Can I race with this?

grampy bone said:

I have been riding for a little more than a year. I'd like to get into racing. My bike is a cheap aluminum Scattante with a triple ring and 105 components. Total bike weight is 19.7 lbs. My thoughts are that since most people get trounced the first time they race, is it necessary for me to upgrade? Will I get laughed at racing with a triple ring?

Don't worry about. I know a guy who's won races on a 24 pound road bike. And I've had several teammates who race with triples.

grampy bone said:

I have been riding for a little more than a year. I'd like to get into racing. My bike is a cheap aluminum Scattante with a triple ring and 105 components. Total bike weight is 19.7 lbs. My thoughts are that since most people get trounced the first time they race, is it necessary for me to upgrade? Will I get laughed at racing with a triple ring?

You can race perfectly with a triple and 105. I have seen folks winning races with sora, tiagra or even simpler components.

If any body laughs (and I don't think it will happen), get your wheel ahead of theirs at the final sprint, they will not laugh again.

Go RACE and best of lucks!!!

grampy bone said:

I have been riding for a little more than a year. I'd like to get into racing. My bike is a cheap aluminum Scattante with a triple ring and 105 components. Total bike weight is 19.7 lbs. My thoughts are that since most people get trounced the first time they race, is it necessary for me to upgrade? Will I get laughed at racing with a triple ring?

Your ability to race is what people will see, not your components...

I remember going to my first MTB race, I was nervous and a little scared because I did not know anyone and I was on my $500 Hardtail Trek and looking at a few of the guys on their $3,000 Specialized Epic's thinking what the hell am I doing here...as more and more people started showing up I found that my bike fit right in as there were a bunch of other people with comparable frames....The point here is NO ONE asked me about my bike instead most of the guys I talked to were really cool and were giving me pointers and when the race started the only issue of components that I had was with my own and I remember hitting that first drop saying "hollyshit I need a full Suspension bike"

Have fun dude and don't worry about anything but riding your hardest and giving your all... 🙂

Shut up and race.

grampy bone said:

I have been riding for a little more than a year. I'd like to get into racing. My bike is a cheap aluminum Scattante with a triple ring and 105 components. Total bike weight is 19.7 lbs. My thoughts are that since most people get trounced the first time they race, is it necessary for me to upgrade? Will I get laughed at racing with a triple ring?

I got killed in my first citizens criterium race. I crashed into a corner though.

All you need to do to race well is to train at least 160 miles a week. When I did 160 to 180 miles a week I lost weight and became faster. My avg speed per heart rate really improved. And the weight that you lose will compensate for a heavy bike.

Me - I have 4 road bikes - and I don't see too much speed difference between my 17 lb Dura Ace Ksyrium SL racing bike and my 28 lb pannier equipped commuter bike.

hey lets just say it be WAY better to show up with your bike and finish than show up with a $5,200 built up Colnago C40 and have to drop out because you can't keep up....

you know the old saying "It's not the arrow, it's the Indian"

There is a guy that rides the practice road races here that rides a modified moutain bike. Very goofy looking, but when he's pulling the group at 30 mph it's pretty darn impressive.

I just staed racing this year and I have a Trek 1200 with triple ring and Ultegra. I have been happy to not finish last as my age puts me in with the Masters Catagory and I have only had this bike since Xmas. Will they laugh? Chances are most will be too concerned with themselves to notice you right away.

There's actually a pretty solid case for racing a cheap Alu frame with non-DA/Record component levels... if you crash and wreck your frame/something you didn't just loose a few grand. And even a low-end scattante Alu frame is going to be fairly stiff and light (in a stage race it's kick-your-but harsh, but pefect for say a crit). Nothing wrong w/105 or the triple either...if you get into it you have a perfect excuse to upgrade to a whole new bike!

Bloody oath you can race it!

In fact it's perfect for what you are doing.

Turning up green on a full carbon, full record pro set up would be far worse.

Just train hard and do it. I like nothing better than showing guys on 10k dollar full-carbon super bikes the back of my 1.9k dollar no-carbon Scott.

Good Luck. Jay.

cuervo said:

You can race perfectly with a triple and 105. I have seen folks winning races with sora, tiagra or even simpler components.

If any body laughs (and I don't think it will happen), get your wheel ahead of theirs at the final sprint, they will not laugh again.

Go RACE and best of lucks!!!

if anybodies going to laugh at you for your equipment then that´s their problem not yours ´cause they´re jerks .
it´s the legs , lungs and heart , especially heart , that win races not frames or group sets - did LA win LeTour 6 times because he rides Trek / Durace ? and he won half of those using 9 speeds when his rivals used 10 .

I had a guy on my team race that same kind of bike at collegiate nationals this year, nothing wrong with it.