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amey
hippy
Help! can anyone advise please?
I have a 5-year old Specialized Diverge E5 Comp with an 11-36 gear set which is great on roads but hopeless off road. Love the bike, but after 5 years tech has moved on and my bike parts are increasingly knackered. Can keep throwing £350pa on it to keep enjoying the approx 1500-2000 miles pa I ride ..... or do I bite the bullet and upgrade? If so what to, that will tick most boxes at the same time? Have been into 4 bikes shops over past couple of months and each pumps their own profit generators ...so not feeling I am getting the advice and recommendations I need. Don't blame them, just I'm not feeling the love in what they suggest!
What I would like is similar frame (58) plus riser handlebars, 700x38c tyres, plus a bike with a few more legs - a hybrid with hydraulic brakes allowing me to continue to do road cycling and the occasional fun sportifs ... and also to be able to ride on some off-road tracks through local forests and lowland hills (but not MTB/tech riding standard/inclines). Ideally 2 x 10 speed that betters 11-36 for the steeper hills (I am neither young nor light, sadly - I may be fat but identify as thin!).
Does this mean I should look at a gravel bike (i.e. just upgrade to an Sp E5 Elite type bike), or should I look to just replace parts with more modern components using my existing frame (i.e. probably spend a little less and have a more tailored upgrade)? Indeed, should I now only look at 11-51 gear sets?