For Your Consideration: Notes About Choosing a Bike

As winter begins to recede and the warm winds of spring breathe life into daffodils and our desire to return to routine outdoor activity, thoughts of a new bike may also emerge. Shopping for a bike can be an adventure of sorts; it is certainly a multi-layered process that is both labor-intensive and fun. To help you find your perfect bike, here are a few things for your consideration.

If you are new to cycling imagine where you will ride your bike and consider the surface. Pavement and cement are compatible with skinny tires, while packed or crushed gravel will require some knobby tread and a little bit of width to the tire. An experienced rider with solid bike handling skills can ride skinny tires on packed gravel, but a new rider would probably feel safe with fat tires.

Gearing is an important consideration for someone who lives in a hilly or mountainous area. To be able to climb uphill and maintain a high cadence so my legs don’t blow up, I have three chain rings on my road bike instead of the traditional two. I live in the Rocky Mountains and need a wide range of gears to support me on this kind of cycling terrain. My town bike/commuter is a 2007 Giant Cypress W with an internal 7-speed rear hub. Around town, seven gears are manageable. When I am cycling for fitness, be it on road or trail, my preference is to have and use all the gear choices that support a highly pleasurable experience!

The weight of the bike may also be a buying factor, particularly for those gals who are going to be spending a fair amount of time pedaling uphill. Consider the lightest bike you can afford, even if it means dipping all the way down to the lint in the bottom of your pocket! My road bike weighs 16 pounds and I do not carry an ounce of regret in my body in regards to how much it cost. Pedaling uphill for 20 miles affords me the opportunity to reflect on how happy I am that my bike is so light. Although I still have to work hard to turn the cranks I am always able to finish a mountain climb with a little something left in the legs.

Bike weight is also an issue for mountain bikers, but the need for well-designed full suspension trumps weight if you live in the mountains. The most tunable suspension spring system consists of air. Look for a bike that is equipped with a suspension fork and rear shock that is air-sprung. There are two drawbacks to air springs. The first is that as an air spring is compressed it requires exponentially more force to compress it further, making it nearly impossible for a small rider to access full travel. The second drawback impacts maintenance – the rubber gaskets and o-rings that seal the system are highly vulnerable to deterioration from friction and, as a result require more frequent maintenance intervals than coil springs. Despite these drawbacks I ride air springs front and rear because for me the weight and tenability outranks the need for maintenance. Plus, the Fox fork on my Cypher can be factory-tuned to perform better for my body weight.

When you test ride, take your time. Don’t think about price or color as much as you pay attention to how the bike feels. Saddles, seat posts, and grips can be changed easily, as can tires so none of these items should be considered deal breakers. Drive train components can be changed, too, but at a significantly higher cost. If the ride feels stiff or harsh new tires are not going to change that quality. The fit and feel of the frame itself is the most important consideration because everything is built upon it. Trust your intuition – if the bike feels right, it is right for you!

Jenny