Wow. Yesterday’s post about how I’m a fraidy-cat and need to stop being such a wuss has brought people out of the woodwork regarding the bicycle purchase. Good to know that a) people read my blatherings and b) people are in support of the bike purchase. Thanks, everyone! Though Michael did tell me he thinks it’s a good idea I DON’T drink whiskey since it will lead to a lot more shit talking.
I responded to him by asking if there’s actually more shit to talk?
SO, now I have to decide what sort of bicycle I want to get. And I’m currently overwhelmed by the choices. Do I want to get a road bike? Charles said that they are for assholes and commuters, but I’m kind of an asshole, so maybe that’s the right choice? Do I want a touring bike? A hybrid bike? A cruiser? Do I actually want a mountain bike even though I’m pretty sure I don’t?
And what size? The table on About.com seems to indicate that I want something in the 23-24″ range since I’m 6’1″ with a 34″ inseam. But what range would be comfortable?
And then there’s the issue of money. Since I won’t be working the next few weeks at all, I don’t want to drop a whole lot of money on this thing, especially since it’s my first bike in a decade and a half. Really, it’s just for putting around town and getting some exercise, so it doesn’t need to be all crazy and shit. I don’t need the 4000 dollar carbon fiber bike that weighs like 3 pounds. I wouldn’t mind spending 150-200 dollars on the thing. It’s enough that I won’t be buying a completely thrashed piece of crap, but not so much that if it gets broken or stolen that I’ll be devastated.
I’ve been reading the Brooklyn Craig’s List classifieds, but all it’s doing is making me feel overwhelmed.
Any thoughts out there, interwebs land?
A mountain bike makes sense if you are going to ride down the sides of mountains.
A hybrid makes no sense at all.
A touring bike makes sense if you are going to be spending four/five hours at a stretch riding to Montauk while carrying 30 pounds of supplies in order to sleep and eat in a campground there overnight.
You want a road bike. It doesn’t need to be a racing bike w/ drop handlebars that make yr torso parallel to the ground when you ride it, but it should have skinny wheels that are built for the purpose of riding quickly on paved roads. A cruiser will do this just fine as well; the difference is mostly just that you’ll be sitting upright.
If I were you, I’d test out a three-speed or at most ten-speed road bike (NYC is so flat that I ride a single-speed everywhere), and a three-speed cruiser at a bike shop, get a feel for which you prefer, and then hit craigslist. Also, do NOT buy a bike from the dude in Sheepshead Bay who has 10 million bikes to sell. His bikes suck.
Last, you should absolutely, certainly, unequivocally purchase and read this book: http://www.amazon.com/Bike-Snob-Systematically-Mercilessly-Realigning/dp/0811869989
Wow, thanks for the advice, Kailath. This definitely helps and is sort of in line with what I’ve been thinking. It’s been a long time since I’ve ridden, but I imagine that just a few afternoons out and about will increase my comfort level.