Bought a bike on c2w & I dont like it.

[wonderloaf]

I would persevere a little longer before deciding if it really is the wrong bike for you. About two years ago bought my first road bike (coming from an MTB) and had all kinds of fit problems. So tried flipping the original stem, a shorter flipped stem and finally an angled short stem which raised the bars and made me very comfortable. Just recently bought another bike with a un-flipped standard long stem with the intention of swapping over the angled stem from the old bike, but I thought 'what the hell, let's try the long stem' and you know what?.... it's great, no problems at all. I think what has happened is that over time my body has adapted to the different position required for a road bike, I can even get down in the drops for much longer periods of time as well which wasn't possible originally! So my advice is persevere, try different saddle positions and stem sizes/heights and then make your decision!

 

[Milkfloat]

Too much weight on your hands can be a lack of core strength, so as well as spending more time on the bike (little and often) try some core exercises. Plus, make sure your arms are not locked when riding, they should have some bend in them.

 

[screenman]

Can you not do something about the weight, as that would be the cheaper and healthier option.

 

[NeilnrLincoln]

I'm trying to get some of the weight off, eating more healthily etc as well as cycling more. My willpower when it comes to food & drink is the biggest hurdle to overcome.

 

[Saluki]

It took me an age to get used to my twitchy Defy 2. I was scared stiff of the thing. My first ride was well over 20 miles, bringing it back on a hilly, Highland route.
I was convinced that I had made a terrible mistake for a while but was determined to ride my very expensive white elephant.
After a while, twitchy became responsive, my weight dropped as I was riding the bloody awful bike that I was forcing myself to ride as I was not about to tell my husband that I hated the bike I had just paid £600 for, and somewhere along the line, I fell in love with the thing.

The Boardman is a great bike. I would just say to keep riding, even if only for 5 miles at a time. They are great bikes, they really are. I ride on hoods, rarely on the drops.

You are very brave to tell everyone that you don't like your new toy. I told everyone on here that I adored my new bike and just gritted my teeth and hoped for the best.
I think, if you give the bike some time,mahatma you will grow to really like it.

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

Twitchy (negative) can become responsive (positive).

 

[Blurb]

The size sounds about right to me.

Re. the twitchyness, my road bike came with 23c zaffiro tires and i pumped them to around 115 and they were nervous on anything but smooth roads, so I switched to 25c conti grand prixs and dropped the psi to 105 and the bike is a pleasure ride now, and as said by deptfordmm above, the twitchy has become responsive!

I would also echo the thoughts from others about weight and getting more flexible. I had the stem flipped up when I first got it last year, but have recently changed it back as I wanted a more aero position and haven't had any probs. In fact, I changed the hybrid to a lower position subsequently. In my case I think it was more about flexibility as my weight has not changed at 72kg.

 

[Dec66]

As others have said; stick with it, because 30 miles is nothing really (it's a little over my daily return commute, for example).

If you're still like that after 300 miles and a bike fit, you may have an issue.

 

[Julia9054]

When I first went from a hybrid to a road bike it took me a full 6 week summer holidays of riding to get used to it. Growing up in the eighties, drop handle bars were for boys bikes so I had never ridden one in my life! At first, I felt scared, like I wasn't really in control of the thing. My hands felt too small to operate the brakes and downhill was, frankly, terrifying! I am completely used to it now and dislike riding the hybrid for anything more than short trips to the shops. Persevere - you'll get there!

 

[Stealthrider1]

I'd second a bike fit and more time to get use to the bike. I went from a flat bar hybrid to a drop bar road bike and it felt twitchy and I felt very nervous but you do get use to it and now it feels second nature.
Definitely worth sticking with it to see how it improves, maybe try it out on some quiet roads to gain confidence

 

[cyberknight]

Im the opposite , i find flat bar bikes awful for similar reasons , its what you get used too .

 

[rivers]

I just bought my first drop bar road bike, only done about 70 miles so far. I had the same feeling on the initial ride to work, but spent a good chunk of time tweaking it before I set off home on Monday. The ride home was much more comfortable, and a hell of a lot more fun. I'm still making small tweaks (i've had the bike less than a week), but each time it's feeling better and better. On my ride home today, I felt like I was smiling the entire time. You'll get there.

 

[Mrs M]

Keep at it
I've only ridden my road bike twice this year (I am bad)
Been too busy toddling about on a heavy cruiser style bike with a very upright riding position.
Road bike felt very strange and twitchy after that but I know I can ride it (and did a wheelie once).
Just what you get used to, good luck with it.

 

[jonny jeez]

What's the point in investing in a different bike and then fettling the stem, headset and all manner of stuff, to make it the same as all your other bikes...its different, that's why you bought it.

You need to stop comparing it to what it isn't and embrace what it is.


Just trying to help, sincerely.

 

[vickster]

One of the reasons why trying to get a testride is always a good idea if new to a type of bike / frame material

Even more so when essentially buying on the never never (even if you save a bit of tax)