Sizing

I am trying to help a Swedish cyclist in the swnet.sport.cykel newsgroup who is about to buy
a new bike.

I am attempting to point him in the direction of a traditional cycling shop. He has about
$1600 to spend.

Can anyone point me (and him) at a good link when buying a new bike. Sizing in particular is
interesting as there seem to be many conflicting approaches this subject.

This rider is a first time buyer, age 25, and has some considerable experience of riding on the
road, but only on MTB. Now he wants to get a little more serious and buy a racing bike.

I am also curious about the cycling shop situation in other countries. In Sweden there are not many
specialist bike shops, most racing bikes are sold "off-the-peg" by sports shops lacking in knowledge
and capability of wheel-building, frame-sizing or component specs. These store personnel have no
interest in cycling. Years ago bikes over $500 were sold as frames + components of personal choice.
The bike shop man was usually an ex top racer or at least a keen cyclist. Nowadays "off-the-peg"
bikes are retailing at prices exceeding $2500, young shop assistants are saying to experienced
cyclists "buy this, this is what you need".

Does this worrying trend occur in the States? Other countries?

Garry Jones English cyclist ResIDING in Sweden.

 

"Garry Jones" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> I am trying to help a Swedish cyclist in the swnet.sport.cykel newsgroup who is about to buy a
> new bike.
>
> I am attempting to point him in the direction of a traditional cycling shop. He has about $1600
> to spend.
>
> Can anyone point me (and him) at a good link when buying a new bike. Sizing in particular is
> interesting as there seem to be many conflicting approaches this subject.
>

Garry, I don't know if you've seen this but it's an excellent description of the problem.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-sizing.html

I'm in a similar position to your friend and looking to spend a similar amount. It seems to me that
you can buy an extremely capable bike at this price. I found that the more I looked into sizing the
more complicated it got - different frame geometries, different measurement methods. I too thought
that a lot of shops didn't have the capability to sell me a suitable bike. Someone pointed me in the
direction of a shop with a fitting rig and, having been there and spoken with the staff, I think
I'll buy from there. My advice then is to go to a specialist shop and rely on them to give proper
advice. I hope you and your friend aren't too far from a decent shop!

Michael MacClancy