How To Choose A Road Bike (Pro Tips For All Road Bikers)
Road biking is one of the most popular forms of biking. A decent road bike can open a lot of ways for enjoying your life. Whether you want to improve your health and fitness or commute around the neighborhood, nothing can be a perfect companion rather than a road bike. A road bike can also help you to beat traffic jams and reach your destination quickly. They are lightweight, smooth, speedy, and most importantly, efficient and they can turn your boring time into amazing and adventurous moments.
There is a wide variety of road bikes available in the market to meet the individual’s needs. With so many choices, it’s a little bit overwhelming work to choose a beginner road bike at a decent price. However, our extensive how to choose a road bike guide will make it easier for anyone to pick the right road bike easily.
Things To Consideration Before Choosing A Road Bike
1. Check The Frame Materials
The frame is considered the heart of bikes. Bike frames are made from a range of materials where steel, aluminum, carbon fiber, titanium, etc. are regarded as the most common choices. Every material comes with its own advantages and disadvantages.
Aluminum is the most used bike frame material. They are generally less expensive than the others but still provide a smooth riding experience. They are lightweight and make the bike more comfortable to ride for riders of any age. Usually, the aluminum frame road bikes come with a composite front fork that absorbs some road vibration to improve the ride quality. The low price of aluminum makes it easier for the manufacturer to supply decent road bikes without compromising the quality.
Steel is one of the oldest bike frame materials, and it is still dominating the market. Steel bike frames are a little bit heavier than the aluminum, and they got rust too. However, they are available at a low price and provide decent performance when riding long distances. Besides, they are highly durable, and you can use them for a long time without any issues.
Titanium is wonderfully lightweight as aluminum and durable as steel frames. It will provide you with an extremely comfortable ride on the roads. The titanium frame bikes are alloyed with aluminum in the time of making bike frames. They are a little bit hard to with than any other material. As a result, the cost of titanium frame bikes is high.
Carbon fiber frame is the most popular bike frame currently to bikers. It is lightest and firmest than any other bike frame material. It is also the most expensive one. However, there is some cheaply priced carbon fiber frames bike are available now, but they will not give you satisfactory performance.
2. Choosing The Right Size
The size of the bike should be considered strongly while buying a new bike. You will need to choose a bicycle according to your height and dimension to get the best out of it. The bike will not give you proper support if the size is wrong. It will also make your ride very uncomfortable.
Choosing the right size of the bike according to your body can be a difficult job. Typically, bike sizes are measured in centimeters though different manufacturers have different ways of measuring. You can check a bike by slinging your leg over it. If you comfortably stay over the seat, then you can go for the bike. The best way to choose the right size is by taking a test ride. Most of the shops nowadays offer test riding, and a buyer can easily find a suitable bike for himself after experiencing a test ride.
3. Bike Wheels And Tires
The smoothness and accuracy of a ride highly depend on the bike wheels. Road bikes come with different types of wheels including clincher wheels, tabular wheels, tubeless wheels, etc. Amongst them, the clincher wheel is the most popular variety. Tabular wheels are also popular because of their lightweight. The tubeless wheels are the newest addition to the road bike wheels list. As the name suggests, they don’t have a tube and have extra materials on the rim to make an airtight seal. You can change or upgrade the wheels of a road bike whenever needed. As a result, you can try different types of wheels to find a comfortable one for you.
The tires of the road bike are also crucial as like as the wheels. Different types of wheels require different types of tires. You will need to choose the right tires based on the wheels. The road bike tire should be lightweight, puncture-resistant, and durable for long-term use.
4. Brake Leavers And Gear Shifters
Previously, brake levers and gear shifters were separate instruments in the bikes. But now they are integrated into handles in most of the bikes to provide a better braking and shifting experience. The road bike you are going to buy should have an easy brake and gear control mechanism. Ask the seller whether the gear shifter is integrated or not and also know how it works. If possible try braking and shifting at the time of the test ride. If you have smaller hands go for a road bike that comes with an easily adjustable lever reach adjustment.
5. Remember Your Budget
Road bikes are highly optimized to ensure the comfort of the rider as well as the durability of the bike. As a result, they are a little expensive than the other variety of bikes. The price of road bikes varies on a large scale, and some of them can even cost you around USD 11,000. However, recently, the road bike prices are decreasing, and now you can even buy decent road bikes under $300. However, if you can extend the budget a bit, you will be able to choose from some best road bikes under 500 dollars. Remember that sometimes you may need to compromise the look or the design to buy a well-performed road bike in a low or mid-budget range.
What Accessories Do You Need For Road Biking?
The most important accessory for the road bike is the helmet. Road biking can be risky especially when you roam around a highway. Wearing a helmet will save you from any unwanted accidents and dangers. If you often need to park your bike in different places, then you will need a u-lock to secure the bike. Besides, if you love to ride at night then buy an LED light for your bike so that you can watch the roadway clearly. These are the most common accessories of a bike that every biker should have.
Verdict
A road bike can smoother your biking experience with its quality and comfortable performance. However, for this, you will need a well-optimized road bike. Hopefully, the above guide will help you to choose the right road bike for you that suits you the most.
