[graaja]

Originally Posted by anirudhv

...
Questions
1. Have eliminated MTBs. (the RR340 in the store itself felt slower than the riverside 500). Feel that a Hybrid meets my needs. Can a hybrid be used for long distance commutes (150 K+)?

2. Is front suspension and no of gears very important for 150 K+? (Riverside 120 is just 8 geared with no front suspension. Riverside 500 gets 9 gears & front suspension but costs 24k)

3. Should I increase the budget to ~37k and get an international brand. Is the extra (~12k) amount worth it? (Quality over quantity anyday. I would ideally like to buy once and own the product for a long time than rather keep changing)

4. For instance instead of spending 24k on Riverside 500, why not spend 15k more and get a Trek DS1. I’ll get more gears plus better quality. Will I be able to utilize this bike fully or be overawed by it?

Thanks in advance. I know experienced members get peeved at the same question (which bike to purchase) but I’m very confused. My apologies.

Welcome to the world of cycling.

1. That is a good idea. With the goals you have specified, MTBs are not the right choice. You need either hybrid or a road bike. Yes. You can use hybrids for long rides. Usually, when you have done some long rides using a hybrid you will upgrade to a roadbike for want of speed But a hybrid bike is best to begin your cycling journey.

2. If you are riding on paved roads, front suspensions are redundant. Suspensions are helpful on very rough roads or off-roading. On regular tarmac, they just reduce the efficiency. As you would do most of the long rides on proper roads, I don't see any requirement for suspensions.

Regarding number of gears, more than the number of gears, the lowest and highest gear ratios are important. When you plan to do hill rides then the lowest gear ratio matters and when you want to ride fast, the highest gear ratio matters. Of course, when you have more number of gears you can easily find a ratio to maintain optimum cadence. But at this point, I think you do not have to worry too much about that.

3 & 4. If you can afford, definitely go for a better bike. These bikes usually come with better group sets (gear shifters, deraileurs, brakes etc) which result in a better ride quality and also less maintenance issues. Fully utilizing the bike is entirely up to you though

Wishing you all the very best in your new journey.

[pnredkar]

Originally Posted by anirudhv

With this goal in mind, I’m Inclined towards a hybrid costing ~25k. But alas nothing in this price point. The more options I check, the more confusing it gets.

Hi Anirudh,

While looking for a good bike for my son, I happened to check the Montra Blues hybrid range and I quite liked it (did not buy it as it was out of my budget and son wanted an MTB). It seemed to be well made and the different versions of that bike should fall within your budget. I am not an expert and won't offer any comparison or opinion. But please check it if not already done so.

- Prasad

[navin_bhp]

Originally Posted by anirudhv

Thanks in advance. I know experienced members get peeved at the same question (which bike to purchase) but I’m very confused. My apologies.

I'd say try a road bike first if you plan on doing long distance on tarmac. The difference is huge. A hybrid is good if you need to do a lot of unpaved roads. Also if you can afford a Trek go for it. I've never owned that particular model but looking up online the DS1 has internal cable routing and disc brakes over the Riverside model. Both weigh about the same 13.x kg's so not much difference there. Getting the right size that fits you is more important than anything else. Good luck picking the right one.

[Nissan1180]

Originally Posted by anirudhv

Thanks in advance. I know experienced members get peeved at the same question (which bike to purchase) but I’m very confused. My apologies.

Based on a recent purchase experience in Ahmedabad, I'd say that the Riverside 500 is a good buy for the price. You get disc brakes, front suspension and a seat that has a spring (not very effective, but better than nothing).
We had to choose between the Rockrider 520 and the Riverside 500. The Rockrider is great if you want to do mountain biking. Road imperfections are not felt at all in the Rockrider, but it had a postural issue because you have to lean in to ride it - not everyone is comfortable with that over long distances. The Riverside is more comfortable to ride, although you can feel road imperfections to a greater extent.
There are other bikes in the Riverside series which are priced at around 10-15k, but they lack disc brakes. You can try out the bikes at Decathlon and you'll notice that disc brakes make a world of difference.
The only reason I like Decathlon over other stores (which may be significantly cheaper and offer a better selection of brands) is because of trust. You never know when a store would stop dealing with a particular brand or stop servicing the product. With Decathlon, you get a 2 year warranty and since it is an international brand that sells similar products globally, it is unlikely that you will face a problem with spares/repairs.

[graaja]

Originally Posted by Nissan1180

...
I'd say that the riverside 500 is a good buy for the price. You get disc brakes, front suspension and a seat that has a spring (not very effective, but better than nothing)...

The OP intends to take up very long distance riding like 200KM or 300KM brevets. For such distances, both suspensions and seat springs are not good. Suspensions result in power loss which results in a lower efficiency. For short rides you will not feel this. But on a 200KM or 300KM ride, this can be a deal breaker.

Even suspensions can be tolerated, but seats with springs (or jelly padded etc) is a definite NO. The general rule is the longer your ride, the firmer should be your saddle. For long distance rides, you need your sit bones to be stable. Seats with springs will cause too much movement on the sit bones and in discomfort, chaffing or even injury with very long distances on the saddle. The stiffer the seat, the better. For a couple of days, you will have pain in the sit bone. But once this pain goes, you can be on saddle hours together.

Here is a nice article on saddle selection.

https://www.cyclingabout.com/saddle-...touring-seats/

To summarize, if you are doing short distance rides, say a max of 40km, then you can be very flexible with saddle selection. But for longer rides, saddle selection becomes very important. That is why none of the performance oriented cycles do not have padded seats or seats with springs.

[pedrolourenco]

Originally Posted by Sherlocked

My friend bought the MyBike.

Is the MyBike still available? It's been removed from the Decathlon website. The Cheapest bike is the Riverside 100. I currently own a Bianchi Via Nirone 7 and a Firefox Target. I'm thinking of selling the Firefox and buying 2 MyBike's or Riversides for me and my wife. These bikes will be kept on a bike rack mounted on the Celerio. The plan is to park the Celerio wherever we find parking in town and then use the bikes to do our chores.

Originally Posted by roy_libran

Has anyone tried the Rear Mounted Rack, from -
http://youlovebikes.com/Car_Bike_Racks_India.html

I currently own a very basic rack with no securing arrangement for the bikes. I am thinking of replacing it with this one or the ones from BTwin. Which is a better option?
https://www.decathlon.in/p/8342387_3....html#/3-254-_

https://www.decathlon.in/p/8357912_3....html#/3-254-_

[girishv]

Hi,

After selling off my fixie, finally bought a (real) road bike. Now need to do lots of fitting as I bought a size bigger (please don't ask me why?).

Here is the pic of my beauty, hope to put some miles on her starting from next week.

Girish

[roy_libran]

Originally Posted by pedrolourenco

I currently own a very basic rack with no securing arrangement for the bikes. I am thinking of replacing it with this one or the ones from BTwin. Which is a better option?
https://www.decathlon.in/p/8342387_3....html#/3-254-_

https://www.decathlon.in/p/8357912_3....html#/3-254-_

I have been using the 320 for over a year now. Absolutely no problems. Have hauled 3 roadies or 1 roadie + 1 MTB, without any problems. Easy to take off and put back on. Takes about 5 minutes, once you get the hang of it.

[pedrolourenco]

Originally Posted by roy_libran

I have been using the 320 for over a year now. Absolutely no problems. Have hauled 3 roadies or 1 roadie + 1 MTB, without any problems. Easy to take off and put back on. Takes about 5 minutes, once you get the hang of it.

Thanks for the feedback. I will check it out at Decathlon. I think the nearest one to me is Hubli.

Meanwhile I also found this:

https://www.bikeinn.com/bike/thule-b...s-968/642846/p

[anirudhv]

Originally Posted by graaja

Welcome to the world of cycling.

1. That is a good idea. With the goals you have specified, MTBs are not the right choice. You need either hybrid or a road bike. Yes. You can use hybrids for long rides. Usually, when you have done some long rides using a hybrid you will upgrade to a roadbike for want of speed But a hybrid bike is best to begin your cycling journey.

Wishing you all the very best in your new journey.

@ Graaja. Noted your points sir.

Realized suspension/gears are not important (at least at my level). Will be going for basic version of hybrid either a Montra Downtown or a Btwin Riverside 120. The sheer number of bikes around 35k make choosing a right bike quite an overwhelming task. Will develop 100/150 KM capability over the next 6 months and will look to trade-up and buy a better make accordingly.
Thanks everyone.

[Sherlocked]

Originally Posted by pedrolourenco

Is the MyBike still available? It's been removed from the Decathlon website.

I can see it as available on the Decathlon website. You should call your nearest store to see if its in stock.

Originally Posted by Sherlocked

So I got the Rockrider 300 yesterday.

Just to update, albeit a bit late, that I have returned the Rockrider 300 after around 7 days of purchase. The riding position didn't cut in for me as it was more on the aggressive side and somehow I was not enjoying riding it.
Decathlon has a return policy for up to 90 days provided the bicycle is in showroom condition. The store people were sweet enough to take it back. They even refunded me the price which I paid for the accessories (stand, bottle holder). A big thumbs up to them.

I am going to do some good research before I finalize on my next bike. Most probably I will go for a hybrid this time with an increased budget. Will definitely post my queries on this thread here.

[pedrolourenco]

Originally Posted by Sherlocked

I can see it as available on the Decathlon website.

Thanks for the link. I don't know why it didn't show up when I searched.

So we have 3 Riverside options and 1 My Bike option.

Riverside 100 6 speed for Rs.8999/-
https://www.decathlon.in/p/8387218_r...57-l_1m75_1m80

Riverside 50 single speed for Rs.6999/-
https://www.decathlon.in/p/8399048_b...57-s_1m50_1m65

Riverside One Single speed for Rs.4499/-
https://www.decathlon.in/p/8401813_r...57-m_1m65_1m75

My Bike single speed for Rs.4499/-
https://www.decathlon.in/p/8304742_m...57-m_1m65_1m75

Is a geared bike required for urban use or will a single speed do? Among the single speeds the Riverside One looks to be the best option.

[sandygordon]

Decided to buy a hybrid for fitness purposes
Was zeroing on an MTB - Giant Revel 1 26 incher 2017
But after browsing through various cycle stores and riding many bikes, decided to go for a hybrid. This would help as a commuter as well. Found suspensions in all hybrids useless. Hence decided to go for rigid fork.
Budget was 20k

Options available were
1. BTWIN Riverside 300 - Loved the ride, hated the gearshifters and the feminine look. (Looks like a Ladybird IMO) - 25K
2. Merida crossway 20D - Loved the adjustable handlebar. Good bike. Had a good front supension and mechanical disc brakes - 33k and out of my budget
3. Montra Trance Pro / Non-Pro - 18k. This was a BSO as some one has commented. Too many rattles and squeaks.
4. Montra Downtown - Bulit for its price. Frame felt heavy.
5. Scott Aspect hybrid - Its actually a hybrid between a hybrid and MTB. Looked cool. Felt good. Priced at 34k, out of my budget.
6. Kona Dew City - Somehow liked it. Rigid fork, Simple V brakes (very powerful), Easy to ride. Looks good. Loved the black and yellow combination. Easy on my pocket at a price of 24.5k. Loved the saddle. The handlebar was perfect for my liking. They say, you do not choose a bike, the bike chooses you. So Kona Dew City 2018 it is....


True it might not give me the work out which i expected (MTBs would do that) , but this guy is lot of fun and is smooth beyond my expectations.

[eyesice]

Folks,

Are there any single speed ( not fixies ) road bikes / hybrids with alu frame available in India?

[girishv]

Originally Posted by eyesice

Folks,

Are there any single speed ( not fixies ) road bikes / hybrids with alu frame available in India?

Most of the fixies can be used as single speed by reversing the hub easily. Even the Firefox Flip Flop (as the name suggests) comes with this.