further and further for the hell of it. So my 10-mile park ride has now become a 25-mile road ride twice a week, if I'm not too hungover. And so, once again, I have the wrong bike.

The bike is great, but the gearing is naturally low, the tyres massive etc. And it doesn't matter, because although I'm slow as fuck, I'm not riding with anybody else so it doesn't matter how fast I go. My body burns calories and my eyes see some countryside. Does it really matter that I can literally hear my tyres expending my energy? Not really. The gearing is annoying though as it tops out at 25mph pedalling like a hamster on speed, so I can't really take advantage of the hills.

So, long question short... what would you do if you were me? Ignore the downsides, stick with the bike you love and just get on with it? Or trade it in for a hybrid perhaps with more suitable gearing and tyres? Or convert what I have? Or man up and just buy a 'proper' bike? And if so, what should I buy? I've told the wife we're skint so I can't spend much, but the bike's worth say £500 and I have £600 hidden in the drawer from the sale of the Orbea, so I could go a grand if necessary. But is it necessary? Discuss.

[weeksy]

Well the answer is, it's only the speed and comfort that changes. If you're setting PRs on strava etc then does it matter, does it not ? For me, i'd stick with the MTB and if you want to, change the gearing, you could potentially add a larger front chainring which will give you more speed, but then you're restricted by tyres and aero. So it's a catch 22 really in some ways.

As with motorbikes, there's no bike that does it all... all bikes are compromised in different ways and for different aspects of the riding. I'd sit and think "What do i want long term as my riding" and if it's not gravely/woodsy trails, then the Vitus isn't your answer. If it's road/paths, then i'd be thinking more something like a gravel bike, something like a Planet X London road, Pinnacle Arkose etc.... Or even something like a Merida CX500.

It's not something we can really answer fully, until you answer yourself what you want from it all.

[Docca]

I keep wondering if i'd ever be a 'road' rider. There is something attractive about doing the big miles and visiting places further afield. Wobbling around on thin tyres is off-putting, as are cars

I've just started (4 weeks) getting back in to MTB. What make this interesting for me is the variability of scenery. Love being amongst nature; trees and dirt and hills (especially belting it down hills..). For some reason, my attention span copes better with this style of riding.

I'm working on hitting goals will influence £ conversation at the moment, I have a MTB with full suspension that is great and whilst I might want to get a new one, I won't until I get to 100kg. So a lighter me might enjoy an upgrade even more

[Slenver]

Well the answer is, it's only the speed and comfort that changes. If you're setting PRs on strava etc then does it matter, does it not ? For me, i'd stick with the MTB and if you want to, change the gearing, you could potentially add a larger front chainring which will give you more speed, but then you're restricted by tyres and aero. So it's a catch 22 really in some ways.

As with motorbikes, there's no bike that does it all... all bikes are compromised in different ways and for different aspects of the riding. I'd sit and think "What do i want long term as my riding" and if it's not gravely/woodsy trails, then the Vitus isn't your answer. If it's road/paths, then i'd be thinking more something like a gravel bike, something like a Planet X London road, Pinnacle Arkose etc.... Or even something like a Merida CX500.

It's not something we can really answer fully, until you answer yourself what you want from it all.

This is the thing really.. firstly it doesn't really matter - I'm enjoying what I'm doing and if I didn't know 'better' bikes existed I wouldn't care at all. Let's face it, when I was a kid we'd do up to 50 miles trips on BMXs with one gear, fat tyres and terrible riding position. The wheels were yellow and the tyres were red, and that was the main thing.

I also don't really know what kind of riding I want to do. I was happy doing the gravel track thing and now I prefer the road thing. Might be weather-influenced too, not sure!

Ultimately I don't think I'll spunk a load of money ill-advisedly on anything for now, but it's good to browse... Will check out the bikes you've listed, cheers. I know nothing and have never even heard of half these brands anyway.

[G.P]

I don't own a working push bike but both my sons do.
One is a Specialized Hardtail MTB (ex Mrs Weeksy) and the other is a BTWIN Hybrid and I ride both.
The difference on the road is stark - The hybrid is lighter, it rolls so much more easily on comparatively skinny tyres and being new(ish) it has disc brakes which were a revelation to me when I first rode it.
The only off road stuff I've done on it is an old rail route which its tyres cope with fine but you can't really play on it like you can on the MTB.

The MTB is great but on tarmac I find it frustrating as I know that if I was on a hybrid, let alone a road bike, I'd be going much quicker.

Have a go on a Hybrid to help make your mind up.

[Slenver]

I keep wondering if i'd ever be a 'road' rider. There is something attractive about doing the big miles and visiting places further afield. Wobbling around on thin tyres is off-putting, as are cars

I've just started (4 weeks) getting back in to MTB. What make this interesting for me is the variability of scenery. Love being amongst nature; trees and dirt and hills (especially belting it down hills..). For some reason, my attention span copes better with this style of riding.

I'm working on hitting goals will influence £ conversation at the moment, I have a MTB with full suspension that is great and whilst I might want to get a new one, I won't until I get to 100kg. So a lighter me might enjoy an upgrade even more

I'm lucky really cos I live in deepest countryside so I've come to realise that I can ride around here for miles and just use little lanes with little traffic. I went out for 2 hours this morning and saw 4 cars I think, though obviously the current situation is helping. So it's meant that roads are actually nicer maybe than the gravel paths in the park, though I might go back to those at some point. I don't really fancy the multi-hour epic cross-country trips some of my mates do, I don't think. 2 hours is plenty.

Of course, being a mature 47 year-old parent, my main aim has been to draw out a decent cock 'n' balls in Strava, and I've done the best I can with that, given the road layouts, so that's that ticked off for now.

[Slenver]

I don't own a working push bike but both my sons do.
One is a Specialized Hardtail MTB (ex Mrs Weeksy) and the other is a BTWIN Hybrid and I ride both.
The difference on the road is stark - The hybrid is lighter, it rolls so much more easily on comparatively skinny tyres and being new(ish) it has disc brakes which were a revelation to me when I first rode it.
The only off road stuff I've done on it is an old rail route which its tyres cope with fine but you can't really play on it like you can on the MTB.

The MTB is great but on tarmac I find it frustrating as I know that if I was on a hybrid, let alone a road bike, I'd be going much quicker.

Have a go on a Hybrid to help make your mind up.

Yeah, that was the question I forgot to ask actually in my ramble, how much difference it would actually make. My MTB is fairly light (to me) and has great brakes and all that stuff, so it's not wanting in any area - it's just that it's not designed for the road.

Of course, the answer is a different bike for each trip, right?

[weeksy]

1mph.

So, lets say you average 14mph on a MTB with 2.2 tyres...

going to a hybrid will get you 15mph, going to a CX bike with drop bars, maybe another mph and then onto a full roadie, yup, about another mph.

All of this is based upon plenty of testing and many miles on all types of bikes, including road ones. For me, i say a hybrid type is the king of them for speed and compromise, it's what i use for road based events. I'm lucky that i'm a strong lad, so i can get a 19mph average on a flat course with this, but i'd get another 1mph if i could stand it on a drop bar'd bike with slicks etc... But i hate them.

[G.P]

Of course, the answer is a different bike for each trip, right?

I believe that the principle of n +1 also applies to non powered 2 wheelers, yes

[Slenver]

1mph.

So, lets say you average 14mph on a MTB with 2.2 tyres...

going to a hybrid will get you 15mph, going to a CX bike with drop bars, maybe another mph and then onto a full roadie, yup, about another mph.

All of this is based upon plenty of testing and many miles on all types of bikes, including road ones. For me, i say a hybrid type is the king of them for speed and compromise, it's what i use for road based events. I'm lucky that i'm a strong lad, so i can get a 19mph average on a flat course with this, but i'd get another 1mph if i could stand it on a drop bar'd bike with slicks etc... But i hate them.

Interesting, thanks. And yeah, the Vitus has got fat old 2.35 tyres on it.

[Slenver]

Of course, the answer is a different bike for each trip, right?

I believe that the principle of n +1 also applies to non powered 2 wheelers, yes

Just checking

[Dodgy69]

Myself, wife and lad have recently renewed all our bikes. Wife got an ebike, myself and lad 21yo got hybrids, there great. £500ish bikes. I got a Marin fairfax 2, lad got Specialised sirrus 2 . The specialised is best. Very similar riding position but feels better made.

Big wheels glide well and not too skinny. very light, smooth gears. The marins top gear is higher, so better on the fast downhill bits I suppose. Both perfect for back lane riding and no unnecessary mega bucks spent. Both have hydraulic brakes, marin has 3 ring front, specialised has 2. Personally, I only need one.

We're out soon and loving it.