# New Felt Z100 - My First 8 Miles



## MRM1

As of Thursday my debate was between the Trek 1.2, MotoBecane Record (online) or the Felt Z100. All 3 are entry level bikes .... I know ... But I am totally new to road bikes and have been riding my Haro V3 Hard tail with slicks on the road regularly to stay in shape for MTB rides. I had ask for some opinions in the Beginners forum, but did not get much response. But I had ridden a few bikes in this range and really liked everything about the Felt.

I bit the bullet yesterday and went for the *2008 Felt Z100*. The Shop had no 2009's but this '08 was $100 less and I like the '08 colors better. The new 2009 colors just did not look as nice IMO.

Overall, I think I got a decent deal. No steal, but got out the door for $650 (MSRP was $679). Component group is Sora - I know ... entry level, but good enough for my needs. Ramping on the chain rings is a bit slow going up, but it just needs some adjustment I think.

Here are some pics. First one is from the Felt Site, Next 2 are of mine:


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## MRM1

*First Ride*

So took the Felt out this morning for the first time. It was Cloudy and Windy with light Mist Rain. I have a little 8 mile ride I do 3 or 4 times a week right now and had been riding this on my Haro V3 MTB for the past 2 months.

WOW ! - Overall the Felt Z100 ride was night and day difference from the Haro V3. Even though the Haro has a decent front shock, but the ride seemed to bet me less on the Felt. My hands did not get sore and my overall ride was much more enjoyable. 

I did not think I would like to ride in the drops because I am not very flexible and thought this would put undo pressure on my shoulders which often burn on long MTB rides, but everytime I turned into the wind or started going down hill, _*To the Drops I Went*_ ! What a blast. Speed to Effort ratio went way up.

I started off from the beginning with a flat road cruising speed of about 17 mph, which is up about 3 mph over the MTB. Of coarse that fell off as it always does, but over all I was faster. 

How much faster? Well, my best ride ever on the MTB was Oct 9th - I did the 8 miles in 31:51 minutes with an average speed of 14.5. For the same run today on the Felt the time went down to 29:10 minutes and the average speed went up to 15.8. The wind today was pretty stronge and on my longest down hill it was right in my face. This down hill was were I hit the fast ever road ride speed on the MTB at 30.6. On the same hill on the Felt today with the wind in my face at about 10mph my top speed was 31.2 mph without trying.


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## jhamlin38

the benefits of your road bike v mountain bike are too numerous to name, while riding on the pavement, anyway.
With a proper fit/position, you have several more hand positions with drop bars, v straight mtn bars. This relieves your upper body muscles alot..
If this fits properly, you should be able to enjoy the drops also. As you become more fit, you should consider making slight adjustments to your position. I usually go up and back incrementally with my seat/post, and also removed a small spacer under the stem, resulting in a far more aero, and efficient position. What program/computer do you use to render the graph/maps you display?


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## MRM1

The data is collected with a Garmin Edge 305 Bike PC / Heart Rate Monitor - I have the Power/Cadence too, but have not set it up on this bike yet.

I have been using Sport Tracks since mid Sept 08 to store and display the data for analysis and review. This is a nice program and is free to try it. Click on any point on the map and it will tell me the time, HR, Speed etc at that very spot. Way more analysis tools than what is displayed in the pics above. It will record the miles used on each piece of equiptment for each ride too . MTB, Rd Bike, Gloves, Garmin, Etc. Kind of nice for servicing.

I then used Windows Vista Snipping tool (found in the accessories) to grab a screen shot of the data in Sport Tracks and save it as a JPG.

Here is a shot of a trail ride I did a few weeks ago. As you can see, there is different data in the SUMMARY veiw from the WORKOUT VIEW. But Note the Equiptment Section. Miles on Each piece to date thru this ride.


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## MRM1

*What's Up with This Felt's Paint Job ??*

Well for me it is Official. The Finish on this Felt is not very good.

I now have a grand total of 3 nice scratches on the bike. A pretty big deal considering it is Midnight Blue and under the paint is aluminum. So they show pretty badly

- One was due to loading. Probably would have scrached any bike
- The next occured on the work stand. Again, this may have scratched any bike, but it seemed to come off pretty easy
- The last one came when the top tube bumped a wood pole in may car port. This would NOT have scratch any other bike I have had. 

Good news, A blue sharpie marker covers it up pretty good.


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## MRM1

*Up to 32 Miles*

Have had 4 rides in short 8 mile hops = Logged 32 miles to date.

So far I like the bike very much. Obviously an entry level bike. But a solid ride (except for the noted paint scratching). Keep in mind I was previously riding a Haro V3 1998 MTB with slicks for my "road ride". From the beginning my riding feel, comfort and speed have all increased. My average speed increased 1.6 mph over the MTB.

After tweaking, the bike rides & shiifts nice and smooth. There was some rub in the Frt DR in the middle ring when shifting thru the 8 in the rear, but got that out. Cannot use more than 4 or 5rear in either the Hi or low Chainrings without Frt Dr rub. But I expected a little of that. Have tried multiple adjustments, plus reposition of the DR. Have split the diff on the top ring as I mostly ride middle and top - rarely shifing into the granny.

Sora shifters work OK. Rear is solid, Front takes a "Double Pump" to move it from the middle to the upper Chainring - meaning first I click the index, it raddles and then I have to "pull" the chain up with the shifter. maybe the shop can work this out. Maybe that is the way Sora's are?

So after nearly a week, I am please with the buy. It was everything I was hoping for in a road bike. Has exceeded my expectations.


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## jhamlin38

It sounds like the front der limit screw may need a smidge of a counterclockwise turn, and also sounds like the cable may be too loose. 
i'm suprised you only gained 1 mph over the mountain bike. I woulda thought it would be more like 4-5mph. 

As for your rides, you may want to try to do the loop 3 times. I find that it takes me 15-20 minutes just to get warmed up. enjoy


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## Ichijin

What work stand is that? I really want one where u don't have to clamp a part of the bike to bring it up

Oh and how come your Z100 looks different than the Z100 in the picture from the website? (the seatstay connects to the top tube in yours and doesn't on the website pics)


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## MRM1

Stand is an old Spin Doctor (now availble as the Spin Doc II). But look at it closely. The means of suppot comes from the Bottom bracket. If your cables route under the BB they may get restricted in this stand. Looking at the new II version pics, they may have cupped / redesigned the BB holder to allow from cable movement.

Also, this stand does not work well with my MTB due to the frame design. No where to clip on the down tube due to the suspension design.











******************

*As to the seatstay*, I think the web pic is of a taller frame. Mine is a 56 mm. I think the taller it goes the taller the seat tube, but the seats stay and chain stay keep the same length - thus the connection point of the seat stay to seat tub gets lower than the top tube connection point.


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## MRM1

Last week I finally got some Shoes that fit my Wide Feet. I had tried several different ones, and all hurt my feet. I found the Lake MX 101 SPD shoes that come in a wide width and decided to order a pair and give them a try.

About the MX 101s: 
- First of all the wide width offered by Lake is still not really standard wide width in the MX101. Wide for my size 10.5 (44.5) shoe size should be 4.3 inches according to this US Mens Width Chart. The MX 101 Wide Width measures 3.5 inches at the widest point. So I would hate to see what the normal width would be like
- BUT, the toe box is nice and roomy. And has a good bit of up and down space as well as width. This was what was lacking in my Cannodale shoes.
- Other than that, I like the shoe very much.

I got these shoes for both road and Mt biking. I am using Shimano PD-M 520's on both bikes with the Shimano SM-SH 56 Multi Release Cleats. These release from about any direction and the combo of peddle, shoe and cleat is very nice.


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## Gdavis

*Trek 1.2 (bought 1 in May this year)*

The Trek 1.2 also has Sora shifters and I do not have any of the problems that you are listing..so it has to be adjustments. One of the noted things that they did for my front deraileur was to move it "up" on the tube about 1/2 inch and then readjust. It has worked flawlessly for me from day one.
I absolutely love my Trek! It rides very well and is very responsive...it runs...it cruises..and it's fast! I too am surprised that you are only gaining a 1.8 mph increase from an MTB to a Road Bike. What concerns me about this..did you have the bike fit? Usually a small increase like this indicates a loss of power. (I say that from experience).
Mine is also aluminum, but I haven't had any paint chips, etc., off the frame. Do you happen to know what that weight of the bike is?..just curious. I also have a carbon front fork which is great at absorbing road shock and accounts for a small weight reduction. Please provide some more info.

Thanks!

Gary


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## MRM1

As to Weight .... the Ye Ol' Big Bathroom scale has it at 21.7 lbs.

As to fit, yes it was a bike shop fit. I take an upright position due to my back, but this is on both bikes. The limited increase in speed may be due to the Mt Bk being set up for street. Had semi-slicks on it at 65lbs.

I did take my most recent and best time on the FELT so far and compared it to the best time on the Mt Bike on the same loop and my average speed is up 2.6 mph over the Mt Bike now. 13.8 ave up to 16.4 ave mph speed.

The paint was probably my own doing coupled with perhaps a slightly less than durable paint job. But have not developed any chips/nicks since.

With the front DR, this may have been a learning curve as I now just give it one long pump and its up to the top. But it does not work via the single click as the shift from low to mid does. When you say they raised your DR up the Seatpost how far off the top chain ring is the lowest point of the DR in reference to the top chain ring. Parks Tools site shows that this should be about the wide of a penny. Are you indicating yours is much higher than this?


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## Gdavis

From the largest chain ring...to the TOP MOST (silver part) of the DR is exactly 2.5 inches. Does that make sense? It is the actual bracket that clamps onto the seatpost. I have yet to have any issues with mine.


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## MRM1

Is that messured from the highest tooth and tip of that tooth? Did you see the link and pic to the Parks tool site I posted? So yours is higher than that?


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## Gdavis

I looked at the photos. Mine looks to be about (2) pennys. It measures at exactly 1/8 inch from the tip of any tooth. Funny thing is..when the mechanic made the adjustment for me on the day I bought, it was strictly an eyeball thing. He must have been a good one. But truthfully, at over 1,000 miles since I bought it in May, it seems to shift better all the time. Maybe I'm just lucky.
Good Luck..and let me know if that works out for you.


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## MRM1

Yes I may try raising it up, but I agree, it seems to be getting better and better at shifing all the time.

Gdavis, you asked what the Felt weighed (21.7 lbss). What does the Trek Weigh? I had looked at that bike too before buying the Felt.


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## Gdavis

Right at 20. A 52cm frame.


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## MRM1

Oh Yea, Mines be a 56 cm


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## Gdavis

Well, looks like they are about the same. Good luck if you make any adjustments. Just keep us posted as to what works.


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## MRM1

Well I made no other adjustments. I said above, I had it pretty well dialed in except the middle to outter chain ring, which was not bad, it just was not snapping up. No big deal. Rear was perfect.

Took it in to the LBS for it's first 30 day servicing (a little late) and when I got it home, about the only thing that was working right was the snap up from middle to outter chain ring. the Rear was off, the frount was slow (except the orginal problem). the chain rubs the Front DR in all chain rings, even when not far off line (no bad cross chain combos). Man the LBS messed up a decent setup. I think that is the last time I will let the "Pros" have at it. I got it closer to right on my own. I thought maybe thay could tweak that little extra to get it perfect .... NOT.

So .... I think I will MT Bike tomorrow  The road bike will need some TLC.


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## Gdavis

It's an amazing thing how it can all work pretty well when you bought it. This is a 2-part problem of which the 1st is due to normal wear. Your chainrings, cassette teeth are all worn which is normal. Cables stretch etc. The ONLY way to ensure a good service is to be there when they have it on the stand, etc. They should go through all the ranges and make adjustments as necessary. If you, like many others these days, the tune-up is a free service (sometimes for life)..and they make no $$$. So you should make an appt. during which they know they are usually slow so you can get the most out of them.

Hope this helps!!


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## MRM1

OR .... just DIY. Yes the servicing was free. Thought they might be able to do that "little extra somthing" but I guess not. Oh well. I will get out there soon and get it back dialed in. I got it like I liked it before.


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## MRM1

*I Have Been Struck With Upgraditis*

Well it was bound to happen sooner or later. Do I like the Bike? Yes! Would I like it more with upgrades? Hmmm .... maybe. But that does not matter, UGI strikes not because we need new stuff, but because we WANT new stuff.

First let me say I rolled over 260 miles on the Felt Z100 since it's purchase back on Oct 24th of last year. I know, not much compared to those who ride 2500 miles ++ per year, but hey, it's a start. Besides, I basiclly took Nov 08 off to remodel a room in my house (only road twice that month) and December was ... well, December. Cruise, Parties, Events, Dinners, Christmas, NewYears. I did not ride much then either. 

I started a new training program in mid January and road 93 miles in Jan and have gone 115 miles so far in Feb. 

I like the bike a lot .... but the "whiz-bang" of a Carbon Seat Post just seemed so promising. Reduced Weight AND a bit of shock absorption ... where could I go wrong? What harm would it do? And it was on sale and a 10% off beyond that. I could not resist. I may not get another chance. 

Order one Forte' Carbon Seat Post.  

Bling factor .... Yes! Weight Saveings ... 157g to stock 309g. Performance boost .... Ummm, not so much, at least none really detected. But it looks good.


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## MRM1

*Why Do I Even Read These Threads ??*

How did I even get there? What possessed me to start thinking Wheel Sets?

After the Carbon seat post and new 202g saddle (down from the 357g Felt Saddle) I came to realize, Buying a 22+ lbs bike and trying to drop it below 20 lbs could get expensive - and is probably not worth it. Maybe I should just consider a new bike. Well this one was too new. Wife would never go for that so soon.

So I asked, "If you can only make one upgrade that will be of the most benefit, what would it be"? The overwhelming answer from my searches ... *WHEELS !* :idea: 

But what wheels? I did not want to spend too much, but wanted a definate performance and weight boost. Much searching and pouring over the reviews lead me to Neuvation Cycling and the M28 Aero 3's. I first started looking at the M28 SLs, but the more I looked at them, I decided to go with the Aero 3's.

So, hit the "Add to Cart" button and lighten the wallet one more time. And here come the Aero 3's. 

When they arrived, I took my stock 32 spoke wheel set off thinking I would find them to be boat anchors. Lo and behold, they were pretty light for stock "no-name" budget wheels. The New Neuvation M28 Aero 3s weighed 1726g, where as my "OLD" stock_ nothing-wrong-with-them_ wheels weighted 2024g. A mere 10.5 oz difference. I was hoping for more like a pound and a half. :cryin: 

Oh well, put them on and give them a try. So I did. The end results looked like this. A before and after look:

****


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## MRM1

*Neuvation M28 Aero3s - First Ride Impressions*

_This is a Ride Impression that I had from Thursday Feb 12's Ride:_

Well, aftger the first 10 miles on the New Wheel set, to say I was blown away would not be putting it honestly. They seemed to be a bit quicker out of turns and spin ups seemed faster than the stock wheels. But nothing I could put my finger on. No bad tendencies though.

Now for the hard numbers. Doing the same exact ride from 3 days ago on the Stock Wheel set. 

*CONDITIONS:*- my physical condition today was more tired than monday.
- my legs were a touch sore from a run on tuesday.
- The wind was about the same at a average of 4 mph today and 4.3 on monday's ride
- BUT today the wind was in my face more of the time and when I was passing big lakes. So, much less wind block, more time spent in full on head wind.
- Time of day and temp were nearly the same​
*THE NUMBERS:* - Today was my fastest ave speed ride EVER at 17.6 mph average. Monday it was 17.5.
- So average mph was up 0.1 mph (but see condtions above)
- My time today was down 48 seconds from Monday. So 48 seconds faster
- The first half of the ride (with out wind in my face off the lake) averaged 18.6 mph. About 1 mph faster than any other time on the Bike.
- Max speed was faster today up 28.2 from 26.6 mph
- Average Heart Rate was up from 150 on Monday to 160 today.
- But here is the intesting part: my average power Monday was 186 watts. The average power today was 176 watts. Less watts today, BUT faster Ave Speed, faster Max speed, and faster time.​
So even though I was more Tired, and sore, and had a head wind in the worse places. Everything was faster / better. So overall I think the Wheel Set improved the Bike.... at least some. Could the improvements just have been mental? Could I have wanted better results, and so pushed a bit harder? Well my Ave Heart Rate might says yes. But then there was that Power / Watts thing - a faster ave speed and better time with less watts. Maybe my HR was higher due to over stress from the rest of the week.

BUT, Over all Happy with the Wheel Set.

***********************

Since this First Impression Ride on Thursday, I also did a 30 mile ride yesterday. The wheels preformed very well. No problems.


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## MRM1

*Neuvation Wheels - To Sticker or NOT to Sticker*

I think the Neuvation Wheel Set will be the Final UGI itch I will scratch. If I break something, or wear it out ... well yes I will probably replace with something better. But I will not do so just for the UGI factor. The wheel set was a nice improvement: visually for sure, and possibly even in the performance. The wheels do spin forever now. 

The bottom line: The Felt Z100 will probably never be a Sub-20 lbs race bike. Although I may race it later this year and I am open to suggestions  

That said, the Neuvation M28 Aero 3 Wheels come loaded up with stickers. 
- Some say get rid of them all. 
- Others I have seen have left a few.
- Still others have left all the stickers.​
Me, I am on the fence and can not decide .... so I pulled every other one off the rear wheel and left the front wheel alone (for now). Trying to decide. Full Stickers, Half Set OR Just remove them all. Here are the pics as it stands right now. Are there opinions out there about this?

*********


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## RoadBikeVirgin

I definitely think they look sharp!  How are you liking the Performance seatpost after using it for a little while?? I've been considering that one for a while - the Cannondale seatpost that came with my Synapse is just carbon wrapped, and I really don't like the look of it.

I'll let you know tomorrow what I really think of the Neuvations outdoors - I rode on the trainer today (and put a new saddle on - the Specialized Toupe - 155). I have already gone through the stock seat (Selle San Marco Ponza Lux), the Specialized Avatar Gell (returned it), Terry Fly Ti, and Neuvation S2 - all of the either gave me severe sitbone pain, numbness, or a combination of the two. I really didn't think the Toupe was going to work, but one of the guys at my LBS said that saddles are so personal - some like lots of padding, some like virtually NONE (like the Toupe). I did an hour on the trainer and no numbness and no pain!

So tomorrow, I'll be doing an easy trail in Olympia with my friend. I'm not sure on distance yet. I should be able to give you a pretty decent first impression on the wheels then. I STILL can't get over how silent the rear hub is 

-Chris

P.S. We BOTH know you're not done with upgraditis! :thumbsup:


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## MRM1

RoadBikeVirgin said:


> I definitely think they look sharp!


Thanks Chris, but do you mean the lower sticker count of the rear wheel or the higher sticker count of the front wheel?

And as to the performance Seat Post. I like it a lot. It has a pretty good micro adjustment for tilt - more than some seat posts I have used. It has really let me fine tune my saddles tlit. It made a reasonably uncomfortable saddle quite comfortable. Clamp works very well too - does not score the rails. Yep, I have liked just about everything about it.

And it is super lite at 157g (my calabrated gram scale). :thumbsup:


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## RoadBikeVirgin

I've been thinking about that saddle for a while now - it looks sharp on the website, but I figured it was probably one of those things that looks awesome online, but when you buy it - not so much  That seatpost looks SHARP on your bike :thumbsup: 

I think I like the rear better, but I also think I would like it more if it either had no decals at all, or if you just removed the M28 Aero 3 decals - it almost looks asymmetrical with those rounds stickers hanging along for the ride 

Do you still have the stock stem and handlebars on the bike?


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## MRM1

Yes those are the stock ones. And Yea, I think the Little round stickers will have to go.


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## MRM1

Hey RoadBikeViergin,

If you see this, I am trying to PM you but your Mail Box is full (and you have receive email off).


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## RoadBikeVirgin

MRM1 said:


> Hey RoadBikeViergin,
> 
> If you see this, I am trying to PM you but your Mail Box is full (and you have receive email off).


No worries, I deleted everything  I didn't realized the "50 messages" was in- AND outbox. Won't be making that mistake again! 
-Chris


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## mjse

MRM1 I read in your post that you have a Garmin 305 with the Power meter. What type of Power meter are you using? I see you have the meter mounted to the rear wheel. Is it wireless and if so, are you having any problems with it?


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## MRM1

Do no actually have a power meter. The sensor on the rear wheel is the Garmin GSC10 cadance sensor and alternate speed sensor if the GPS goes out. I do power using a derived calculation plug in for SportTracks exercise software. 

The Plugin is called GPS Power Track and it derives power from speed, wind and other sources of info. It can also give a pretty detailed display of the weather during a ride.

It is known as that "Poor Mans Power Meter"

The end results in SportTracks looks like this in the power display:


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## wildwood

Nice bike, looks alot like my Z80. A couple things I did to improve the weight of mine
was change out the crank and brakes. 2 of the gears on my crankset where steel,
I found a deal on ebay on a new 105 crank set and bottom bracket. I dont have a scale
to tell you the weight savings, but it was very noticable comparing the 2 sets off the bike.
The stock no brand black brakes where also changed out to 105s. Not a huge difference
in weight but every little bit helps I guess.


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## MRM1

Thanks Wildwood.

That helps. I was wondering just were the weight really was in this bike. I am going to ride it for a while and just wait until something breaks, but I think here in the next month or so I will take it part to the frame and weight each part including the frame just for giggles.


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## Gdavis

Sounds like you are starting to have some fun. I'm prepping right now for a 62 mile ride in May.


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## MRM1

Gdavis said:


> Sounds like you are starting to have some fun.


Yes indeed !! I road just under 100 miles last week, including a 40 mile group ride on saturday. 

My training speeds are starting to go up too.


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## weaverkb

Like you, this is my first road bike. My front derailler also gives me fits. I have the hardest time keeping it shifting well. I just did a 151 mile ride this weekend and I couldn't get it to shift up into the large chain ring. Your's is also not the only one that has issues with the finish. Mine gets scratched just loading it onto the bike rack.
I really like the look of it with the new wheels. I think you just fed my UGI just a little more.


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