# IS THIS POSSIBLE?



## n33dlc (24 Apr 2009)

*Hi, first of all I am new to this forum so Id like to say hi to everyone.

I posted this thread in the onroad section aswell because Its kind of relevant to both sections.........

I have recently bought a commencal combi disc mountain bike. The bike was heavily discounted due to it being an 08 model and in a sale.
It has a reasonably high spec of sram, deore and roxshox components and is prettey light.
I intend to fit some road tyres to the bike to do a ride from solihull to oxford (70 miles). I have done this ride before so I know what to expect and that my bike will be ok for it.

I also intent on doing a ride from london to paris, this is approx 400km mainly on good road surfaces.

My question is, 

- Is my bike going to be up for the job?

The organisers reccomend a racer bike, however I dont want to spend any more money on another bike, and if i fit some good on road tyres to my commencal then it should be ok, right?!???

If so, are there any more bits that you reccomend fitting to the bike to make life easier? 

Or should I just get saving for ANOTHER expensive bike?

thanks in advance for any advice.............

Greg. 
*


----------



## Mr Pig (24 Apr 2009)

I have a Genesis MTB. I have two sets of wheels, one with knoblies and the other with slicks, so that I can swap them over quickly depending on what I'm doing. Will you be able to ride on the road with the MTB with slicks? Yes, pretty well. Will it be as fast as a racer? No, not even close. Your call. If you're riding with other people who are on road bikes you will not be able to keep up.

Get tyres that take heaps of pressure so that you can pump them up hard, they roll much faster. Get puncture resistant ones too, I use Specialized Nimbus Armadillo, they're very hard to pop.

Use clipless pedals or Power Grips, really helps get the power down.

Bar ends are nice. MTBs have less places to put your hands than racers and it's good to stretch around a bit.

Mud guards? Topeak ones work well and clip off and on in seconds.


----------



## Mr Pig (24 Apr 2009)

> Funnily enough, the most expensive road bikes were the most unreliable.



When I've done the Glasgow-Edinburgh cycle ride most of the bikes you see at the side of the road with punctures or breakdowns are road bikes. In fact just about all of them. 

I also think you're quite right about the high-end jobs being less reliable. A guy in a shop once likened them to sports cars. Yes, they're faster but higher maintenance. Sounds right.


----------



## Angelfishsolo (25 Apr 2009)

Hell yes - 

I've said this before - MTB's are the most utilitarian cycles available today. Shwable 

Marathon Ultras or Conti Gatorskins are good choices for road tyres and if yo can lock out those roxshox then so much the better. 

Good luck for the ride.


----------



## phil120867 (25 Apr 2009)

I have to agree with most of you up to a point. 700c wheels roll quicker and there is much less resistance, so it takes much less effort to get up to speed and to do decent distances. I've done 100m+ on both a road bike and and MTB and MTb takes much longer. I've got a decent MTB (Scott scale 20) which is actually lighter than my road bike but I prefer my road bike on the road. I bought an old road frame from Evans for £25 and built up a decent 18 speed compact road bike for about £300 in total. Decent puncture protection tyres help and if you've built it up yourself then you know how to fix it when it goes wrong. Its like golf clubs, use the one that best suits your needs (I've also got a fixie for the 20m commute to work!)


----------



## peanut (25 Apr 2009)

phil120867 said:


> I have to agree with most of you up to a point. 700c wheels roll quicker and there is much less resistance, so it takes much less effort to get up to speed and to do decent distances. I've done 100m+ on both a road bike and and MTB and MTb takes much longer. I've got a decent MTB (Scott scale 20) which is actually lighter than my road bike but I prefer my road bike on the road. I bought an old road frame from Evans for £25 and built up a decent 18 speed compact road bike for about £300 in total. Decent puncture protection tyres help and if you've built it up yourself then you know how to fix it when it goes wrong. Its like golf clubs, use the one that best suits your needs (I've also got a fixie for the 20m commute to work!)



don't listen to Phil he's got a 27 handicap and broke my Big Bertha  ....................just kiddin

Seriously you are right there is something immensely satisfying about building your own bike from scratch from used bits and bobs. Plus as you say you learn about every aspect of the bike which helps tremendously with maintenance.
I reckon it would be a good evening or winter project for anyone and done over a few months needen't cost a lot all at once either.


----------



## Mr Pig (25 Apr 2009)

Just buy coincidence a guy with a road bike was out with us this morning. First time that's happened in years.

He hurt his back pretty badly about four years ago and he's not been on a bike for two years. Before that though he was a very keen road cyclist. So this morning he came out with us, two of us on MTBs with slicks and him on his Specialized Alez, or whatever it's called. 

He was just sitting there enjoying the view! Kept saying things like "This is nice and relaxing boys, nice easy pace"! Oh and he's about fifty-five! 

I got a laugh though. These roadies like to keep their bikes spotless. We were up around the farm roads and he wouldn't ride though water on the road fast! :0) You'd fly down a hill and through the water running across the road at the bottom and turn around to see Jim slow right down and tiptoe through it :0) 

But really, if you're cycling a MTB any distance alongside people on road bikes you're going to have a lot less fun than they are.


----------



## Globalti (25 Apr 2009)

Yep.... even with slicks the MTB is going to be slower. Then go and try a modern carbon road bike with aerodynamic tubes and flat spokes, it will go even faster.


----------



## RedBike (25 Apr 2009)

The bike will be up to it. The question is are you?

The bike wont be as quick or (perhaps more importantly) as comfortable. Even leaving the supension unlocked wont make it as comfortable as a quality road bike.


----------



## Mr Pig (25 Apr 2009)

RedBike said:


> The bike wont be as quick or as comfortable. Even leaving the suspension unlocked wont make it as comfortable as a quality road bike.



You think so? I would have thought that a MTB, with its more upright riding position, fat tyres and suspension fork would be a lot more forgiving than a road bike. This morning Jim was also slowing right down for rough sections of road where as I was just blasting over them.


----------



## RedBike (25 Apr 2009)

From your previous post the bike you're talking about slowing down was a Specialized Allez being ridden by someone who even slowed down for puddles. 

When the road consists more of holes than tarmac than yes a MTB will do better but assuming you're actually riding on tarmac then I still think the road bike should win hands down.


----------



## Mr Pig (25 Apr 2009)

RedBike said:


> assuming you're actually riding on tarmac then I still think the road bike should win hands down.



Win, yes sure, but really more comfortable? 

Jim spent almost all of the time this morning sitting up with his hands on the top of the bars, looking after his back. He wasn't pushing it at all, just taking it easy. Even he said that he would've been more comfortable on his MTB but he didn't want to bring it as it has knoblies on it. Main thing was that he had a good time and was glad he came :0)


----------



## wyno70 (26 Apr 2009)

I have both road and MTB. If I was doing a long road trip, I wouldn't even consider the MTB. It will take longer, be harder work and ultimately (because of two mentioned points) be less comfortable.


----------



## Black Sheep (4 May 2009)

I aggree, a road bike would take less effort, but you don't have one.

ok, the first ride you've mentioned will be fine on the road bike, fit the thinnest slicks you can, the less surface area the less drag etc, don't worry you'll still have grip. 

next put larger chain rings on, the higher gears will get you a higher top speed for the same effort

as someone said, bar ends will help you move your hands about on the bars to stop your wrists and back aching as much from being in the same position. 

might be an idea to fit rigid forks to remove the bounce of the suspension from sapping that bit of power waste.


the next thing to consider is setting the bike up to you, put your foot on a pedal so that it sits on the instep (between ball of foot and heel) if your leg is slightly bent when the pedal is as low as it can go you should be sat on the saddle still. 

this will allow you to get the most power from each pedal stroke

remember to use your gears to keep the pedals spinning at a comfortable pace, if your having to force the pedals round your in too higher gear - it takes little effort to spin the pedals then use the gears to transfer that effort to the road, similar to in a car, spin too fast = change up to stop wasting the effort, lots of effort to turn the pedals = change down to make it easier and struggle less.

i'd happily do the first ride you mentioned on my singlespeed mtb but then i am nuts.


----------



## mountainrider (9 May 2009)

the bike will be fine the question is will you be?
would be easier on a road bike but mountain bike will be fine.


----------



## montage (9 May 2009)

Pushing tin said:


> next put larger chain rings on, the higher gears will get you a higher top speed for the same effort




For the same effort? ....surely you can reach a higher top speed for more effort...otherwise everybody would be fitting HUGE gears


----------



## mickle (11 May 2009)

montage said:


> For the same effort? ....surely you can reach a higher top speed for more effort...otherwise everybody would be fitting HUGE gears


Innit.


----------



## mickle (11 May 2009)

Mountain bikes are slower than road bikes primarily because the riding position is less aerodynamically efficient. At twenty miles an hour on a road bike 80% of your energy is being used just to overcome wind resistance. The remaining drag is split pretty evenly between rolling resistance (tyres and tubes) and mechanical (chain, bearings etc) drag. Anything you can do to reduce your aero drag will make you go faster for the same effort, it's why drop bars exist. Coefficient of drag (Cd) is the combination of frontal area and shape. There is bugger all you can do to significantly change your humanoid shape but you can reduce your frontal area by dropping your bars, by moving your arms inward within the profile of your torso and losing your baggy clothing. 

All other things being equal the difference in rolling resistance between a 700c X 24mm and a 26" X 1" tyre is so tiny as to be virtually unmeasureable.


----------



## Mr Pig (12 May 2009)

mickle said:


> At twenty miles an hour on a road bike 80% of your energy is being used just to overcome wind resistance.



Years ago I discovered that if I was pedaling down a slope and doing anything over 20mph, if I stopped pedaling and tucked down as small as possible I went just as fast! It's fun rolling past people who are peddling furiously ;0)


----------



## Cubist (13 May 2009)

mickle said:


> Mountain bikes are slower than road bikes primarily because the riding position is less aerodynamically efficient. .



And this depends on the type of MTB and the set-up. There are so many generalisations being made that you forget that MTB's are no longer just one genre of bike. Mine is a XC set-up, and my saddle is about three inches higher than the headset. On flat trails it's quick enough, and on road descents it'll do over 40mph. With 80 psi slicks on my 7 mile commute averages about 18mph. The down side is that on technical descents I have to drop the seat or scoot back over the rear wheel to stop the faceplants.
I wouldn't be able to do anything like that on my son's bike, as its geometry is far more upright.


----------



## Angelfishsolo (13 May 2009)

I 'train' with a triathlete a few days a week and it was very interesting to note that he covered a Ten mile route on an 'ultra lightweight XTR MTB with slicks' faster than he could on his Specialized Comp.


Cubist said:


> And this depends on the type of MTB and the set-up. There are so many generalisations being made that you forget that MTB's are no longer just one genre of bike. Mine is a XC set-up, and my saddle is about three inches higher than the headset. On flat trails it's quick enough, and on road descents it'll do over 40mph. With 80 psi slicks on my 7 mile commute averages about 18mph. The down side is that on technical descents I have to drop the seat or scoot back over the rear wheel to stop the faceplants.
> I wouldn't be able to do anything like that on my son's bike, as its geometry is far more upright.


----------



## Black Sheep (13 May 2009)

montage said:


> For the same effort? ....surely you can reach a higher top speed for more effort...otherwise everybody would be fitting HUGE gears



once you've worked up the gears at the same rate as you would on any bike you'll have a higher top speed due to a higher gearing

road bikes have higher gearing than hybrids and mountain bikes, and it doesn't take more effort to get going and up to speed, yes there is a slight advantage with rolling resistance and weight, but the principal remains.

how often do you use the tiny crawler gear on a mountain bike when on road? so why not get rid of it, make the 32t (middle) the smallest and fit a bigger chain ring on as the third ring?


----------



## mickle (13 May 2009)

Cubist said:


> And this depends on the type of MTB and the set-up. There are so many generalisations being made that you forget that MTB's are no longer just one genre of bike. Mine is a XC set-up, and my saddle is about three inches higher than the headset. On flat trails it's quick enough, and on road descents it'll do over 40mph. With 80 psi slicks on my 7 mile commute averages about 18mph. The down side is that on technical descents I have to drop the seat or scoot back over the rear wheel to stop the faceplants.
> I wouldn't be able to do anything like that on my son's bike, as its geometry is far more upright.


Drop the seat?? Poof.


----------



## Black Sheep (14 May 2009)

mickle said:


> Drop the seat?? Poof.



some people are fond of their genitalia as it is


----------



## Cubist (14 May 2009)

mickle said:


> Drop the seat?? Poof.


Stops my huge gut getting in the way...............


----------

