Tune Up Tuesday

I am a self-proclaimed gadget geek (just ask my checkbook!), but the single most important thing I have bought in my healthy lifestyle adventure was without a doubt my bike…

Prior to the purchase of my road bike I had only ridden on standard issue (i.e., Wal-mart purchased) mountain bikes. I had never even set foot on a road bike. However, I went to a friend’s triathlon last summer and decided then and there that I wanted to do a triathlon and I knew I need a bike to do one.

The day I decided to visit the bike store just so happened to be the annual sale at said bike store. The place was crazy busy and the sales were great. The only problem was that they had sold out of several models of bike. The only one available for me was a Giant Avail 3.  For Giant bikes, the number refers to the quality of the gear on the bike (e.g., the shifters, pedals, gears, etc.); the lower the number, the better the gear. I tried the bike out and ordered one, not knowing any better. They told me it would come in a couple of weeks.

5 days passed and my bike was ready, and I wasn’t! I still didn’t know if I wanted a 3 or a higher version, so I called my good friend (the same one that road in the triathlon the year prior) and asked him to come to the bike store with me. It just so happened the store now had both the Avail 3 and 1, so I test drove both. I wasn’t really decided and couldn’t at that time tell the difference but my friend told me it really would be noticeable and if he would do his bike purchasing experience all over again he would buy the bike with the better gear.   He said the difference would be most noticeable in the shifting.  I ended up taking his advice and upgraded to the Giant Avail 1.

I remember my first ride like it was yesterday. I was literally astonished at how fast I went. I also remember it very well because I fell getting off the bike that day because the pedals are clip-ins and I wasn’t quite thinking of how I would get out of the pedals when the bike stopped (I already had appropriate shoes because I bought some for spinning the previous year). To this day I love how fast the bike feels. Prior to buying the bike, my only experience with biking was my trike team in college (read my About Me for more info), a few spinning classes and a bit of mountain bike riding (mostly on roads ironically), yet my speed on the bike has been pretty great. I’m sure that my training as a runner helped that but more importantly I think my bike helped. I would also say that to anyone that is semi-interested in seriously doing triathlons a road bike is essential.  However, I would not recommend my course of action in buying a bike new and would instead recommend going the Craigslist route. I have been fortunate to fall in love with biking, but what if I would have hated it? I am sure I would have regretted spending the money in that case. Lucky for me it didn’t turn out that way and I instead literally crave riding my bike.

The day I bought the bike I also spent $300 in gear. Next week’s tune up post will explore what I consider the essential (i.e., don’t leave the garage without it) gear.

For now I’ll leave you with a picture of me safely getting off my bike