My new bike

[Cisco]

Hi everyone,

I just rediscovered cycling in December 2009 and been using my brother's old mountain bike to ride on trails around Victoria (I've lost 10kg so far!). I liked the idea of a road bike with a flat-bar to get around Melbourne and suburbs, so I purchased a 2011 Giant Cross City 1 (with Shimano 105 pedals, lights and 2 bidon cages) when I'm not on a mountain bike (waiting later on the year for 2011 models). I would like to buy a Garmin Edge 500 so I can use it on both bikes and a rack for all day rides (all in time!).

Here are some pictures after a quick ride today.

[Pax]

Welcome to the forum and well done on the weight loss!

[Boognoss]

Welcome to the forum and well done on the weight loss!

+1

And that's a damn fine looking flatbar.

[Mulger bill]

G'Day Cisco, welcome outside.

+1 on all the above.

[Baldy]

Looks great Cisco and welcome to the forum.

Flatbars seem to gain in popularity all the time

[Aushiker]

Hi

Nice looking bike. The new models looking pretty good. Hope you enjoy riding it.

BTW are you planning to get a saddle bag to carry a few spares? e.g., tube, patches etc? Might be a good idea to avoid a walk They go with the pump too

Andrew

[beauyboy]

I also like how you got a white light to match the Bike

Donald

[Cisco]

I'm loving this bike! Just did a 75km round trip from home to Melbourne and back (via Federation Trail).

Aushiker - I didn't forget to use my existing saddle bag - I copped a flat tire on the MTB just across my house (lucky!) and learnt my lesson from there! Got the tools, puncture kit, etc... Might invest in a few spare tubes tomorrow

Here are some photos from today (I'm now happy with the setup and no more spending! More riding from here on end!).

[Fletcher]

That's quite tasty.

[Kimba]

Hay, nice bike. I also bought the same bike in Oct 2010. Love it, although being a flat bar, I don't get any acknowlagment from other roadies.

I have made some minor changes.
Shortened the bars by 1.5 inchs off both ends.
New grips.
New bar ends.
Selle Italia gel flow seat "it is awesome"
Skinnier tyres. Gator skins.

This is my first road bike and I only ride 1 day a week on weekends (at the moment) and have been enjoying every bit of it. I have signed up for the Ride to Conquor Cancer later this year. www.conquercancer.org.au

[DavidS]

Looks nice. Aren't those models the replacements for the Giant CRXs? I really like the flat bar road bike for commuting and city riding, narrow tyres but not as full on as a road bike, nice compromise I reckon.

Enjoy.

DS

[jasonc]

hey Cisco

I've just bought the same bike, for commuting

I also tested the Trek fx 7.6 back to back. Even though the Trek was lighter (with a triple crank), the Giant felt quicker, so I bought it.

Where did you get that bike stand? What is it called?

cheers

EDIT: never mind. found it

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... medium=cpc

It's called a "Pro Bike Display Stand"

_{.I am in no way affiliated with chain reaction cycles. Its just that it's where I found one at a decent price}

[Fred Nurk]

Here are some photos from today (I'm now happy with the setup and no more spending! More riding from here on end!).

Famous last words...

We've all said that at some stage.

[jet-ski]

yep they are the replacement for the CRX, a mate of mine got one after his CRX was totalled by a car... they look pretty sweet

[jasonc]

Hey Cisco - what pressures your running?

[Comedian]

Gees... that's one clean bike!

Welcome!

[Cisco]

Thanks all!

JasonC - the bike stand was from Bicycle Super Store - brand is 'Pro'. I run the tires to 80psi which has been good... Very tough tires & rims!

[jasonc]

Thanks all!

JasonC - the bike stand was from Bicycle Super Store - brand is 'Pro'. I run the tires to 80psi which has been good... Very tough tires & rims!

I keep upping the pressures - am now running mine at 120psi. I have ~350km on the odometre

cheers for the info

[jasonc]

I now have over 500km on the bike. Had a slip and slide on monday. A few scratches but all OK.

[il padrone]

I keep upping the pressures - am now running mine at 120psi.

Unless you have very narrow tyres, or weigh quite a lot, there is really no need for such high pressures.

The table below is based on my experience and a certain amount of guesswork, and should only be used as a very rough guide to a starting point. Interpolate/extrapolate for your own weight/tyre sizes.

Tyre widths are in millimeters, pressure recommendations in pounds per square inch. (Divide by 15 if your gauge reads in bars/atmospheres.)

Tyre width in mm
50 mm 37 mm 32 mm 28 mm 25 mm 23 mm 20 mm

Wheel load
100 lbs/50 kg 45 60 75 100 110 120 130
70 lbs/35 kg 35 50 65 80 90 100 110

Note that these recommendations are based on the actual tyre width. Many tyres are marked wider than they actually are.

So if you have tyres of 23mm or less, and weigh 100kgs, 120psi would be the correct pressure according to Sheldon. Overinflation leads to just as many problems as underinflation.

Overinflation
•An overinflated tyre will have slightly less rolling resistance.
•An overinflated tyre is more prone to damage from sharp rocks and similar road hazards.
•An overinflated tyre will give a harsh ride on anything but the smoothest pavement.
•An overinflated tyre can bounce on surface roughnesses. This can cause dangerous interruptions in traction, particularly if it happens during cornering.

Perhaps a contributing factor to your "slip and slide"

[jasonc]

Perhaps a contributing factor to your "slip and slide"

Definitely possible - so is the fact that they are new tyres, and the path being slippery.

The tyres definitely roll better at 120psi vs 100 and I notice straight away if I don't re-inflate before the next ride.

Cheers for the thoughts.

[sogood]

Nice and lots of km to come... But dare I say those two reflectors are going to weigh you down excessively and cause too much turbulent air flow. Take them off!

[trailgumby]

Nice bike!

[j_thommo]

...dare I say those two reflectors are going to weigh you down excessively and cause too much turbulent air flow. Take them off!

x2

First thing i did with mine lol...

[lunar_c]

Nice bike dude and good work with the weight loss. Keep it up!

As mentioned before a saddle bag is a great idea. I keep a multi tool, a spare tube, patch kit, co2 inflator, and tyre levers in mine.

Also I've found those little pumps to be pretty ineffective .. maybe it was the $20 pump I had .. but I couldn't get my tyres above about 40psi with it before I gave up. I now use Co2 cartridges. They're simple and effective .. and if you buy them on ebay you can get them for $2.20 each plus $5 postage. I also carry a spare tube and patches with me, but really I just have the patches there in case I get more than one puncture, otherwise I just swap the tube out, and patch the old tube later on at home.