My new bike!!!

PatrickGSR94

Barefooters
Dec 9, 2011
627
179
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Hey folks, haven't posted here in awhile lately, mainly because I've been more obsessed with cycling, and shopping for my first road bike. Well yesterday I finally got it! I looked at 5 different bike shops in my area, but then ended up driving 6+ hours total round trip to get this Felt Z85, because it's a 2012 model with Shimano 105 components for almost $500 off retail! A 2013 Trek 1.2 with Sora components (2 or 3 levels below 105) would have cost almost $100 more than this so it was a pretty smoking deal!

And I regret to report that I did actually buy shoes, to use with the SPD pedals I already had but have never used before yesterday: http://bontrager.com/model/09152

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Way cool!
Just pull that rear wheel reflector and we'll consider you a minimalist despite the Spd's
Besides, it BLINDED me!
 
Is the fork carbon?
 
Yes I pulled the reflector right after I took that pic, and yes the fork is carbon. So is the seat post. :)
 
My wife let me ride her new Madone a few weeks ago. Today I road my daughter's old Specialized Hard Rock that I converted to upright w/ a tall stem and ape hangers. Yesterday I took out the wife's Diamond Back , and the day before her Trek FX. They're all fun, but no where near as fast as your new steed! ENJOY!
 
Outstanding! I think you'll do well with the SPD's. I got Shimano's equivalent of the Look clips - not bad, but a PITA to walk around in; after I got my bike set up (2011 Raleigh Record Ace), I rode with a friend who had the SPD's and regretted my pedal choice. Once they wear out, I'll switch over.

Now - go do a century!
 
I'm the only barefoot rider in the family, tens of thousands of miles in tight fitting shoes w/SPDs was partialy responsible for my cartilage loss. Our son loves his Crank Bros. Egg Beaters, and my wife just bought a pair as well.
She hasn't clipped in for years, ever since her knee issues cropped up. Now that she's riding centuries she want's to give it another chance, any day now I guess.
 
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I'm the only barefoot rider in the family, tens of thousands of miles in tight fitting shoes w/SPDs was partialy responsible for my cartilage loss. Our son loves his Crank Bros. Egg Beaters, and my wife just bought a pair as well.
She hasn't clipped in for years, ever since her knee issues cropped up. Now that she's riding centuries she want's to give it another chance, any day now I guess.

Out of curiosity, do you do any serious distance (say > 10 miles, for argument sake) or do you pedal about town on errands and such. I used to ride barefoot when I was a kid, but that was on a Schwinn with a banana seat, streamers on the handlebars and solid rubber tires...
 
I was a big believer in shoes around bikes, having heard numerous stories of partial toe amputations from survivors. BUT, they were all riding double, etc, or doing stupid kid stuff.
When my hallux limitis forced me into barefoot life, I began cycling barefoot realizing that I was adding risk and diminishing performance as well.
TURNS OUT..............barefoot riding is MORE efficient than riding anything other than dedicated cycling shoes clipped in.
Toes wrap and grab the barefoot pedals automaticaly, and there is no power loss due to compression of non-cycling specific shoes. Stiff rigid cycling shoes UNCLIPPED do not offer the advantage of unweighting the upstroking pedal as do the toe-gripped barefoot pedal.
SO, for safety, wear shoes. For efficiency, wear cleated shoes. If your pushing 60 and don't give a d#@m anymore, and find shoes uncomfortable........ride 60+ miles a day barefoot and don't look back.
On a road bike I can average 20mph for 5 hours barefoot, but don't care to.
15 mph on a cross bike for two hours is all I really want, and if I crash I've got bigger problems to worry about than foot injuries.
 
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The bike I rode today is not only steel, but has a milk crate on the rear rack and ape hangers.
Freak out the randam club rider when I tuck in bare feet and all and suck his/her wheel! (for maybe a few miles at best)
 
The bike I rode today is not only steel, but has a milk crate on the rear rack and ape hangers.
Freak out the randam club rider when I tuck in bare feet and all and suck his/her wheel! (for maybe a few miles at best)

Oh yeah...if you ever cruise the commuter thread on bikeforums.net you'll find a few bits about how someone on a 17 lb bike in full kit doesn't give much love when he's being paced by someone on a hybrid with panniers...they like it even less when you pass them...
 
It's all the rider. My wife's friends do a 300 mile ride every summer, and a couple of the better riders always look for a new challenge each year. They'd already done the fixie, so this past year one of them did the entire 300 mile event on a Pugsly snow bike. He cheated though, upping the tire pressure to around 25. Average speed? 22mph for the very hilly course.
As I said, it's all about the rider, not the equipment.
 
It's all the rider. My wife's friends do a 300 mile ride every summer, and a couple of the better riders always look for a new challenge each year. They'd already done the fixie, so this past year one of them did the entire 300 mile event on a Pugsly snow bike. He cheated though, upping the tire pressure to around 25. Average speed? 22mph for the very hilly course.
As I said, it's all about the rider, not the equipment.

300 Miles on a Pugsley? Only 25psig? Ye gods...I did a 200K randonee last year- took me 10.5 hours; the first finisher did it in just over 7. It' included lots of hills (it was on the coast).
 
I asked him what his 24 hr. PR was, and he said it was so long ago he barely remembers, but it was in the 400+ range.
 
I tried barefoot riding with some Sunlite BF pedals, but the platform size was much too small, not to mention the AWFUL bearings in them. They were actually painful to ride with, and I preferred my stiff sole flip flops over riding BF on those pedals.
 
Nice! I've been debating getting a decent road bike for a while. I kind of feel silly with my big mountain bike on a nice flat paved trail with the big knobby tires a hummin while other are just blowing by me. I just have no idea about what to get, or if its a good deal or not.