How to take a successful test ride

[Harry Meatmotor]

Personally, I’d say proper fit is going to be the biggest thing that will determine how much you’ll love your new bike. Any competent LBS should know how to get the bike properly fit to your body. If you get the feeling that no matter what the shop does to adjust the fit of the bike, and you can’t get comfortable, you might be better off with a different bike. Keep in mind it might take 20-30 minutes of pedaling before you start to notice any fit issues – so be prepared to take your time. If you feel rushed by the LBS, you might want to try coming back to the shop during a less busy time. Further, if you’re feeling pressured to close the sale and you’re still a little unsure, there’s absolutely no harm in asking for more time. Sometimes shopping with a more bike-knowledgable friend can help – especially if they can come out on the test ride with you. If it’s quiet at the shop, you may be able to get the salesperson to accompany you.

When you’re out on a test ride, try riding the bike over varied terrain, over some bumps, maybe even down a curb if you’re confident enough. Piloting the bike should feel intuitive – it shouldn’t surprise you if you hit a bump or roll over some loose gravel. Try riding a low speed and check for things like toe-overlap (where, when you’re turning tightly and pedaling, your toe may come into contact with the front tire). Toe overlap can be a little unnerving, and it helps to know if it’s something the bike “features”. Also, while you’re riding, don’t hesitate to shift through all the gears, if anything’s amiss, definitely tell the salesperson if the bike isn’t shifting well. Sometimes this is due to poor adjustments, sometimes it’s due to poor shifting choices. With internally geared hubs, however, the shifting should be as simple as it gets.

Try to get a feel for how powerful the brakes are by gradually applying more and more pressure to the brakes – remember, the front brake is about twice as powerful as the rear. If you’re feeling confident, try applying enough rear brake to make the bike skid a little. Like I said earlier, you’re trying to see how the bike *could* surprise you as well as seeing how comfortable it is. Ask the salesperson where a good hill is, and depending on how committed you are to getting a little sweaty, try riding down the hill at speed (15-20mph), braking to a stop, then climbing back up the hill. See if you notice the difference in weight between bikes, and try pedaling out of the saddle. Most bikes behave a bit differently when you’re seated versus standing on the pedals.

Try carrying the bike up some stairs, if you can find a staircase – if you’re going to be doing this often, you want to get a feel for how much of a difference a few pounds could make.

My last bit of advice is that you’re shopping for a bike and a bike shop – you want to find a shop that you feel treats you with dignity and respect, first and foremost. You want a sales staff that you feel confident is selling you into a lifetime of cycling, not just selling the shop out of a new bike. You also want a service staff that isn’t too grumpy.:p

[jrenaut]

That was one huge advantage of shopping at the Bike Rack – my normal big hill on my commute home is just a few blocks away, so I could go up it and back down. This was especially good because the bike I loved online felt awful on the hill. It didn’t fit me at all. The bike I ended up buying felt glorious on the hill.

[Dickie]

For what it’s worth here’s what I told a friend recently:

Take your cycling cleats, and perhaps regular sneakers as well if you are not sure what pedals will be on the bike, but also let them know what shoes and cleats you use in case they can install something similar for the test ride. Ideally you want to mimic your normal riding habits and attire as best as possible. Bring your helmet and cycling gear…. be comfortable. You want to feel relaxed out and about on the bike…. give it a good long ride… 15 minutes min. Make sure they fit you to the bike properly and adjust the saddle height for you. First thing you should do is make sure it is built correctly… don’t go bombing down some hill to find out the brakes were not tightened. Try not to confuse assembly and adjustment issues with real limits on the parts. Go through ALL the gears and multiple combinations, find out how well it shifts from the toughest combinations to the easy ones….. you should be able to use every gear without issue (although you will need to trim the front derailiier as in any bike). If it shifts poorly go back and tell them, it could be a simple adjustment or it might indicate the quality of the parts.

Get a feel for the bike, accelerate and brake relatively hard (don’t go over the handlebars). Take some corners at speed and get an idea how well it tracks and how comfortable you feel on it. Try riding no hands (if comfortable) and see how it tracks a straight line. Listen for any odd noises; pings, groins, rattles, etc. Ride in your comfort position… hands on hoods, hands on flats and get a sense of how you feel… Are you extended out too far? Are you cramped? Will they swap out the necessary parts to give you a better fit such as the stem or even the bars themselves. Ride in the drops a little…is this comfortable? Can you see without straining your neck or having to push your helmet too far back?

Look for any defects on the frame, dents, cracked paint, even look on the bottom if you can. Ask about warranty from the manufacturer and from the store (these might differ).. how do they handle a defect down the road…. will they take care of it for you? Ask about the first year, specifically adjustments during the break-in period.

Hope that helps for now

[Vicegrip]

To add a small addendum to the good advice.

If you already have a bike and are looking to upgrade bring it or better yet ride it to the store. You will be warmed up with the feel of you present bike fresh in your mind. The shop can set up the test bike from the measurements of the existing bike. You can also put them side by side and look at the geometry differences and the like. “Ride lots” Give yourself the time for and try and get in a good ride within the limits the shop might have. I just went through the frame upgrade thing and I found it takes a while and some good variation in terrain and pavement to get an idea of the bike’s feel.

[kcb203]

Also, when comparing bikes, realize that road feel is hugely affected by tires and inflation. You may think you prefer the ride of one bike, but it may be just because the tires are 10 psi lower than the tires on another bike.

[dasgeh]

I’d just add give yourself plenty of time. You want to take it out for >30 minutes, but you probably will need to go out and come back a few times to get all the little things as good as you can get them (tires, seat height, handlebar position, etc). If you’ve only budgeted 30 minutes, you won’t get a full 30 minute test ride in.

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