How To Buy A Road Bike

So you want to buy a road bike. You need to consider what the bicycle is going to be used for. Do you want it to go to the shops? Do you want to race on it? Do you want to do sports on it, which is a sort of reliability ride? Do you want to go out for Sunday runs with your mates? Do you need mud guards? Don't need mud guards? There's a lot of things to consider and also, of course, you need to consider your budget.

A woman might want a different road bike compared to a man because a woman's got shorter arms compared to a guy so therefore, he needs a larger bike. And of course, if you're a commuter, you might want to consider a folding bike, something like this, which is small, compact, you can put it on the train. A good quality road bike which you probably see the club riders use on a Sunday probably costs you the best part of a thousand pounds but having said that, you can get a bike which you can commute to work on half the cost.

Probably the best thing to do is go to a large shop like Evans where they've got a wide variety of bikes. You can just have a browse around. Get an idea of the feel of the bike - the cost, the size, what sort of equipment you're going to get with the bike.

Generally speaking, the bikes are fitted out with Campagnolo or Shimano equipment which is pro and reliable. It's used by the sort of top pros, the sort of top amateurs, filters right down to the sort of commuter. So where do you go and buy one? Lots of outlets.

F.W. Evans in London.

You could even go to some places like Halford's. There are lots of venues to be had. Search on the internet.

Buy a magazine once a week called "Cycling Weekly" or once a month called "Cycling Plus". They'll tell you about the different bikes, give you budgets and sizes, and all sorts of things to consider. All you need to do is decide what the bicycle is for, what kind of budget you've got, and once you've decided those two things, then you can start honing in on the bike of your dreams. .