New Bike

So I went down to St. Paul yesterday to buy myself a bike. I had tried to do some research online but there are TONS of brands, and TONS of models within those brands. Everyone you ask has at least 2 opinions, so it is very unhelpful.

As I told my friend before I left I was mentally prepared for information overload and decision paralysis. What I was also prepared for was some sticker shock, but more on that later.

So I left Duluth about 6:30am in a dreary and rainy early morning. As I drove further south the weather improved and quit raining at least. I arrived at the store shortly after they opened. I went inside and they had tons of bikes. Road bikes, Tri bikes, mountain bikes, hybrid bikes, fat bikes....already overwhelming.

Future Decorations?

Then Rich comes up and asks if I need help with a bike. I said yes and we introduced ourselves and I settled in for a long day. I don't know if Rich expected to spend the next 6 hours with me or not, but thats what ended up happening.

Rich was incredibly patient. We spent the first hour talking about my history, what kind of biking I hoped to do, then what kind of road bikes (that term is too generic it turns out) there were, and what I might be interested it.

I decided pretty quickly that a hybrid bike was not what I was looking for, so we focused on road bikes. Talked about some of the brands, how they differ etc. We talked about components and levels of Shimano....oh the list goes on. Like I predicted, information overload.

So we picked out 3 different bikes to try. They put some flat pedals on them, and I took them all for about a 2 mile test ride. I hands down like a bike better than the other two. Not quite sure why, but I did. Then, and only then, did we even talk about price.

HOLY SH!T!! The bike I liked was way beyond what I was expecting to pay. Even above my high number.

So I told him that I was going to go to lunch and think about it. He gave me a recommendation for a great place for a burger and it was wonderful. Go check out the Nook if you are in St. Paul.

I walked out of the store and of course called my wife. I got the same response from her. Then I texted a friend and he said I would be very happy with that bike and that it would last me a long time. So with a full tummy and the ok of a couple of key people, I headed back to the store.

My new bike shoes

I had to buy, bike shorts (well actually a bike overall), bike shoes and a helmet. Those decisions were quite easy actually. Then with that, I hopped on this monstrosity to get fit for my bike.

The GURU Bike Fitter

It took about 30 minutes of adjusting seat height, fore/aft location, and the handle bar height and fore/aft location. They also used that time to explain how to clip in and out of the pedals.

So with the fit complete, then they finished building up my bike, gave me a quick demonstration of some basic maintenance, swiped my credit card and off I went with my new bike. A Cervelo S3

I have not yet named it, though the leading candidate is Charlie.