There are lots of reasons to choose a bicycle as your primary means of transportation. You may not even choose to ride a bicycle as a means of transportation at all. Some people have decided to take up cycling as a way to exercise. Some choose to cycle because they are in competitions with cycling. And there are others who decide to take up cycling as a hobby to share with their family or friends. Regardless of why you are taking up cycling, you are going to have to consider a variety of things when choosing the bicycle that is a perfect fit for you. Here are some hints to help you make your choice.
One of the major parts of choosing the right cycling bicycle for you is making sure that the bicycle is the right size. Begin by measuring your inseam. Simply measure through your inner leg from your groin to the bottom of your foot to find out your inseam. You should ideally be able to place both feet on the ground when sitting in on your bike. This is for safety more than anything else, if your brakes should fail you will not be able to easily stop the bike otherwise.
Take 9" away from the total of your inseam if you plan to get a road bike. The size of the tires a road bike uses are the reason for this. Road bikes are meant for city cycling—the tires are thinner and work best on concrete paving. For a mountain bike take away 12 inches from your inseam. Again this is to account for the size of tires. These tires are designed to handle rocky and jagged terrain so are therefore thicker. You can use mountain bikes for city cycling, but the opposite is not true and they are nowhere near as good on city streets as road bikes.
How many gears will you use on a regular basis? Choose according to how you’ll ride; mountainous areas require more gears than flat land areas do. You can’t evaluate the bike only by the number of gears it has. In actuality, you may never use all the gears. Don’t spend money on something you won’t use. Ensure you have enough gears to handle the situations in which you will be great site riding, especially if you bike will be your main mode of transport. You need to consider several things when choosing your bicycle for the first time. Is this a bike you are going to be riding every single day or is it a bike you are only going to ride every now and them? What height makes you feel the most comfortable? Do you prefer your feet to rest flat on the ground or do you like to have some room between them and the ground when you are sitting on the bicycle’s seat? These are some of the things you need to consider when choosing your bike.