What Kind Of Bike Do I Need

Ride the Bike that brings you happiness!

It’s as straight forward as that really.  Everyone has different goals and ambitions regarding what they want to get out of cycling. For some it’s a general feeling of wellness, others want to push their physical limits or compete at the highest possible level.  The ideal bike for each of these people will be different.

Some people want to experience multiple different genres of cycling or have varying goals.  For those people the formula of n+1 was invented to identify the ideal number of bikes one should own, where ‘n’ is the number they currently own!

Road Bike, Hybrid, TT Bike, Mountain Bike (Enduro, All Mountain, Cross Country, Full Suspension, Hard Tail, Rigid, 26″ wheel, 27.5″ wheel, 29″ wheel), Trials Bike, Fat Bike, BMX, Track Bike, Cyclo-cross Bike, Single Speed, Shopper, Balance Bike…. The list is seemingly endless!  The point is, there’s something out there for everyone and nobody can really tell you what bike will suit your needs exactly.

We can however offer advice and suggest different things you should consider before buying a bike, such as emerging industry standards, or making room in your budget for specific items that would make your life on the bike a lot more enjoyable.  We have some very experienced and knowledgeable members in the club, so we should use them wherever possible for advice on all equipment bike related!

For the rides we are organising at present, there are some bikes that would be more suitable than others. We’ve listed the most suitable options below:

Social Sundays – For these rides you would be recommended to own a suitable road bike with drop handle bars and appropriate road tyres. You could perhaps at a stretch use a flat bar hybrid style bike which is essentially a road bike but with flat bars. We would not recommend using a mountain bike style hybrid for longer or faster rides.  They will prove too much work for you to get any real enjoyment from the ride.

Hills, Hills, Hills – Again, you’re looking at a dedicated road bike for these sessions or a flat bar road style hybrid. Th lighter the bike, the easier the hills will be, however an entry level road bike will be more than suitable to start with.

Chain Gang – Another road bike session where a dedicated road bike is pretty much the only option. Speed is the aim here so aerodynamic, light and big gears will serve you well!

Time Trials – We will be holding occasional time trial sessions, where you basically pit yourself against the clock to see how fast you can complete either a 10 mile or 25 mile course. At club level where you are only measuring your own performance, a specific type of bike is not required.  If you were to get into TT competitions (of which there are many locally), you would be looking to either use a modified road bike with aero bars, or a dedicated TT bike.

Mountain Biking – When the terrain is known, we can recommend a specific style of bike that would be best suited to the course, however some of you will remember when there was only one type of mountain bike available with no suspension or carbon in sight, and we still managed to conquer most terrain! The point being that an entry level mountain bike will be capable of most rides in most places.  Technology such as full suspension will certainly be helpful in certain circumstances, but it’s far from necessary to have a good time on the bike!

Beginner Sessions – We will be running occasional beginner sessions that involve less distance at slower speeds, where hybrid bikes, mountain bikes and shoppers will be just as at home as featherweight carbon-clad dream machines.

As I mentioned earlier in the article, we have a wealth of knowledge in the club who can show you real world examples of why one component/bike/accessory/industry standard is more suited to you than another. Drop us a mail so we can point you in the right direction or speak to one of our experienced group leaders who will also be able to advise.