Fat bloke needs bike
Discussion
Right chaps- have started cycling back from work- its 11miles (so not far)- takes about 45mins (whih i'm hoping to improve).
Thing is the ride home is a mix of road and gravel track up and down rolling hills (nothing massive though)
current bike is a bit small- its a Marin Muirwoods which is lovely- a city bike, BUT
1. The rim brakes just aren't very powerful- i can't lock up the rear wheel
2. gearing doesn't really work for me- often seem to be in 21st on the flat!
3. not sure about the frame taking my weight- frankly i'm lardy- 22 stone.
4. frame is a bit small- 17"
so what might suit better? needs to be able to take the weight, have better gearing for a mixed ride home (larger tyres perhaps?), and way better brakes! I'm 22 stone, 6ft 2, shortish legs but long back, must be able to take panniers too.
fitness wise i'm carrying a lot of weight, but still walk good miles every week with the dog and attend military fitness twice a week- riding from work is to save money, and increase my daily fitness level- so i'm doing cardio at least once per day.
Thing is the ride home is a mix of road and gravel track up and down rolling hills (nothing massive though)
current bike is a bit small- its a Marin Muirwoods which is lovely- a city bike, BUT
1. The rim brakes just aren't very powerful- i can't lock up the rear wheel
2. gearing doesn't really work for me- often seem to be in 21st on the flat!
3. not sure about the frame taking my weight- frankly i'm lardy- 22 stone.
4. frame is a bit small- 17"
so what might suit better? needs to be able to take the weight, have better gearing for a mixed ride home (larger tyres perhaps?), and way better brakes! I'm 22 stone, 6ft 2, shortish legs but long back, must be able to take panniers too.
fitness wise i'm carrying a lot of weight, but still walk good miles every week with the dog and attend military fitness twice a week- riding from work is to save money, and increase my daily fitness level- so i'm doing cardio at least once per day.
to be honest, it depends on the budget but 17" is way too small so you should be looking at a bigger frame for starters. almost everything is fitted with disc brakes these days which do work better than rim brakes but also need some maintenance every now and then as pads wear out much quicker. gearing is pretty much standard on most bikes, 44/34/22 at the front and 32/12 at the back or minor variations of. 11 miles on 45 minutes isnt too shabby.
your weight isnt that much of an issue to be honest, not for mountain bikes, just keep an eye on spoke tension. i saw a guy about the same weight and height on a road bike at this years tour of britain.
your weight isnt that much of an issue to be honest, not for mountain bikes, just keep an eye on spoke tension. i saw a guy about the same weight and height on a road bike at this years tour of britain.
Yes, you can get MTBs with 700c wheels... actually they're called 29ers where MTBs are concerned. Steel frames too, although they're less common than ali.
For road use do you really want a sus fork though? You might find yourself better-off on a CX bike. They're tough but have "racer" geometry.
For road use do you really want a sus fork though? You might find yourself better-off on a CX bike. They're tough but have "racer" geometry.
No offence - I am not sure you will find a decent air sprung fork to support 22 stone. You would have to inflate to mega pressures to get the sag correct. A cheaper sprung fork may well be adapted to supported the load, I would consider a rigid bike.
When up at 17stone, I had big problems with suspension and had to drop some lard to get the bike working well.
When up at 17stone, I had big problems with suspension and had to drop some lard to get the bike working well.
Gooby said:
No offence - I am not sure you will find a decent air sprung fork to support 22 stone. You would have to inflate to mega pressures to get the sag correct. A cheaper sprung fork may well be adapted to supported the load, I would consider a rigid bike.
When up at 17stone, I had big problems with suspension and had to drop some lard to get the bike working well.
Not being clear- don't want suspension! When up at 17stone, I had big problems with suspension and had to drop some lard to get the bike working well.
just a solid bike, with good brakes which works well on and "off road" - and by off road i mean gravel tracks.
OK, so you have:
MTB full sus
MTB hardtail
Hybrid
CX
City bike
Roadie
That's my assessment of the current categories. There's a lot of crossover between hybrids and city-bikes though but if I explain that I consider hybrids to have 700c wheels and front sus, whereas city-bikes will have rigid frames and forks, and are more like roadies with flat bars, you get the picture. There is also a cross-over between city-bikes and comfort/leisure-bikes. These have a very upright riding position and can have hub gears.
Categorising bikes into styles isn't terribly easy because of the crossover.
CX bikes however are designed are drop-handlebar racers but with more clearance for slightly wider (sometimes spuddy) tyres. Not wide like MTB-wide, but some have 35mm tyres. They still have 700c wheels though.
Brakes: In general CX bikes used to have rim brakes but are switching to discs, but cable-operated discs because drop-bar brake levers don't come with hydraulics yet.
Hybrids and city bikes have mix of all types of brakes.
MTB full sus
MTB hardtail
Hybrid
CX
City bike
Roadie
That's my assessment of the current categories. There's a lot of crossover between hybrids and city-bikes though but if I explain that I consider hybrids to have 700c wheels and front sus, whereas city-bikes will have rigid frames and forks, and are more like roadies with flat bars, you get the picture. There is also a cross-over between city-bikes and comfort/leisure-bikes. These have a very upright riding position and can have hub gears.
Categorising bikes into styles isn't terribly easy because of the crossover.
CX bikes however are designed are drop-handlebar racers but with more clearance for slightly wider (sometimes spuddy) tyres. Not wide like MTB-wide, but some have 35mm tyres. They still have 700c wheels though.
Brakes: In general CX bikes used to have rim brakes but are switching to discs, but cable-operated discs because drop-bar brake levers don't come with hydraulics yet.
Hybrids and city bikes have mix of all types of brakes.
700c wheels are the type found on road bike. It refers to the metric circumference.
The majority of MTB's are 26". There are however bikes on the market called "29ers" and they essentially use a wider road rim. They can become very versatile bikes. Fit some slicks and it will be faster on the roads than a standard MTB, or keep the knobbly tyres on and you can ride them off-road.
The majority of MTB's are 26". There are however bikes on the market called "29ers" and they essentially use a wider road rim. They can become very versatile bikes. Fit some slicks and it will be faster on the roads than a standard MTB, or keep the knobbly tyres on and you can ride them off-road.
Hi Pugwash,
Sounds like you've got a realistic idea of what you want and need.
I'd say a rigid mountain bike would be best given your weight and the tracks. This will offer you the disc brakes too.
However finding a rigid bike is difficult these days. My suggestion would be to find a bike in budget with nice strong frame and wheelset and then fit some rigid forks. You could then see if the Local Bike Shop would discount for keeping the suspension forks (or flog them on ebay as new/unused) and get them to fit the rigids for you. I've just fitted some Orange rigid forks, only £59 off the Orange website. Turns my hardtail into the ideal winter hack/do it all bike.
A good staring point, IMHO, could be a Specialised Hardrock. The frames are built to be tough, and the wheelsets should be strong too. You should be able to get one with hydraulic discs for your budget and there will be mounting points for the rear pannier rack you want.
HTH, Pete
Sounds like you've got a realistic idea of what you want and need.
I'd say a rigid mountain bike would be best given your weight and the tracks. This will offer you the disc brakes too.
However finding a rigid bike is difficult these days. My suggestion would be to find a bike in budget with nice strong frame and wheelset and then fit some rigid forks. You could then see if the Local Bike Shop would discount for keeping the suspension forks (or flog them on ebay as new/unused) and get them to fit the rigids for you. I've just fitted some Orange rigid forks, only £59 off the Orange website. Turns my hardtail into the ideal winter hack/do it all bike.
A good staring point, IMHO, could be a Specialised Hardrock. The frames are built to be tough, and the wheelsets should be strong too. You should be able to get one with hydraulic discs for your budget and there will be mounting points for the rear pannier rack you want.
HTH, Pete
PeteSV said:
Hi Pugwash,
Sounds like you've got a realistic idea of what you want and need.
I'd say a rigid mountain bike would be best given your weight and the tracks. This will offer you the disc brakes too.
However finding a rigid bike is difficult these days. My suggestion would be to find a bike in budget with nice strong frame and wheelset and then fit some rigid forks. You could then see if the Local Bike Shop would discount for keeping the suspension forks (or flog them on ebay as new/unused) and get them to fit the rigids for you. I've just fitted some Orange rigid forks, only £59 off the Orange website. Turns my hardtail into the ideal winter hack/do it all bike.
A good staring point, IMHO, could be a Specialised Hardrock. The frames are built to be tough, and the wheelsets should be strong too. You should be able to get one with hydraulic discs for your budget and there will be mounting points for the rear pannier rack you want.
HTH, Pete
what he says. you should be able to find a hardtail with lockable suspension these days, will make the road sections easier and the gravel bits more fun! Sounds like you've got a realistic idea of what you want and need.
I'd say a rigid mountain bike would be best given your weight and the tracks. This will offer you the disc brakes too.
However finding a rigid bike is difficult these days. My suggestion would be to find a bike in budget with nice strong frame and wheelset and then fit some rigid forks. You could then see if the Local Bike Shop would discount for keeping the suspension forks (or flog them on ebay as new/unused) and get them to fit the rigids for you. I've just fitted some Orange rigid forks, only £59 off the Orange website. Turns my hardtail into the ideal winter hack/do it all bike.
A good staring point, IMHO, could be a Specialised Hardrock. The frames are built to be tough, and the wheelsets should be strong too. You should be able to get one with hydraulic discs for your budget and there will be mounting points for the rear pannier rack you want.
HTH, Pete
the hardrock is an excellent place to start, cant see the need for anything else to be honest but rigid forks arent for all tastes though and you need to be careful you dont screw up the geometry by retro fitting them to a bike designed with front suspension. i would run it with the suspension forks for a few weeks first becuase if the off road bug bites, a rigid bike is a lot of effort. locakable front suspension, although a bit heavier, is a good compromise.
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