- Oh! Modern motivators, just done two of 10 intervals
above the FTP for three minutes, it's gonna be saucy.
So I might as well set up here I have a tri bike,
Canyon, CF 8 Disc, great bike.
But as you are thinking about possibly getting
into triathlon, you might be wondering,
do you need this six, $7,000 bike or the $15,000 bikes
that you see in transition.
The answer is no, but there are a heck of a lot of fun,
so if you are thinking, about getting a tri bike,
I'm gonna give you some guidelines, for what to look for,
and really, what to avoid to make sure you don't waste
a bunch of money or get a bike that is really sub optimal.
Oh! Just eight more, three minute efforts, easy.
(exclaims) Done, done done done.
Puffy, the first thing to know when you're considering
a tri bike is really, should you actually get a tri bike?
Now, there's a Canyon Speedmax and I love it,
and I race on triathlon bikes,
and most people who do triathlons race on triathlon bikes
that's what you're going to see in transition,,
but, the question about whether or not you should even get
a triathlon bike is the first thing you need to think about.
And the answer to that is probably not what you think.
If you're just thinking about doing a triathlon
and seeing what it's like,
don't bother getting a triathlon bike,
unless money is absolutely no concern.
The reason for that, is that a tri bike
is a very very specific bike.
You can't really use it very well in group rides,
it's not very comfortable to be on.
It's really only used even in my case,
in the last three months in preparation, before a race,
most of the year, I'm on a road bike or a gravel bike.
So to make a tri bike your only bike,
if you are just getting into the sport,
might just be a waste of money,
because you might not use it as much
and then if you end up going to sell it,
it's gonna be much harder to sell,
than any of those other bikes.
But the time that you should get a tri bike,
is when you've already done a race or, money is no option,
or, you've done some races and you know
you're going to be committed to tri for a very long time.
Then, and only then, should you consider getting a tri bike?
The next thing to consider if you're thinking about
getting a tri bike is, price point.
Most people buying their first tri bike
are looking at the $3,000 and under, tri bike.
At this price point, you're not really getting
a whole lot of bike.
You're not getting very good components,
you're not getting a very good frame,
you're not getting a very good wheel set,
you're not getting a very good bike.
You're also getting a bike that is of a quality that,
a huge amount of beginner triathletes buy and then resell.
The market is going to be flooded with bikes of that budget,
and it's gonna be hard to actually get any,
of your money back.
I made this mistake getting a $2,000 road bike thinking,
"Hey, now got a really good road bike."
And then I ended up selling it for about 400 bucks
just 18 months later, because it was so entry-level.
So at that $3,000 under price point,
I actually recommend that you get a used tri bike.
And the reason for that is you're going to be able to get
a tri bike that is in that, like five to $6,000
kinda new range and somebody else has paid the depreciation,
and then there's not going to be a whole lot
of depreciation left.
You might be able to sell that 18 to 24 months later
for almost as much as you bought it for.
So in that entry-level $3,000 and under price point,
hey, I love you Canyon, but, I'd probably say,
try to get a better quality used bike.
What does better quality mean? Well, it really,
starts and ends with groupsets when it comes to bike.
That's the main front chain ring, the crank arms,
the shifters, the brakes, all of this is the groupset.
The parts that make the bike go, is the groupset
or the groupo.
Entry-level try-on road bikes are typically going to have
a Shimano 105 groupset.
This isn't what you want, this is bottom of the barrel.
They're perfectly fine and I've actually qualified for
a world championships racing on a Shimano 105,
but the issue with it is that, when you want to upgrade
from that bike and I guarantee you,
there's only two ways that it goes with your first bike
it's either you buy an upgraded model,
or you sell it and stop riding.
So in either case you're getting rid of the bike,
and it's going to be much easier to sell that bike
if you have a higher end groupset,
that means Shimano Ultegra, Shimano Dura-Ace,
SRAM Force, SRAM Red.
All of these groupsets are going to hold their value
a lot more, and when people are looking at buying your bike,
they're going to be looking for that type of quality.
Final little bonus tip about the group set,
if you're looking at a used road bike,
and the chain ring on the front,
and the cassette on the back,
and the chain are just dead black,
that means that the person hasn't maintained
their bike whatsoever.
You want a bike that is still fairly gray,
that looks like steel, not black gunk.
Let's talk about how much you're going to spend
if it is in that $3,000 or under price point,
you're going to have a situation where the front end
of your bike and the saddle,
might need a fair bit of work to be customized.
I guarantee you that if you spend another three to $500
to get a really nice set of elbow pads, Aerobar extensions,
risers underneath the elbow pads, a nice saddle,
and you dial in that position
so that's really really comfortable,
and as you adapt to it, it's as enjoyable to ride
in that Aero position as it is on a road bike.
You're going to perform way better,
than if you spent another three, four, $5,000
and didn't have a position that you were comfortable in.
So, almost no matter what I would recommend,
that, you get that front end position dialed in,
but if you were in that $3,000 or under price point,
a lot of those bikes don't come
with a customizable front end,
so don't blow all your money on just the bike
and set aside just a little bit extra to make sure,
that you can get a really nice
customizable front end and seat,
that's gonna make you way faster.
I would even put more money into that, than I would
upgrading from say, Shimano Ultegra to Shimano Dura-Ace,
the more you know.
And finally, let's say you do have a little bit more budget,
you're in the five to $7,000 range and wondering,
if that's going to be enough bike to be happy
for a long period of time.
The answer is yes.
Once you get to the point that you have a nice groupset,
that you have a triathlon frame,
that you have a seat that you're comfortable in,
a front end, that you're comfortable in,
you eventually upgrade to deep section wheels
and you have an Aero helmet, that's about it.
That's most of the benefit you're going to get
from a tri bike.
And you can get all of that, for that $7,000
and under kind of range.
Then why do the $15,000 bikes exist?
Well, there are some small luxuries.
The integrations are a little bit cleaner.
The storage of your flat repair kit of your nutrition
is a little bit cleaner.
The shifting is maybe just marginally better.
It's maybe just a couple of watts, if that faster,
but it's a really luxurious purchase
to think that you're not just going to spend $7,000,
you're gonna spend $15,000 for that upgraded bike,
where the performance improvements are really marginal,
and only makes sense if money is absolutely no object
and all of those upgrades would just make you happy.
Or if you're a very very competitive athlete
and saving that extra 45 to 60 seconds over the course
of a half Ironman, is going to make a difference from you.
Otherwise, at $7,000, which is what this bike is,
you have most of the bike you will ever need, for triathlon.
So motivators, I hope this helped you choose
your first triathlon bike.
I am sponsored by Canyon and I love Canyon
personally, I think that it is the best value per dollar
they make a fantastic bike, and on average,
I find it costing about a 1000 to $1,500 less,
so definitely check out Canyon.
But really any brand of triathlon bike is going to have
those same principles that I outlined here.
So happy shopping, good luck,
I hope you have a fantastic new bike day.
And if you found this video helpful,
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