Choosing a High Performance Road Bike

Chances are, if you are in the market for a high performance road bike, you already have some idea of what type of attributes are most important to you. For instance, are you willing to sacrifice a little comfort for a super stiff race machine? Or, is it a silky smooth ride you’re after? Nevertheless, there are a few things to consider, no matter what type of ride you prefer.

First and foremost, your bike should fit you, and fit you well. This is true on any bike, but, perhaps even more so on a road bike due to the fact that the rider typically remains in one position for longer periods of time. However, if you are going to buy a production bike, test riding a number of bikes can be an important step in finding the one that feels the best, even prior to any personalizing. From there, you can play with saddle position, handle bar angle and height, and crank length in order to maximize your own strengths as well as achieve superior comfort.

Components are also an important factor in a bike’s performance. The top three brands choices, Sram, Campagnolo, and Shimano, all offer excellent shifting and braking performance, especially in the upper end product.

Most high performance road bike frames today are made from either carbon or titanium. Both are lightweight and extremely responsive: not as rigid as aluminum, nor as heavy as steel. Titanium will typically offer a silkier and more forgiving ride and also does not fatigue over time, making an optimal choice for custom builds. However, it is truly amazing what manufacturers are doing with carbon these days. Carbon, though characteristically a stiffer material, can feel surprisingly supple and smooth. Whatever material you choose for your high performance road bike, achieving good torsional rigidity, while eliminating as much of the jack hammer effect caused by surface imperfections as possible, is a reasonable goal to keep in mind while evaluating a variety of bikes. Also, it is common knowledge that bikes are getting lighter with each year. Though an attribute in most cases, avoid buying a road bike that is so incredibly light that it feels flimsy at high speeds or in the slightest bit of wind.

And lastly, high performance bicycles these days are often quite artistically created, the result being visually beautiful and inspiring. Of course, this is merely a plus and has nothing to do with the technical performance of the bike; however, an aesthetically pleasing appearance is intoxicating and can make a dedicated rider simply fall in love.