A Ridgeback Voyager, or something else?
June 3, 2012 4:11 PM Subscribe
Should I buy a Ridgeback Voyager? If not, what comparable or better touring bike should I buy for under the magic £1,000 that will allow me to get it through my employer's cyclescheme?
I had my heart set on a rather more expensive Thorn Sherpa, thinking I'd be able to cover the difference myself up front--but Thorn won't allow you to use a cyclescheme voucher for part payment. So: the Ridgeback looks like a decent alternative. But is there anything better?
I'm looking for a bike that is better, faster, and smoother for short and long day-rides on the quiet but bumpy country roads near my house than the trusty but small-wheeled Brompton (with six gears!) that has been my only bike for the last couple of years*. That's not hard, of course. But the same bike also has to be suitable for loading up and heading away autonomously for a week or two or three, most likely within the western Europe. A go-fast bike wouldn't be suitable for this, and to be honest wouldn't really fit the way I cycle anyway.
I think this means a drop-handlebar touring bike that can take front panniers. The current Voyager seems like a decent one. What do you think?
*It's taken me many hundreds of miles comfortably, including a lovely fifty-miler that went over the Gospel Pass. But I think my knees would like some more gears.
I had my heart set on a rather more expensive Thorn Sherpa, thinking I'd be able to cover the difference myself up front--but Thorn won't allow you to use a cyclescheme voucher for part payment. So: the Ridgeback looks like a decent alternative. But is there anything better?
I'm looking for a bike that is better, faster, and smoother for short and long day-rides on the quiet but bumpy country roads near my house than the trusty but small-wheeled Brompton (with six gears!) that has been my only bike for the last couple of years*. That's not hard, of course. But the same bike also has to be suitable for loading up and heading away autonomously for a week or two or three, most likely within the western Europe. A go-fast bike wouldn't be suitable for this, and to be honest wouldn't really fit the way I cycle anyway.
I think this means a drop-handlebar touring bike that can take front panniers. The current Voyager seems like a decent one. What do you think?
*It's taken me many hundreds of miles comfortably, including a lovely fifty-miler that went over the Gospel Pass. But I think my knees would like some more gears.
A tiny thing: Sora brifters are kind of weird, in that the non-ratchety lever is hard to reach from the drops. This is probably fine for a touring bike, but it might also drive you insane so be sure to check it out first.
It's actually a bit cheaper than the Ridgeback (which I'm not familiar with) but the Jamis Aurora is a great steel tourer/commuter, and gets you a 9-speed rear mech and bar-end shifters. Over on this side of the pond the Aurora gets tossed around as an alternative to the Surly LHT, which says a lot. The lousy review on Evans' site is an anomaly, I think, Jamis is good stuff.
On the other hand the Jamis has an 11-28 cassette and 30-39-50 up front, vs the Ridgeback's 11-32 and 28-38-48. So the gearing on the Jamis is a little higher, but if you ask me it's "useful road touring" range.
posted by mendel at 5:39 PM on June 3, 2012
It's actually a bit cheaper than the Ridgeback (which I'm not familiar with) but the Jamis Aurora is a great steel tourer/commuter, and gets you a 9-speed rear mech and bar-end shifters. Over on this side of the pond the Aurora gets tossed around as an alternative to the Surly LHT, which says a lot. The lousy review on Evans' site is an anomaly, I think, Jamis is good stuff.
On the other hand the Jamis has an 11-28 cassette and 30-39-50 up front, vs the Ridgeback's 11-32 and 28-38-48. So the gearing on the Jamis is a little higher, but if you ask me it's "useful road touring" range.
posted by mendel at 5:39 PM on June 3, 2012
I know very little about bikes in general but my boyfriend and I toured through western Europe for six weeks on these exact bikes. We used them to carry both us and all our stuff (tent, sleeping bags etc) for about 2000km and were very happy with them.
posted by Wantok at 6:46 PM on June 3, 2012
posted by Wantok at 6:46 PM on June 3, 2012
Can you buy PART of a bike with a voucher? Like a frame and enough components of the bike you want to add up to the magic number?
posted by RustyBrooks at 7:02 PM on June 3, 2012
posted by RustyBrooks at 7:02 PM on June 3, 2012
I've got one of those. Ridgeback isn't t the most fashionable brand, but it's a decent bike with decent steel frame and good components.
I've commuted in London on it for the last four years and had no problems with it at all. It's a sturdy, comfortable bike. The gears are hard to reach from the drops certainly, but I ride mostly on the hoods.
posted by ComfySofa at 2:41 AM on June 4, 2012
I've commuted in London on it for the last four years and had no problems with it at all. It's a sturdy, comfortable bike. The gears are hard to reach from the drops certainly, but I ride mostly on the hoods.
posted by ComfySofa at 2:41 AM on June 4, 2012
I've done 3 tours >2000km, and I can't count how many small bike/camping trips in the 200-500km range. My first one I did with a steel framed touring bike similar to the ridgeback, but that bike got destroyed in a car accident. Since then, I've been using something a little different, but that I can't recommend enough.
I use a hybrid frame with a suspension seat post, front and rear racks, and a Shimano Nexus 8-speed internal hub shifter. When I'm using it for commuting, I use a 42T chainring to pair with the 18T cog on the back, but when I take it out touring I switch to a 32T chainring. That gives me a gear ratio equivalent to 30/30 when I'm in the lowest gear, which is nice for handling tough hills (my first major trip with this thing included two Alps crossings).
The Nexus is really fantastic. You never need to do any maintenance on it. It shifts like a dream. You can shift while not pedaling, or while stopped, which is great for a touring bike to avoid those moments when you have to make an unexpected stop on a hill and find yourself in the wrong gear with 50 lbs of stuff loaded on your bike. You can ride it in rain, snow, or mud and it'll never be affected(this thing's been through the Montreal winter). There's also an 11 speed version out now, which I'm lusting after but don't have an excuse to buy since my 8 is still working as good as the day I bought it, 3 years and ~15000km ago.
The only downside is that the highest gear when I've got the 32T chainring on is a little light; if I'm going downhill it's very easy to max out. You can solve this problem by going with a double or triple chainring on the front and adding the chain tensioner, but I find it is a problem for me so infrequently that I haven't bothered--I'm not much of a speed demon when I'm loaded up.
posted by tkfu at 4:56 AM on June 4, 2012
I use a hybrid frame with a suspension seat post, front and rear racks, and a Shimano Nexus 8-speed internal hub shifter. When I'm using it for commuting, I use a 42T chainring to pair with the 18T cog on the back, but when I take it out touring I switch to a 32T chainring. That gives me a gear ratio equivalent to 30/30 when I'm in the lowest gear, which is nice for handling tough hills (my first major trip with this thing included two Alps crossings).
The Nexus is really fantastic. You never need to do any maintenance on it. It shifts like a dream. You can shift while not pedaling, or while stopped, which is great for a touring bike to avoid those moments when you have to make an unexpected stop on a hill and find yourself in the wrong gear with 50 lbs of stuff loaded on your bike. You can ride it in rain, snow, or mud and it'll never be affected(this thing's been through the Montreal winter). There's also an 11 speed version out now, which I'm lusting after but don't have an excuse to buy since my 8 is still working as good as the day I bought it, 3 years and ~15000km ago.
The only downside is that the highest gear when I've got the 32T chainring on is a little light; if I'm going downhill it's very easy to max out. You can solve this problem by going with a double or triple chainring on the front and adding the chain tensioner, but I find it is a problem for me so infrequently that I haven't bothered--I'm not much of a speed demon when I'm loaded up.
posted by tkfu at 4:56 AM on June 4, 2012
Like tkfu, I'm quite big on hub gears, and for maintenance free life, they're a pretty good bet. I saw a couple of bikes reviewed in last month's CTC magazine, which is available at your local public library if not otherwise.
I can't remember both the bikes reviewed there (they have a head to head review in each issue), but the one with hub gears was the Giant Seek 0 (£899 rrp), which might leave enough room in your budget for mudguards and a rack, and the Brooks saddle would have to come later. It has an eccentric bottom bracket, which is a very reliable way to keep the chain tensioned (unlike the aluminium non-replaceable sloping dropouts on my Scott Street, which are all torn up from trying to keep the chain in tension).
An alternative hub geared bike they mentioned was the Scott Sub 20. I've not found any drop-handlebarred hub geared bikes in that price range, though. For myself that's something I'm fine with. I don't know if I'd feel the same if I was doing any particularly long rides. I've tended to have better fitting straight bar bikes than drop barred, so maybe that's the reason I'm not super excited about them.
posted by ambrosen at 1:30 PM on June 11, 2012
I can't remember both the bikes reviewed there (they have a head to head review in each issue), but the one with hub gears was the Giant Seek 0 (£899 rrp), which might leave enough room in your budget for mudguards and a rack, and the Brooks saddle would have to come later. It has an eccentric bottom bracket, which is a very reliable way to keep the chain tensioned (unlike the aluminium non-replaceable sloping dropouts on my Scott Street, which are all torn up from trying to keep the chain in tension).
An alternative hub geared bike they mentioned was the Scott Sub 20. I've not found any drop-handlebarred hub geared bikes in that price range, though. For myself that's something I'm fine with. I don't know if I'd feel the same if I was doing any particularly long rides. I've tended to have better fitting straight bar bikes than drop barred, so maybe that's the reason I'm not super excited about them.
posted by ambrosen at 1:30 PM on June 11, 2012
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posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 5:22 PM on June 3, 2012