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Love questions like this and I'm sure others do. It's like virtual shopping without spending any money!
Unless you know how to fix everything on your own bike, are fully committed to road cycling and looking after the bike, I'd look for a bike with an aluminium frame and a carbon fork as you're less likely to damage it by overtightening something or knocking a hole in the frame with a lock etc. Unless you plan on racing in the future, I'd get something with disc brakes (not currently allowed in road racing).
Check out bikes with a shimano 105 groupset (shimano ultegra is higher spec but it's better for your budget to go on a good frame than better components as they can always be upgraded later). Other groupset manufacturers are available but shimano is the most widely available so better for sourcing replacements.
It's important for morale to have a bike you like the look of but, unfortunately, a bike which fits well will mean you enjoy riding it more so try to get a few test rides in on different bikes and find out what you are comfortable with in terms of size and shape.
All bikes at this budget will come with cheap stock wheels so you might want to consider spending £1000 on the bike and use the remainder for some better wheels. You may also want a saddle which fits you better, some bib shorts, gloves (assuming you already have a helmet!), tyres, pedals, shoes, cleats and of course ICC membership ;-)
Pretty much anything can be upgraded if, in the future your interest in road cycling reaches the obsessive level that we are all guilty of.
Finally, welcome! Look forward to meeting you and your new bike.
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SamuelD
Hi all, hope you don't mind me posting in this forum for a bit of advice...
Hoping to one day join you all on the roads, but for now that will be tricky - I only have a Trek hybrid. While it's certainly more than capable for the sportives I do, it's not really a group bike! So, time to upgrade and throw some money around, I figure... but I'm a little torn on exactly where that money should go. I'm looking for recommendations on both bike shops in London that can give me good advice and options, and also bike recommendations in general.
A little about me:
I'm fairly new to road cycling - I got into it this year and have seriously caught the bug. These days a typical ride is about 3-4 hours and 40-60 miles. I'm getting more and more into sportives as well. I'm looking for a bike that is going to let me push myself, but will also remain comfortable for more leisurely rides - I tend to also enjoy a slower ride some non-serious cycling groups for social events.
Currently, I've got somewhat convinced that I want a Canyon because a) they look gorgeous but more importantly b) the spec seems killer for the price. I've also considered a Canondale CAAD. Beyond that, I'm not sure where to even beginning looking.
I think I'd like a carbon frame, but honestly not sure about the exact pros and cons.
What would you suggest? My budget is roughly £1500, which seems reasonable for a first road bike - I'm willing to go higher though if it's worth it. Will also be spending whatever it takes to get a good quality fitting done (I'm in London, so if you have suggestions, I'm all ears!)
Let me know if there's any more info that could help :) I'll be popping down to Swift Cycles this weekend hopefully, so we'll see what they say.