Ok, so here is the short version of a long story.
I started riding bikes again in 2018 when my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer (yes, thank G%d she is now 100% fine).
I was lucky enough to end up on a Spec Tarmac and I fell in love with cycling big time. I then bought a Spec Allez as a dedicated bike for my indoor trainer and between 2020 and 2023 ended up doing very near 25,000km indoor on that bike.
In that same time period, the MTB bug bit hard. A Spec Camber got traded for a Titan Racing Drone HT and then a Spec Epic 7 Evo in pretty short time. I also ended up buying a new road bike in 2020, a then new -generation Cannondale SuperSix EVO Ultegra. An amazing bike. But somewhere along the line road riding just lost its appeal.
After about 1.5 years I sold the Dale and went without a roadie for a while and then in 2023 I bought a Trek Emonda SL5. Also a super bike but, like the Dale, it just didn't get ridden.
When I sold it in April 2024 the last time it had been ridden (outdoors) was in November 2023. The "problem" came in when I bought the Emonda because I sold the Allez and mainly used the Emonda on the indoor. I thought in selling the Emonda that I'd just get a MTB cassette for the KICKR and swap between indoor and outdoor rides on the same bike. But the reality is I now never use the indoor at all and my riding is suffering big time. Whilst I still train religiously and ride outdoors as often as I can, my ability to ride back-to-back days has really diminished without the indoor to keep me sharp.
So I'm considering an alloy gravel bike to live on the indoor almost all the time and then get whipped off for the odd 947, Argus, Race to the Sun, etc.
At first I was looking at 2nd hand only (wanting to spend no more than R20k) but I'm now down a new-bike specifications rabbit hole and so nowhere in this whole process.
I've looked at:
- Titan Racing Switch LTD (SRAM Rival 22, alloy frame and cheap as chips - brand new you can pick one up for R17k): https://mellowvelo.co.za/products/titan-racing-switch-ltd-edition?pr_prod_strat=e5_desc&pr_rec_id=1cd924fa9&pr_rec_pid=8917480407329&pr_ref_pid=8934772605217&pr_seq=uniform
- Titan Racing Switch custom build with an alloy frame (can get a new frame and fork for R5,750 and then using hub parts build a complete bike for around R27.5k)
- Cannondale Topstone 2 alloy (GRX 10-speed, great competence in alloy frames for just under R30k): https://bike-addict.co.za/collections/gravel-bikes/products/cannondale-topstone-alloy-2-2022?_pos=1&_fid=de21741c9&_ss=c
- Scott Speedster Gravel 30 (GRX 10-speed, integrated cables and with tubeless and pedals for just over R30k); https://bike-addict.co.za/collections/gravel-bikes/products/scott-speedster-gravel-30-2023?_pos=1&_fid=09bfb0d36&_ss=c
- Avalanche Roam (Carbon frame, integrated cables but all Chinese drivetrain I've never heard of for about R30k): https://bike-addict.co.za/collections/gravel-bikes/products/avalanche-roam-carbon-gravel?_pos=1&_fid=851d8c1b3&_ss=c
Each bike has it's own problems:
- Switch LTD has cable actuated disc brakes and I weigh 96kg
- Building a bike on a budget is a complete hack and it always costs more than you think
- I never wanted to spend R30k in the first place but the Scott and Cannondale both tick a lot of boxes
- The Roam has the same budget problem as the Scott/Cannondale but it's further exacerbated by the fact that it's not yet available in a bigger size (I'm 190cm tall so need L/XL)
So do I just bite the bullet and spank out R30k and make a damn decision. Or do I spend R17k on the Titan knowing that the reality is I probably will barely ride it outdoors. And if I do, I can just swap the mechanical calipers for cable actuated hydraulics from TRP for about R3k?
Thoughts?
I'll attach some beauty pics of all the bikes below:
