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Intro and is this bike a good one.


cAfstA

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Hi to all here.

 

I'm new to this forum and new to cycling (meaning I don't know the cycling jargon).

 

I recently started cycling to lose a lot of weight and get in shape. I currently have an Avalanche GT 2.0 MTB which has got me working my legs and lungs. I started off riding 5/6 km's as my body is really weak. I steadily got up to riding 12/14 km's rides. I always was alone as I didn't want to be a drag for the seasoned cyclists.

 

This past weekend a friend invited me to join him and his bud for a short ride, short ride being 25 km's - WOW!!! I made it but it was a struggle as my body is still weak as mentioned and my bike struggled to get to speed which the other guys wanted to keep.

 

So with this, I decided to change to a road bike and saw something I liked, that being a "Tropix Madrid".

 

 

So after my long long story I wanted to inquire as to whether y'all might know this make bike and if this is a good bike for me to start off with. I'm hoping it'll be a bit easier/better going on the road with this bike rather than my current MTB bike.

 

Y'all help will be greatly appreciated.

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Howzit man, welcome to the hub and congrats for getting yourself back into shape. 

 

What follows are only my opinion and by no means what you should do if it doesn't suit you:

 

Don't get a road bike. I have some reasons for this answer:

  • Road bikes are only for road riding, this makes it fairly inflexible when you suddenly have to jump a curb and or go into the veld for some reason
  • The ride on a road bike is way harder than on a MTB, remember on a road bike you do not have any shocks and the tires goes up to 7 bar (or there abouts - I am not a roadie)
  • The gear ratio is also different so you do have heavier gears depending on the config you put on but for entry level bikes the gear ratio on the road bike will most probably be heavier than the mtb.

The bike you have is a GT Avalanche not a Avalanche GT. GT is a bit better than Avalanche  :thumbup:. But anyhow minor details aside my suggestion would be: 

 

Upgrade the GT and make it lighter and even consider slicks for the interim

 

Hi to all here.

I'm new to this forum and new to cycling (meaning I don't know the cycling jargon).

I recently started cycling to lose a lot of weight and get in shape. I currently have an Avalanche GT 2.0 MTB which has got me working my legs and lungs. I started off riding 5/6 km's as my body is really weak. I steadily got up to riding 12/14 km's rides. I always was alone as I didn't want to be a drag for the seasoned cyclists.

This past weekend a friend invited me to join him and his bud for a short ride, short ride being 25 km's - WOW!!! I made it but it was a struggle as my body is still weak as mentioned and my bike struggled to get to speed which the other guys wanted to keep.

So with this, I decided to change to a road bike and saw something I liked, that being a "Tropix Madrid".


So after my long long story I wanted to inquire as to whether y'all might know this make bike and if this is a good bike for me to start off with. I'm hoping it'll be a bit easier/better going on the road with this bike rather than my current MTB bike.

Y'all help will be greatly appreciated.

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buy the best you can afford and don't be scared of 2nd hand.
There are good deals out there.

I don't know the brand you are referring too, but the specs are entry level.
Depending on price you might be able to get 2nd hand with better specs.

 

Road riding is fun, has it's pro's and cons.
Depending on where you live, and the majority of your riding done a road bike can work, but I would personally look at a MTB. Just for the versatility. MTB can ride on and off road with normal mtb tyres.

I would not recommend upgrading your current bike's parts.
Not worth it IMO.
Rather look at buying something else instead of making it lighter or upgrading components.

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If you wont be selling your current mountain bike, then get a road bike. You have best of both worlds.

Regarding the brand, no idea what it is. Looks like a brand from Brazil or Aliexpress.

 

What is your budget for the road bike ?

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Thank you guys for y'all advice.

 

I live in Gordon's Bay, Western Cape and it's a very hilly area but beautiful roads along the mountain and sea.

 

I don't plan doing off road but yeah I hear what y'all are saying. So I'm confused now as to what to do. My concern is not being able to keep up with the group when out cycling.

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If you wont be selling your current mountain bike, then get a road bike. You have best of both worlds.

Regarding the brand, no idea what it is. Looks like a brand from Brazil or Aliexpress.

 

What is your budget for the road bike ?

Yeah apparently it's a French bike which was marketed for Brazil and Asian countries.

 

I'm getting this one for R5500 which is a tad over my budget but yeah maybe I'm being too hasty. This just catches my eye though and hopefully the equipment/parts is sufficient for me at this stage. Hopefully in 2 or so years I can upgrade when I'm maybe much fitter.

Edited by cAfstA
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Thank you guys for y'all advice.

 

I live in Gordon's Bay, Western Cape and it's a very hilly area but beautiful roads along the mountain and sea.

 

I don't plan doing off road but yeah I hear what y'all are saying. So I'm confused now as to what to do. My concern is not being able to keep up with the group when out cycling.

Dunno if you're a star wars fan, but Qui-Gon wisely said "There's always a bigger fish".

There will always be a group you can't keep up with.

 

I don't know the area nor the routes you ride on so won't be able to comment on what is best there.

If the roads have narrow shoulders I would go MTB. If there are a lot of roadies that ride the area then go for a road bike.

 

Either way it will be fun.

 

IMO best bet for you at the moment is not to worry about not keeping up with a group but focusing on your own fitness.

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