Got into road because going fast was fun. Disliked gravel becauae of all the cleaning of drive train.
Now waxing instead of oiling chain so the split here is likely gonna be 50/50.
Have pondered the commute to work but then shower when fet there plus all tbe other complications involved makes it a bit too off-putting to put serious consideration...
In a previous job, I shared an office with a couple of road bike junkies. One had a full workshop to build/repair bikes in his basement. Their passion rubbed off, and I ended up with a Swiss road bike frame that we built up from scratch. The three of us would ride through the north shore of Massachusetts, and we had a great time. I inquired about some parts for my bike, and ended up having the USA distributor of Italian component maker Campagnolo think I was a dealer, so we were buying the parts for our bikes at dealer cost. It was a pretty sweet deal.
The company eventually moved me to the UK, and early on I realized that the narrow roads weren't cycling friendly, but there was some great off road trails. I was in Denmark meeting with a client who imported out products, and also had a chain of cycling shops throughout Scandinavia. They shared a warehouse in their HQ where they'd build cycles to deliver to their shops. At the end of the meeting, they walked me down to the warehouse, and I got fitted for a mountain bike that they sold me at their cost. So I bought a Marin mountain bike from the USA at a shop in Denmark, and it was shipped to me in the UK. A true global purchase. I still have both, but don't do nearly as much riding these days.
In my younger years I used a Schwinn Varsity 10-speed every place that the other kids went with their old school BMX type bikes. The Schwinn was heavy for a road bike but built like a tank. I was so hard on my bikes that I literally broke frames, but never broke a Schwinn frame. I did break a rear axel once, but that is a relatively quick fix if you're reasonably handy.
I currently have a Schwinn Sierra. I always thought these were the 5-speed versions of the Varsity, but this one is a 10-speed. It is also heavy and ruggedly built.
Of course in my younger years I was only about 120 lbs or so and am just over 200 lbs now so that could make a difference, but rail trails would be the roughest terrain I'd be on these days.
Primarily a roadie here but slowly taking up some gravel.
Unfortunately not as many miles as used to as life has gotten busy but hopefully as weather changes will get more miles this year.
I do triathalons. Own several bikes, my favorite is a 2025 Cervelo Red AXS 1. Usually buy a new one every year, sometimes every second year. My bikes are in a rotation, new one in, old one out
I'm a roadie. In a healthy year, I ride 3000 miles plus. I want to reach 4000. Now that I am closer to retirement, that goal is in reach.
Just got my road bike tightened up and ready to ride today. Hope to get 3000-4000 in the for the year. We are blessed with great hills and a lot of farmland around here so you get a great workout and little traffic.
sexxyjessy69 Good luck to ya! :)
"Rough/off/gravel roads? Mountain or cyclocross."
I would like a bike for rough/gravel roads. I don't care about the suspension systems they all seem to have- I'm not intending to ride it long distances or at break-neck speeds in competition. I can see the suspension would be nice, but for my purposes, I think it might be one more thing to maintain.
A lot depends on what kind of riding you plan to do.
Higher-mile, high-speed riding on good roads carrying little aside from a water bottle? Road bike.
Casual riding around potentially with a stop at the grocery store or for dinner? Hybrid.
Rough/off/gravel roads? Mountain or cyclocross.
Long distance carrying lots of stuff? Touring.
My wife and I ride Kona Sutras, which are touring bikes. They look like road bikes but are much more heavily built and can carry tons of stuff. We do cycling vacations where we load up and ride 40-70 miles a day between towns. I also ride it to the gym and just around town. Not as fast as a road bike but more versatile.
jawwge,
thank you so much! the guys at the shop recommended i come in for like a custom fit and trial. basically they said they could get my measurements and do a few trial rides and find something that works for me. honestly i dont mind spending the money once as long as its something really nice. wish me luck!!
Meh, I never use it. But I know people who do.
“ riding shorts, which makes all the difference in the world.”
And, remember the butt butter, also known as chamois butter, or anti-chafe cream. I consider it to be essential equipment for any ride longer than an hour.
"but get a really good bicycle seat."
Mrs VA and I both ride Brooks saddles.
But nearly always with padded riding shorts, which makes all the difference in the world.
sexxyjessy69, Expensive is relative, you can spend anywhere from $100 for a wallyworld special, to $10,000 plus for a carbon frame custom. Lowe end bikes are designed to last about 500 miles, then they're junk. Anything over about $2,000 isn't worth it unless you intend to compete on some sort of pro level.
Alot will depend on what kind of riding you'll be doing, road touring, mountain biking, or rail trail. Jus for an idea what to expect from what level of bike, I ride a GT Transeo 1.0. I've had it 10 years, and have about 10,000 rail trail miles on it. Besides tires & brake shoes, it's needed a new drive train, front brakes and a rear rim. It was a $1,000 bike in 2014. I highly recommend you buy from a bike shop that has a pro fitter in house, who can determine the right size of bike for your build, and then precisely fit the bike to you. Your ass will love you for it :)
Sexxyjessy,
“Expensive” in the cycling world is relative.
Most bike shops, and most cycling enthusiasts will tell you to buy the best bike that you can afford. You’ll pay for lightness, strength, and comfort. All of those things help you go faster and ride longer, but those things only count if you want to compete.
If you only want to get in better shape go heavy and go cheap, but get a really good bicycle seat.
im starting to get into it too!!! i try to jog a lot, but honestly there isnt a sports bra in the world that helps me enough to make jogging enjoyable lol. is it worth upgrading to an "expensive" bike? im thinking about going to a bike shop soon to talk to the guys up there about what i should get. im hoping this type of cardio will be less painful, lmao
I ride my Kona Sutra touring bike to my gym - 17 miles round trip - between 5-7 days a week. Always on pavement.
My wife and I occasionally do bike tour vacations of 250-450 miles over 6-10 days.
Trek electric bike. Go further and hills are easy peasy. Just don't ride enough and dealing with short spring and summers here.
Ride quite a bit on the river trails (some converted rail trails) here in MC/PG/DC area, mostly all paved, some gravel. One of these days I'll rack the bike up to the NCR rail trail that runs from Hunt Valley MD up to York PA.
Rode a lot when I as younger. Road, mountain, and bmx bikes.
Hardly ride anymore, mostly because it hurts a lot more when I fall.
Rail trails here too, western Pa
I like to peddle for good cardio and hit the gym both. I ride rails to trails mostly in E. Ohio.
Who else rides? What style, road, rail trail, mountain bike?
