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How To Pick a Bicycle
When I received a bicycle as a child it was just a bike. Bicycle had two wheels, a seat and a frame. The bike frame was often painted some great color. It has been too long for me to remember the color of my first bike. Maybe you can recall your first bicyle. What color was it? Even if I can no longer recall the color, a passion was born.After that came “racing” bikes. They were lighter, had 10 speeds. And those bloody skinny seats. Now there are at least 8 different (maybe more) different types of bicycles. They range from road bikes to recumbents to cruiser bikes. Cruisers look strangely like my first bike. How about yours? This web site will deal almost exclusively with road bikes. That is what I ride and what I know. It is also my passion. I am also passionate about having the rubber gripping the pavement and not sliding around. Whether I am cycling in Colorado where I live or taking a cycling vacation in England or riding the Lakeshore in Chicago, I will most likely be riding a road bike. When you are choosing the bike for yourself, you must think about and consider the following: What kind of roads/trails/surfaces will you enjoy ride on? What kinds of roads/trails/surfaces are typical for your area? Do you have back problems that will make it impossible or painful to lean over your handlebars for several hours at a time? Would you enjoy riding 15 miles or more on your average ride? Is cycling meditative or do you like adrenaline? What kind of bikes do your friends ride? What kind of cycling vacation do (or would you like to) take? Bikes have gotten al lot more complicated. There are steel frames and aluminum frames. There are also carbon and now titanium frames which cost as much as some used cars. The next thing to consider is the set of components on the bike. Components are things like the brakes, front chain rings, the cog set and the derailleur. The classic Italian component company is Campagnolo. The firm founded in 1933 has been the standard for decades and decades. This venerable company’s products were the standard against which all others were compared. They are light, strong and work flawlessly. More importantly to some was there elegance, the way they looked and felt to the touch. Along came Shimano. They entered the market in 1921 in Japan and followed with many great products for the road cycling enthusiast. My personal bike as Shimano components in the drive train. I have used components made by this company for about 12 years and am entirely satisfied. The majority of information about bikes on this site will be about road bikes. For information on other types of bikes, visit your local bike shop (LBS.). Here, you will find tons of valuable information on cycling clothes, cycling shoes and other cycling equipment. And I will get to share my passion for cycling. So what’s the answer to how to pick a bike? Easy. Pick a road bike. See you on the road.
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