Test rides
09-14-16, 03:24 PM
#26
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The last 3 bikes I purchased, I special ordered and never did a test ride.
I know my size and I know how to ride a bike. I know how different groupsets shift and brake.
It's a bike, no need to overcomplicate things. Now if you've never purchased a bike before, riding the one that you're interested in buying, or something similar would be advantageous so you learn your fit and the difference in shifting between the different brands, electronic, and whatnot.
I know my size and I know how to ride a bike. I know how different groupsets shift and brake.
It's a bike, no need to overcomplicate things. Now if you've never purchased a bike before, riding the one that you're interested in buying, or something similar would be advantageous so you learn your fit and the difference in shifting between the different brands, electronic, and whatnot.
09-15-16, 06:07 AM
#27
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I am in the the Orlando area also. What if you don't want a trek nor specialized? I find it impossible to test ride first. And I may be wrong, but it sounds like quite the hassle for a shop to stock enough variety to test ride different frames and sizes or to order in a frame and exchange until you find the right one.
I am 45 min from downtown Orlando, there's no shortage of shops in a 90 minute radius, in a very highly populated area, but unless you want a Trek or Specialized, sorry, test riding what you lust over is just not an option.
And FWIW, I am not saying the shop wouldn't stand behind what they sold, in fact they said they would, but what a misery of inconvenience for all.
I am 45 min from downtown Orlando, there's no shortage of shops in a 90 minute radius, in a very highly populated area, but unless you want a Trek or Specialized, sorry, test riding what you lust over is just not an option.
And FWIW, I am not saying the shop wouldn't stand behind what they sold, in fact they said they would, but what a misery of inconvenience for all.
I'm pretty confident I can find something I would want to ride nearby. If not I'd travel out to Daytona, Tampa, or even Gainseville to check something out.
09-15-16, 06:20 AM
#28
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We do have several shops around here like Winter Garden Wheel Works, Winter Park Cycles, Evolve Cycles, The Cycling Hub, Clermont Cycles, Orange Cycle, Performance Bike, Kyle's Bike shop, Full Circle, Davids World Cycle, Rajin Cajun, Retro City Cycles, Advanced Cycles, Cycle Spectrum, and I know there's more. Besides Trek or Specialized, there's Cannondale, Giant, Bianchi, Scott, Felt, Quintana Roo, BMC, Cervelo, Colnogo, De Rosa, GT, Fuji, Pinarello, Raliegh, Moots, Foundry, Jamis, Niner, Salsa, etc...
I'm pretty confident I can find something I would want to ride nearby. If not I'd travel out to Daytona, Tampa, or even Gainseville to check something out.
I'm pretty confident I can find something I would want to ride nearby. If not I'd travel out to Daytona, Tampa, or even Gainseville to check something out.
I think the above post is spot on. Know your size, it's a bike, don't overcomplicate it.
BTW, Daytona does not have a single shop. Bewilders me.
Ormond and Port Orange have a couple of great ones though. :-)
09-15-16, 06:26 AM
#29
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I never said there was a lack of shops, nor brand choice. But there's certainly a lack of stock outside the big manufacturers.
I think the above post is spot on. Know your size, it's a bike, don't overcomplicate it.
BTW, Daytona does not have a single shop. Bewilders me.
Ormond and Port Orange have a couple of great ones though. :-)
I think the above post is spot on. Know your size, it's a bike, don't overcomplicate it.
BTW, Daytona does not have a single shop. Bewilders me.
Ormond and Port Orange have a couple of great ones though. :-)
I consider Ormond, Holly Hill, and Port Orange to be the Daytona "Area". I guess it depends on what you're looking for, I've found most of our local shops very accommodating when it comes to getting a bike ordered in and/or assembling one from stock to test ride, no obligation.
09-15-16, 06:50 AM
#30
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Knowing your size is good and certainly helps. But often people are looking for different types of bikes - aero, endurance, different materials, and so on and there's no way of knowing how it feels except for test rides. I've ridden different bikes and was surprised on how stiff one was or how much flex was in another.
09-15-16, 08:08 AM
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I think those people with large or small sizes have it much more difficult. I ride a size 54, so I can pretty much go into any shop and find a bunch of bikes in my size. I can ride a 56 frame easily two, which is also common.
When I was shopping, it was like, "Oh, we only have one of those in stock, but it's a 54, so you're in luck!"
All that said, I suspect the more experienced a cyclist is, the less he needs a test ride to tell him too much about a bike.
When I was shopping, it was like, "Oh, we only have one of those in stock, but it's a 54, so you're in luck!"
All that said, I suspect the more experienced a cyclist is, the less he needs a test ride to tell him too much about a bike.
09-15-16, 01:38 PM
#32
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Or we build up our own...
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09-15-16, 03:42 PM
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Out of the dozen bikes I've owned in my adult life, I haven't test rode a single one. No ragrets.
09-15-16, 03:43 PM
#35
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Tested my first two road bikes.
Once I learned my size and fit dimensions I had no problems buying On-Line or from Craigslist.
Once I learned my size and fit dimensions I had no problems buying On-Line or from Craigslist.
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Last edited by 10 Wheels; 09-15-16 at 03:46 PM.
09-15-16, 04:10 PM
#36
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I'm a novice, having just gotten back into riding a couple of years ago. And my LBS never had the exact bike I ended up buying. But they were willing to let me try various bikes to figure out the correct size, and I also rode several different models of bikes to get a feel for different groupsets, disc vs rim brakes, etc so I could get a better understanding of different ride/handling characteristics as well as the feel of various component parts. I walked in with preconceived notions of what I thought I wanted and through that process discovered I wanted to order something completely different. I had fun too.
09-16-16, 08:35 PM
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Pretty sure if you're buying a $5k Madone, they could find a way to get one for you to ride.
09-17-16, 11:09 AM
#38
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Your logic is 100% backwards. The more expensive the bike the harder for a dealer to have one available for a test ride.
Again, I think the whole "you MUST take a test ride" thing is impractical for the LBS and not necessary for most riders.
09-19-16, 08:14 AM
#39
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yup, you test ride the Hyundai or toyota to see if it has enough hump for merging and the cup holders are conveniently located. You buy the Ferrari when you can afford it.
09-20-16, 09:34 AM
#40
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Personally, I don't know many people that insist on a test ride unless they're new or trying out new groupset or type of bike.
09-20-16, 10:12 AM
#41
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I understand exactly what you mean. I work a part-time job selling archery equipment here in NC. There are a lot of similarities between bows and bikes. We could not afford to carry a representative model of every single bow we could sell, but we can come very close in setting up a bow for a customer in terms of sizing, draw length, draw weight, and some other variables which would let them come very close to the one that they are interested in ordering. Just explaining the slight differences in the ones we carry and the ones they want are usually satisfactory to most folks.
Also, OP, you're going to be hard pressed to find any place that stocks F8s. They are sold as framesets, and few shops want to build one up for test rides as the part spec may not be what you want.
