# Felt road bike or cross bike for casual weekend rider?



## sparafucile (Aug 14, 2014)

I am a new(er) rider that falls under the casual category. Basically I cycle for fitness primarily but do enjoy the occasional charity ride or grand fondo. I ride 2 weekdays for about 1hr each and do a longer 2.5hr ride on weekends. The roads I encounter are in Michigan and are generally flat with some small hills every so often. Also the roads are terrible with many potholes. I will not be racing so getting the absolute fastest time possible is not important. But I would aspire to a century ride in the next couple of years.

My existing bike is a piece of junk hybrid that I bought from a big-box store (the first step is admitting you made a mistake, right?) So I have no experience on a REAL bike.

The question is should I go with a road bike like Felt Z5 with 28mm tires or a cross bike like F65X with road tires/wheelset? Let's put the whole carbon vs. aluminum debate off the table. For someone who is new to road cycling and is more of a casual rider looking for some distance training... what is your advice? Comfort is very important in making this decision.

I don't mind having two wheelsets, it might actually be a good thing so I can do some riding during Michigan winters. 

Thanks,
Jeff


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## MikeinJax (Aug 10, 2014)

Hey Jeff,

I bought a 2014 Z85 in May and love it. I ride a similar pattern with similar objectives as you putting 80-100 miles/week on the bike and training to do the MS150 in Sept. Everyone is different but I'm very comfortable on the bike and much prefer it to a more aggressive geometry bike. I could be wrong but I believe the Z85 is the same geometry as the Z5 with similar components.

Hopefully you have a lbs nearby that will fit you and let you test ride both bikes for an hour or so ride each. You should have a pretty good idea what feels good after that. 

Good luck.


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## Superdave3T (May 11, 2009)

sparafucile said:


> I am a new(er) rider that falls under the casual category. Basically I cycle for fitness primarily but do enjoy the occasional charity ride or grand fondo. I ride 2 weekdays for about 1hr each and do a longer 2.5hr ride on weekends. The roads I encounter are in Michigan and are generally flat with some small hills every so often. Also the roads are terrible with many potholes. I will not be racing so getting the absolute fastest time possible is not important. But I would aspire to a century ride in the next couple of years.
> 
> My existing bike is a piece of junk hybrid that I bought from a big-box store (the first step is admitting you made a mistake, right?) So I have no experience on a REAL bike.
> 
> ...


Jeff,

Small world! I was born in Detroit, Michigan and know the perils of riding the poor roads. The Z85 is a good suggestion but for a little more robust ride with the option for fenders or huge (35mm+) tires, take a look at our new *V*85. This is the bike I'd recommend. Our cyclo-cross bikes are purpose built for cross and would require some component swaps to make them a more utilitarian road bike. The V-series is your bike.

-SD


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## chudak (Jul 28, 2012)

sparafucile said:


> The question is should I go with a road bike like Felt Z5 with 28mm tires


I have 25's on my Z4. Depending on the make of tire you may not have the clearance to put 28's. I'm running Conti GP 4000s and there isn't a whole lot of additional clearance between the tire and the rear brake bridge.


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## sparafucile (Aug 14, 2014)

SuperdaveFelt said:


> Jeff,
> 
> Small world! I was born in Detroit, Michigan and know the perils of riding the poor roads. The Z85 is a good suggestion but for a little more robust ride with the option for fenders or huge (35mm+) tires, take a look at our new *V*85. This is the bike I'd recommend. Our cyclo-cross bikes are purpose built for cross and would require some component swaps to make them a more utilitarian road bike. The V-series is your bike.
> 
> -SD



Thanks for the feedback Dave! Is there more information about the V85? I know the website doesn't go live for another 2 weeks or so, but I'm curious if there are specs for the V85 such as drivetrain, wheels, etc. I can see the 2015 Z series on the website but not the V-series.  From what I have read from press releases, it sounds like the V85 is trying to bridge the gap from a daily commuter and sport rider... is that right? Based on my description above, I think I may fall into that category because I'm not interested in racing but still want something that allows me to use on charity rides (30mi, 60mi, or even 100mi).

Do you still think this bike hits that sweet spot?

Also, what component swaps would be required for the cyclo-cross bikes? I've been reading alot of articles that say you just need to swap the wheelset and tires and you can have a bike that is road-ready. The appealing part of this is that I could have an offroad and road wheelset to swap between. There is one gravel ride event that I might like to do one day and think the cyclo-cross bike might enable that. Or I just have to buy a MTB for that one...

Thoughts?

Jeff


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## sparafucile (Aug 14, 2014)

Dave,

Any word on the V85 availability? It's looking like late September when I talk to my local shop in Allen Park. I'm getting a bit antsy here waiting and I'm wondering if the cross bikes are that much different than the V85.

For example, given that I'm looking for a bike to handle the crappy roads of Michigan, what are the differences between the V85 and the F65x? 

I'm thinking that I could go with the F65x now and just buy a 28mm wheelset to swap out into depending on the weather conditions (summer = roadset, fall/winter = crossset). But I'm worried that the F65x might be more "racy" and alot less comfortable. I personally like that the V85 seems to geared to non-race guys like myself.

Thoughts?

Jeff


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## Superdave3T (May 11, 2009)

sparafucile said:


> Dave,
> 
> Any word on the V85 availability? It's looking like late September when I talk to my local shop in Allen Park. I'm getting a bit antsy here waiting and I'm wondering if the cross bikes are that much different than the V85.
> 
> ...


The guys at Roll Models are right, we'll see the first V-series bikes after Interbike toward the end of September.

You are correct that the F65x is more geared to cyclo-cross racing with geo that suits that endeavor. The V-series offers the tire clearance but a much more upright fit, rack/fender eyelets, and wide-range road gearing.
I would not advise you buy an F65x.

-Dave


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## sparafucile (Aug 14, 2014)

SuperdaveFelt said:


> The guys at Roll Models are right, we'll see the first V-series bikes after Interbike toward the end of September.
> 
> You are correct that the F65x is more geared to cyclo-cross racing with geo that suits that endeavor. The V-series offers the tire clearance but a much more upright fit, rack/fender eyelets, and wide-range road gearing.
> I would not advise you buy an F65x.
> ...


OK, so what I'm hearing is that I should be patient and wait... (sigh) OK, I guess I can try to be a grown-up for a month. :cryin: Thanks for the advice Dave!

Jeff


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