[W.A.G.7]

I have been riding a Frog Snow Leopard 29T for quite some time now (since Sept 2020) and I am totally satisfied with it, so far. I am based in Pune, so some questions that I have as a newbie ...

1. Which bicycle shop (somewhere in Deccan/Kothrud/Prabhat Road) is good enough to get a basic service done on the bicycle? I am not tech-savvy and I don't have the tools to do it myself at home, so I need to go to a shop.
   
2. I want to upgrade the saddle to something better than the stock one. Where can I actually try a good saddle before I buy it? Although the saddle fit is very personalized, still; do the experts here have any suggestions about a good saddle? I normally ride 20-25 km on weekdays and try to do approx. 40-50 km on Saturday/Sunday.
   
3. Lastly, the Shimano Tourney drivetrain is working well, no issues observed so far. Despite the fact that Tourney is a very entry-level component, yet it works very smoothly on my bike and is sufficient for my kind of usage. But the itch to upgrade remains. Will it be worthwhile to spend upwards of 20k to change over to a Shimano Deore 1x9 or 1x10 setup? One of the shops (Ozone Ventures) advised me that it will be easier to switch over to Shimano Acera 8 speed at the rear and keep the Front derailleur as it is (Tourney 3 speed). But they also offered to change over to a Shimano Deore 1x or 2x setup (with the cost varying depending on what I choose).

EDIT: The other crazy thing is - I am totally fixated by the Scolarian fixie - https://www.scolarian.com/zanskar-custom. Now I know that a fixie is a totally different world as compared to a normal cycle and might not be a practical option as a primary bike. Would it be really worthwhile to keep my existing MTB as is; and get (basically spend money) the bike in the URL mentioned? (GAS - gear acquisition syndrome!)

[giri1.8]

Got my Decathlon Triban RC 100 flatbar last week. They did miss sending me the frame bag which I ordered, but thankfully after couple of mails it's on the way. Overall satisfied with their delivery. Have added side stand and gel seat, as this will do grocery runs too.

Did just a couple of 5+km rides, taking it slow as I have been off the saddle for almost 15 years. Once I am ready for longer rides, will just remove the gel seat and go for padded shorts.

Short impression :
*Looks minimalistic.
* Fit and finish is good, even the welds look neat (at least to my eyes).
*Light and easy to pedal
*gear ratios are nice, could use first even on slight slopes.
*Tyres are good for pavement and asphalt, slight gravel at low speed is manageable.
*Expected bone jarring ride, but it's better than I expected.
* Brakes could have been better, considering the fact that one could easily hit 30kmph+

[RishikeshK]

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

Which bicycle shop (somewhere in Deccan/Kothrud/Prabhat Road) is good enough to get a basic service done on the bicycle? I am not tech-savvy and I don't have the tools to do it myself at home, so I need to go to a shop.

I have been visiting one Mr. Sanjay Satpute for getting my hybrid bicycle serviced since a couple of years. Though his shop is in Pimple Saudagar area, he stays close to Karve road (right behind Sonal Hall) and has a full servicing setup at his home too. He charges like 1K INR for a full service and does an excellent job. Unrelated to the point but he is a veteran national-level cyclist and knows his stuff. HTH.

[superguy282]

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

Which bicycle shop (somewhere in Deccan/Kothrud/Prabhat Road) is good enough to get a basic service done on the bicycle? I am not tech-savvy and I don't have the tools to do it myself at home, so I need to go to a shop.

You could try :-

Cyclelogissts

Cykler

Pro Sports and Bikes

Been to all of them but have experience only at Cykler which was good. The others are well known so it shouldn't be a problem, they know their stuff.

[Red Liner]

Bike fit advice please?

Ignore my micro mini shorts.

Pedal at approx. 6 o clock


Pedal at 3 o clock


Should i bring the seat a tad higher? Are my arms alright on the hood? How does my back look?

Is it normal to have a little bit of shoulder blade pain? Its not pain, just fatigue.

I have learned to loosen my arms as well. Day 1 i was gripping the bars tight. Day 2, i talked myself into loosening my arms and tightening my core. This helped.

My running shoes dont feel right in the bike. What are my options? I was suggested cycling shoes which cost an eye watering 5k. Not interested in clipping them on.

[Red Liner]

Example of cycling shoes which might fit my needs? https://unitedbycycling.com/products...o-44-dark-blue

[roy_libran]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Should i bring the seat a tad higher? Are my arms alright on the hood? How does my back look?

Is it normal to have a little bit of shoulder blade pain? Its not pain, just fatigue.

To me your position looks okay. Any pain/discomfort should settle within a fortnight tops. If it persists only then I guess we need to find a solution.
A fairly loose wrist, elbow and dropped shoulders is the way to go, with a complete but not tight grip of the handlebar - same as you would have as on a motorcycle.
There may be an opportunity to set the seat a tad higher, but wait on that for a fortnight.

Originally Posted by Red Liner

My running shoes dont feel right in the bike. What are my options? I was suggested cycling shoes which cost an eye watering 5k. Not interested in clipping them on.
Example of cycling shoes which might fit my needs? https://unitedbycycling.com/products...o-44-dark-blue

I am inclined to suggest that you ride with whatever sneakers you have for now, and once you are comfortable with the bike fit and handling of the bike, move up to Cleats. That's money really worth spending.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Example of cycling shoes which might fit my needs? https://unitedbycycling.com/products...o-44-dark-blue

Position looks good.

These are my cycling shoes. I liked them so much that after the first pair wore out, I'm on my second pair now.

Sparx. Around 1000-1400 bucks. The sole tread pattern gives great grip on alloy platform pedals (toothed), and are thick and flat and stiff. Perfect.

The whole game is in the sole. The wrong sole will make for a miserable ride. Especially in the wet.







Cheers, Doc

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by roy_libran

To me your position looks okay. Any pain/discomfort should settle within a fortnight tops. If it persists only then I guess we need to find a solution.
A fairly loose wrist, elbow and dropped shoulders is the way to go, with a complete but not tight grip of the handlebar - same as you would have as on a motorcycle.
There may be an opportunity to set the seat a tad higher, but wait on that for a fortnight.


I am inclined to suggest that you ride with whatever sneakers you have for now, and once you are comfortable with the bike fit and handling of the bike, move up to Cleats. That's money really worth spending.

Thanks man. This is great news for me then lol.

I have some badminton shoes which should do for now. The soles on those were fairly rigid. Will pull them out.

Originally Posted by ebonho

Position looks good.

These are my cycling shoes. I liked them so much that after the first pair wore out, I'm on my second pair now.

Sparx. Around 1000-1400 bucks. The sole tread pattern gives great grip on alloy platform pedals (toothed), and are thick and flat and stiff. Perfect.

The whole game is in the sole. The wrong sole will make for a miserable ride. Especially in the wet.

Attachment 2170990

Attachment 2170991

Attachment 2170992

Cheers, Doc

Sparx sm 119. I will look them up in shoe stores close by for a fit out. What an awesome price.

You guys are superb

[graaja]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Bike fit advice please?

You should be driving the pedals using the ball of your feet (in the picture you have your toes driving the pedals). With the ball of the feet rested on the pedals, you should have a slight bend in the knees at the bottom most position of the pedal. I remember the bike fit person telling it should be around 15 degrees. In your case, without measuring it with a protractor, it does looks fine to me.

The hood is slanting a little towards the ground. Make it parallel. With this position, you need to see how you feel the extension of your arms is. Ideally, you should be loading your core so that you are able to rest the arms on the hood without any load on the palm. If this is not the case, then as first step, you could flip the stem so that it is pointing away from the ground. This will bring the handle bar a little towards you and will help the core with a slightly straighter posture.

The main difference between a hybrid and road bike is the front lean of the body which needs good core engagement. This will take some time to develop. You will have to consciously remind yourself to engage the core and take the weight off your palms. You will observe that once you lose this consciousness, your body will resort to shifting the weight on the palms. As you keep consciously training the core to engage and removing the load off the palms, you will see that over time, you will be able to ride long distances with this aggressive posture without any issues.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Sparx sm 119. I will look them up in shoe stores close by for a fit out. What an awesome price.

You guys are superb

There are a couple of friends who bought them on Amazon looking at mine. Very happy.

I mean, these were my sneakers at the time I bought the ACT. I just like them a lot. And have done thousands of miles in them. Am sure there might be better shoes around. Just giving you what's been working for me. I tend not to be adventurous and change something that works.

Originally Posted by graaja

You should be driving the pedals using the ball of your feet (in the picture you have your toes driving the pedals). With the ball of the feet rested on the pedals, you should have a slight bend in the knees at the bottom most position of the pedal. I remember the bike fit person telling it should be around 15 degrees. In your case, without measuring it with a protractor, it does looks fine to me.

Around 23-27 degrees as I recall.

Yes the hood is sloping a bit, and the stem is flipped (I likes!), but his wrist "looks" comfortable and his elbows too have a bit of a bend.

Cheers, Doc

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by graaja

You should be driving the pedals using the ball of your feet (in the picture you have your toes driving the pedals). With the ball of the feet rested on the pedals, you should have a slight bend in the knees at the bottom most position of the pedal. I remember the bike fit person telling it should be around 15 degrees. In your case, without measuring it with a protractor, it does looks fine to me.

The hood is slanting a little towards the ground. Make it parallel. With this position, you need to see how you feel the extension of your arms is. Ideally, you should be loading your core so that you are able to rest the arms on the hood without any load on the palm. If this is not the case, then as first step, you could flip the stem so that it is pointing away from the ground. This will bring the handle bar a little towards you and will help the core with a slightly straighter posture.

The main difference between a hybrid and road bike is the front lean of the body which needs good core engagement. This will take some time to develop. You will have to consciously remind yourself to engage the core and take the weight off your palms. You will observe that once you lose this consciousness, your body will resort to shifting the weight on the palms. As you keep consciously training the core to engage and removing the load off the palms, you will see that over time, you will be able to ride long distances with this aggressive posture without any issues.

Got it. Those slippers

I will use the bike in this position for a week and see how i do. Right now my cycling is so miniscule, it doesn't even bother mention here. Just pedalling around the apartment. I need to get those cycling shorts and hit the road close by with some open straight free lanes.

[Jedi.Knight]

I got the Kalenji HRM belt from Decathlon yesterday and started using with Strava.

Is there any other Android app with which I can pair this during my non-Strava activities? Purpose is just to track the heart rate without attaching it to any activity.

I tried Google Fit, however, I am not getting the option to add any heart rate monitors.

[rdst_1]

Originally Posted by Jedi.Knight

I got the Kalenji HRM belt from Decathlon yesterday and started using with Strava.

Is there any other Android app with which I can pair this during my non-Strava activities? Purpose is just to track the heart rate without attaching it to any activity.

I tried Google Fit, however, I am not getting the option to add any heart rate monitors.

I've successfully connected it with the following apps -
1) a Training Tracker
2) Wahoo Fitness tracker
3) Decat Coach (Decathlon's own app)

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Jedi.Knight

I got the Kalenji HRM belt from Decathlon yesterday and started using with Strava.

Is there any other Android app with which I can pair this during my non-Strava activities? Purpose is just to track the heart rate without attaching it to any activity.

I tried Google Fit, however, I am not getting the option to add any heart rate monitors.

Wahoo.

In fact I capture my rides on Wahoo primarily.

And it auto uploads on to Strava.

Cheers, Doc