Cyclocross/winter bike

[sayek1]

I have a full carbon road bike, but want to carry on riding through winter without wrecking the thing. To this end I was thinking of a cyclocross bike which can hold mudguards, might have discs and is a bit more robust.

Looking at reviews both the Boardman CX Pro and Genesis Croix de Fer get good reviews. The boardmans always get very good write-ups, but doesn't have discs unlike the CDF. However, the Boardman has SRAM Rival gears which I have on my roadbike and like a lot. Does anyone have any thoughts - and also are there any others I should be looking at. I would prefer to spend less, but I guess you get what you pay for and therefore a drop in the budget may reduce the quality etc. The CDF is down to £900 at Evans.

The surfaces I ride on are normally tarmac, but they are very wet and a lot of gravel/muck in winter. Would I better off continuing with my 23c roadbike and simply wear it out sooner, or would a CX bike be abetter bet, or maybe just a cheaper winter road/training bike.

 

[barnesy]

I have a full carbon road bike, but want to carry on riding through winter without wrecking the thing. To this end I was thinking of a cyclocross bike which can hold mudguards, might have discs and is a bit more robust.

Looking at reviews both the Boardman CX Pro and Genesis Croix de Fer get good reviews. The boardmans always get very good write-ups, but doesn't have discs unlike the CDF. However, the Boardman has SRAM Rival gears which I have on my roadbike and like a lot. Does anyone have any thoughts - and also are there any others I should be looking at. I would prefer to spend less, but I guess you get what you pay for and therefore a drop in the budget may reduce the quality etc. The CDF is down to £900 at Evans.

The surfaces I ride on are normally tarmac, but they are very wet and a lot of gravel/muck in winter. Would I better off continuing with my 23c roadbike and simply wear it out sooner, or would a CX bike be abetter bet, or maybe just a cheaper winter road/training bike.

I have neither bike but the CDF can take full guards which can be a real benefit in the winter, nobody wants crap road spray in your face or on your back. The disc breaks are also going to stop you alot better in the wet which could come in handy.

I like the look of the boardmans and they get good reviews, and you are already used to the shifting system of the rival gears.

Have you considered the Verenti Kilmeston from wiggle, it has a rival groupset and guards, i was looking into this for a good winter/commuting bike. There are also the boardman hybrid pros fi you dont mind flat bars, again with SRAM and avid elixir hydraulic discs

 

[sayek1]

Hi Barnsey,

Thanks for the response - the pros/cons you highlight are exactly as I see them. Regards the Boardman Hybrid, I have one of these already which I would be selling to fund the purchase - whilst it is a good bike I want to stick to drop bars - having converted to a road bike in about March I now see the advantages and like the riding position etc. Whenever I get back on my hybrid it just doesn't feel right. I have about an hours commute each way which this would be used for

I guess the key question is the brakes - will there be a big difference between discs and the canti-levers. I would say definitely between my current road bike and hybrid, but am maybe thinking that on the cx it might not be so noticeable - I have no reason for this view so would appreciate anyones thoughts who has tried both.

Thanks

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I have a Verenti Kilmeston and they are way to nice for a commuter, but, at the moment they have several ex demonstraters for sale at a good price reduction. http://www.wiggle.co...emo/5360051814/

 

[sayek1]

I have a Verenti Kilmeston and they are way to nice for a commuter, but, at the moment they have several ex demonstraters for sale at a good price reduction. http://www.wiggle.co...emo/5360051814/

Hi dave,

What size wheeles/tyres are they - website says 35mm, but I thought they were 23/25mm?

 

[primalgeek]

I have a CdF as my commuter and think it's an awesome bike and would recommend it to anyone. However since I bought it there are a couple of more options out there that are worth considering (cx type with disc brakes). Both these bikes come with 8 speed hubs (worthwhile in a winter bike?)

Genesis Day One Alfine (new for 2011) or One One Pompetamine Versa. I haven't ridden either of these bikes but seem to tick all boxes for my ulitimate winter bike so perhaps worth a look.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Hi dave,

What size wheeles/tyres are they - website says 35mm, but I thought they were 23/25mm?

35 mm is the rim size, they come with 700cx23 Vittoria Diamante Pro tyres, I changed mine to 700cx25 bontrager racelite hardcases for more puncture protection.

 

[HJ]

I have a full carbon road bike, but want to carry on riding through winter without wrecking the thing. To this end I was thinking of a cyclocross bike which can hold mudguards, might have discs and is a bit more robust.

Looking at reviews both the Boardman CX Pro and Genesis Croix de Fer get good reviews. The boardmans always get very good write-ups, but doesn't have discs unlike the CDF. However, the Boardman has SRAM Rival gears which I have on my roadbike and like a lot. Does anyone have any thoughts - and also are there any others I should be looking at. I would prefer to spend less, but I guess you get what you pay for and therefore a drop in the budget may reduce the quality etc. The CDF is down to £900 at Evans.

The surfaces I ride on are normally tarmac, but they are very wet and a lot of gravel/muck in winter. Would I better off continuing with my 23c roadbike and simply wear it out sooner, or would a CX bike be abetter bet, or maybe just a cheaper winter road/training bike.

The Genesis Croix de Fer would be a good choice for your expressed needs, just swap the tyres for slicks it can take a 23mm tyre if you want to stay that narrow...