Is a Pashley bicycle the one for me.

[Mick Parry]

Chaps

This is my first posting on this forum and I an here for advice.

I am 55 yrs of age and will be retiring later this week.

I want to buy a bicyle for pottering around the area on cycle tracks and roads only. If there is no tarmac, I will not go there.

The average length of journey is likely to be around 5 miles. So I am not breaking any records.

I am not interested in anything flashy, I just want something which will see me out and it is to be reliable and easy to maintain.
In other words, something built to last.

I fancy a Pashly Paramount which can be found

http://www.pashley.co.uk/products/classic/paramount/specification.html

My question is....do you think that this machine is suitable for my needs?

Many thanks


Mick

 

[mjw_byrne]

It sounds like you only want to do some very light riding at low-moderate speeds, with comfort as a main priority. I've never ridden a Pashley but the Paramount looks totally suitable for the kind of riding you want to do.

The only reservation I'd have is that some of the equipment it comes with (like the brakes and gears) looks a bit non-standard, so if anything does go wrong you might have a hard time repairing it or finding somone who can repair it. From this point of view, a similarly-priced mountain bike might be a better bet - it should be just as comfy and reliability shouldn't be an issue because they are built for off-road use. The disadvantage with that idea is that they don't come with the luggage rack and mudguards you get on the Pashley, but how big a disadvantage that is obviously depends on whether or not you intend to ride in wet conditions or carry luggage.

Finally, although reading reviews and people's opinions is helpful, the most important step in buying a bike is to test-ride. Go to a bike shop and test ride loads of bikes and you will be able to get a really good feel for what you like - you might surprise yourself!