Bike Shopping - What Do You Look for a Bike

by Heather Long | More from this Blogger

05 Oct 2006 05:30 AM

This weekend, my husband and I went out bike shopping. I have wanted to get a bike so that I can ride along with the kids when they ride their bikes to school. The idea has a lot of merit, so when I headed to the bike store - I knew basically what I wanted. I wanted a 10-speed bike that wasn't too expensive, but would also be comfortable. So the next question I asked myself after being inside the bike store for five minutes was - when was the last time I walked into a bicycle store?

The standard ten-speed is now a 30-speed bike with 10 different gears for each form of speed (high, medium and low). There are also different kinds of bikes for you to choose from including comfort, sport, racing and mountain. The different types of bikes encourage you to sit differently on them and use your body in different ways to get from points a to points b.

• Comfort Bikes - The comfort bike is probably the most popular for the general suburban type looking for a bike to ride on bike paths, suburban streets and more - you sit straight up on a comfort bike, extending your legs straight down to pedal. You hold the handle bars comfortably and don't have to lean over them at all - tires are wider and the bike usually has shocks to help you deal with bumps and uneven sidewalk or roads - the seats are also wider because you will be sitting on it firmly
• Sport Bikes - Very similar to comfort bikes, except that you are more inclined to leaning forward over the handle bars and are designed for people who enjoy street, bike marathons - they are more comfortable than a racing bike and are built for endurance riding - the tires are also designed to be on and off road so if you have to go into the grass you can
• Racing bikes - these are more streamlined bikes, the seats are usually smaller and your body is pitched forward so that you increase your own aerodynamics - the racing bike has more slender tires to reduce road friction and increase your speeds - it's used for exactly what it sounds like - bike racing
• Mountain Bikes - these are more durable bikes, usually have more gears and the seats can be wide or slender - the tires are usually fatter and have better grips on them to help maintain traction when climbing up steep inclines

If that's not enough to make your head spin, there are multiple different types of bikes in these different categories. For most of us, whether riding for fun or for exercise, the comfort bike is going to be the way to go. The wider seat is better for your glutes and your bones and the way you sit creates far less impact on your joints. Right now, I'm interested in a comfort bike - the Specialized Comfort Elite is at the top of my list, but I'll let you know what I decide on.

What kind of bike do you ride?

Related Articles:

Your Child's Bike Shopping for Quality

Celebrate Your Fitness

10 Tips to Make Fitness a Family Activity

Toddler Bikes & Bike Safety

Learn more about Heather Long

Heather Long is 35 years old and currently lives in Wylie, Texas. She has been a freelance writer for six years. Her husband and she met while working together at America Online over ten years ago.

View Full Profile | More from this Blogger