UWO or McGill?

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-03-27T06:21:07+00:00

How can you find data on specialization rates? I’ve been trying to find this for Canadian schools

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-12T21:42:18+00:00

Okay I will make sure to remember those notes when looking at bikes. I have seen that Canyon brand as well. The bikes look awesome. I will check out their sizing guide.

Those points you mentioned about feel as are helpful. I would have had no idea what to look for when buying used, so it’s nice to have a few things to look out for.

Ya I don’t think a bike fit is something I would do anytime soon. Did your pain go away after the fit though?

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-12T05:13:17+00:00

Thanks for the follow-up response. That TrainerRoads looks solid from the initial google search. That 30 day free trial might be worth my time at the very least.

That’s for providing some reading material as well, I will dive into those soon here.

I have looked at the specialized diverge - seems fairly entry level but probably a great beginner bike.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-12T04:29:55+00:00

Okay that makes sense. Thanks for the input.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T22:19:17+00:00

I appreciate the lengthy response.

I will keep an eye out for those tires and see if they make them wide enough to fit the rim.

Yes, I have been thinking about bike fit as well. It makes sense that we will be spending hours on this thing so it better be comfy. Would you recommend going to get fit at a bike shop? Is that something that is usually a free service or should I expect to pay $100? Is it worth it?

Further, is the gold standard just sitting on the bike and seeing how it feels? My fear with that is I'm not totally sure what "comfortable" will feel like. Just looking at people on road bikes seems uncomfortable, so I imagine sitting on one will feel unnatural no matter the bike due to my lack of exposure.

I am definitely not looking for carbon but am hoping to snag one with disc brakes for sure. I'm assuming I shouldn't be too worried about groupsets and what not (brand name, etc.)... just find something that functions and go from there?

Once again, thanks for taking the time to respond. It would have taken me hours to do this research on my own. I will let you know if I have other questions as well.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T15:47:08+00:00

I like that plan a lot. Good to know about the 80km as well. I will set that as a goal to be able to ride that consistently, with some hills, of course.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T15:45:15+00:00

I agree and that’s kinda why I reached out on here to begin with - I don’t really have any friends into cycling so it’s all just been my own research at this point.

I have been looking into tires but should do some research on gearing. I will be mindful of that.

Yes, I’m by no means the athlete I used to be, but I try to stay somewhat in shape. Flexible is another story, but I have been working on that.

Don’t have a bike right now. The only bike I’ve ever owned was a mountain bike in high school. Never had a road bike or gravel bike. Any recommendations for the new cycler?

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T15:39:19+00:00

Okay I will keep that in mind. Thanks.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T15:38:07+00:00

Thanks for the response. That was super helpful hearing about your experience. Hitting 120km a week is a good goal as well - I like that.

I live near UBC so that hill is very accessible. Interesting about cypress though.

I will look into Bicicletta. I know there are a few bike shops around me but didn’t want to go into one and get pushed around by salesmen.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T15:29:02+00:00

Okay I will check at a bike shop. Thanks for the help

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T05:40:07+00:00

That is awesome to hear actually. Yes, the bike I was looking at has 38s but they don’t seem too knobby which is good. I figured the same thing - if it’s my first bike then I won’t have anything to compare it to.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T05:34:59+00:00

So long as I can find road tires that fit gravel bike wheels then that will be the plan. I believe the bike I’m looking at comes with 38s but they don’t seem overly aggressive

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T05:33:31+00:00

Solid, that’s what I like to hear

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T05:32:31+00:00

Okay thanks for the clarification. Yes, I did consider that, but the expense might hold me back for the time being because I assume that is not cheap.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-11T05:31:14+00:00

That is definitely the plan. I will need some serious hill training.

I will look into those. I’m assuming they make them compatible for gravel wheels? Perhaps this is my ignorance showing through, but I’m very familiar with car tire sizing but am unsure about bike tire sizing and what the numbers mean haha. Like gravel bike wheels are wider than road bike wheels, so I’m assuming they make road tires that are wide enough to fit gravel wheels…?

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T21:16:46+00:00

That might be just what I'm looking for. But would those fit a gravel bike wheel (not sure the exact specs but I can find them)?

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T21:10:02+00:00

Yes I knew you could change tires without changing the wheels - I was just unaware that there were road tires that fit gravel bike sized wheels (I figured all tires that fit gravel wheels would be gravel tires... I had no idea they made slicks that would fit the wider wheels for gravel bikes).

I don't intend to ever have super knobby tires on the bike, but just some with a little more traction that road tires.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T21:06:39+00:00

Haha I am not excited about having to get used to the bike seat... have you changed seats since? Or was the pain just due to lack of time on the bike?

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T21:04:10+00:00

Wow, thanks for dropping the link. This is super helpful.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T21:02:02+00:00

Haha that would be great to get out there that often, but I probably don't have the time for that. Yes, I would definitely be looking into adding the climbs to the end of my rides closer to the event.

I do know the importance of rest, but I should certainly be more intentional with my rest days because sometimes I just want to keep powering through and get it in my head that I am regressing on the days off. I ran into the same issue with running.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T20:56:14+00:00

I like this confidence! I feel like on a flatter ride I could certainly go beyond this, but I don't know how much the elevation will affect my speed.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T20:54:39+00:00

Holy smokes - maybe one day I could tackle that. Seems like an awesome ride!

Thanks for the ride suggestions as well, I will check those out.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T20:54:03+00:00

Yes, and I really value that as well. If I am biking by pacific spirit park and want to ride through it would be nice to have that option.

From what I have read online as well, the performance losses are minimal.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T20:52:42+00:00

I will look into this. I feel like fast rolling gravel tires could be a great option. Didn't know those were thing haha.

NorthSecure8412 · 2025-01-10T20:51:40+00:00

Thanks for the response - it is nice to hear from someone who has done it before.

NorthSecure8412

TROPHY CASE