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Good Evening All,

Whilst I used to ride a bike on a regular basis around 15 years ago, I have no real knowledge of bikes.

I recently completed a Wiggle Ride, that my friends signed me up for, in Calais (50 miles) - half on a Giant hybrid heavy bike and half on a loaned carbon road bike (I still have pain thinking about that ride!)

That ride in Calais has prompted me to: 1. Buy a new lightweight bike. 2. Commute to work on a bike. 3. Get back out in the weekends and go on some on and some off road adventures.

Based on the three points above, I have been told a cyclocross or a road bike adventure would be the best fit.

I hope to purchase the bike via my cycle to work scheme and therefore have up to 1k to use from this scheme but I am happy to pay upfront an additional £500, taking the full cost to £1500.

A few friends, that are far more knowledgeable than I am, said the following brands are the main ones I should be looking for:

  1. Giant
  2. Specialized
  3. Canondale

What would you all recommend in terms of make, model, group and type of bike?

Thanks in advance for your time and help :)

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    Specific product recommendations are off topic here, so your question will likely be deleted. There are many more brands worth looking at too (you really just need to test ride as many as possible). Just a few other brands are: Trek, Canyon, Orbea, Jamis, Marin, Felt, Scott, Bianchi, Cervelo, etc. (there are many more). Go test ride! That's the best way to find out what is right for you! – renesis Jul 5 '18 at 22:24
  • Brands matter less than you think. The main need is a bike that is comfortable for you now. That may change as your fitness improves, but for now a rigid commuter bike is probably ideal. Don't disregard used bikes either. – Criggie♦ Jul 6 '18 at 0:30
  • Also, please read the tour to see what's on topic and what is not. When you get a little more rep then the Bicycles Chat is a good option for less-structured discussion. – Criggie♦ Jul 6 '18 at 0:40
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Congratulations on the 50 miles and deciding to get back into the sport.

An 'adventure' bike is probably a good choice for getting back on a bike if you want a road style bike (i.e. one with drop handlebars) that can take on some rough road surfaces and is comfortable to ride.

The characteristics you want to look for are:

  • More relaxed riding position (compared to road racing bikes)
  • Tire width 28 - 32mm
  • Disc brakes
  • 'Compact' (50/34 tooth chainrings) or subcompact (48/32) drivetrain.

Adventure bikes have a lot in common with cyclocross bikes but are not quite the same. Cyclocross bikes tend to have more aggressive riding position and often a single chainring.

All the large manufactures have adventure bikes in their ranges. The budget you mention will get you solid alloy framed bike. You should definitely spend some time looking around at different bikes and do lots of test rides.

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    For an adventure bike i'd actually be on the lookout for a subcompact (48/32, 46/30) chainset. The vast majority of riders don't need a 50/11 but could certainly benefit from 30/32 for climbing. – Andy P Jul 6 '18 at 13:59
  • @AndyP I think the depends on how far over towards the 'gravel' side of adventure you want to be, how hilly the area is and how strong the rider is. If mostly on road with some hills 50/34 11-[28...32] is fine. If off-road gravel is the target I'd definitely consider 48/32 chainrings. – Argenti Apparatus Jul 6 '18 at 14:05
  • @AndyP Also, my intention was to recommend a compact double over a 1x drivetrain. – Argenti Apparatus Jul 6 '18 at 15:19

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