Road Bikes for Sale: A How-To Guide for First Time Riders

Choosing a Bike

February 12, 2019

Road Bikes for Sale: The Best Options

Road bikes for sale can be a big decision especially because of the cost. Depending on what type of road bike you buy, they could be as inexpensive as $400 or $500, but up to $10,000, $15,000. A good entry-level quality road bike is somewhere in the $1,500 to $2,500 range. Hence, it's a big decision that you choose the right store to purchase from. It's their job to provide you for providing the information and resources to make an ideal match.

I can speak to a couple of great places to find road bikes online and also in-store. While I can't tell you every single bike shop that exists, I can tell you that Google is a great resource. If you're looking for road bikes for sale, I would say it's a good idea to set foot into at least one bike shop. This will help you to understand the fitting process.

Being fit for a road bike is a little bit more technical than for recreational bikes. Now, I'll speak to this in a second. We do offer bikes we would classify in the road bike hybrid category, but not full-on road bikes. Ours don't need the same kind of technical fitting as a true road bike.

The Best Bike Shops For Road Bikes

My first suggestion would be to go inside a bike shop. And have the staff explain to you the different sizing of frames. As well as how to be fit to a frame. Once you're armed with that information, I would say do your research.

If you have the correct fitting information, where you buy a road bike is up to you. This is because if you know what frame size you need, and what kind of handlebars you like, you could build it online. Then you can have it shipped to you. Or you could buy it in the store, it doesn't matter. But, if you're not armed with the information it will be difficult to buy online.

If you're buying a road bike, look for a bike shop that's road-specific. There's a lot of bike shops like us. We're more of a recreational-based. As a result, my wealth of information in the road sector is going to be less than a shop that focuses on the road. Road bikes require performance elements that their staff would be more knowledgeable of.

When you look up their page see what their product selection is. If you see them carrying a lot of cruiser bikes and only a couple of road bikes. My suggestion is that they're not right for you for a road bike unless you're concerned about price.

How To Buy A Road Bike On A Budget

If you're only concerned about price, Amazon will be your best bet for an inexpensive road bike. It will cost you $400 or less. However, your selection will be smaller. And you won't be as educated on the product. As a result, its performance may not meet your standards. But again, if price sensitivity is what you're looking for, I would say shop online. This will at least grant you a bigger selection.

If you're looking to get fitted and get your bike tuned exactly to your body. And if you have certain goals around speed or races, I would say buy in a bike shop. That's where to find road bikes on sale that will better suit your needs.

There's another website called Competitivecyclist.com. They're great for road equipment and road bikes. You can plug in your measurements on their website and they will recommend the road bikes best for you.

I can't speak to if their pricing is competitive across the board, but it's something to look at. I would also take a look at bikesdirect.com. They have a good selection of off-brand road bikes. If you understand your sizing and your specs, I would say take a look and see if you can find some bikes for sale. But keep in mind to make sure that they also suit your needs.

Segmentation In The Road Bike Industry

Buying a road bike on sale or for sale can be a challenging feat. It depends on what price segments you're looking at. When you start to get into the $5,000 plus road bikes, the likelihood of finding a great deal on those bikes is less.

As you get higher in price, the margin bike stores and brands make on the bikes comes down as a percentage. However, the dollar amount made per bike increases. Resulting in more wiggle room for profit. But, the margin is getting quite lower for bikes. Consequentially, it prevents retailers from marking those down significantly.

When you come down in price, to the $1,000 to $2,000 range. The margin may be higher so you may be more likely to find bikes in that kind of category on sale. The other reason for that too is that you'll see a more inventory of road bikes at a lower price point. When you walk into a bike store, it's not very common to find let's say 25 bikes all priced over $5,000.

Now, not to say that no road bike store in the U.S. doesn't exist like that. However, you'll see a larger selection in the $1,000 to $3,000 range. This is because they aren't for an entry-level novice. Instead, they target more serious road bikers. Moreover, the larger the inventory in that sector, the more you'll see left over at the end of the season.

Discount Season For Road Bikes

The end of the bike season occurs after Labor Day. The cycling seasons are pretty much the same across the board. They start in February and March and end around Labor Day. On the competitive cyclist side, the season's never end. And that's because these are the riders that take riding seriously.

This means they are willing to strap on ultra-warm clothing in the middle of the winter. Because it means they will still be able to get out there and ride their bikes. Or, if they're not doing that, they're going be at their house on something called rollers. In other words, they'll be riding their actual bike on a treadmill-like device in their house.

Fewer Discounts in the Off-Season

The usage of road bikes for sale doesn't ebb and flow with the seasons as it does with recreational. This partly due to environmental factors. The average recreational rider doesn't want to be riding in the cold. Whereas the dedicated road cyclist does. This plays a role in discounting across accessories and parts related to road bikes. There are fewer discounts in the off-season. This is because less recreational riders look for bikes after Labor Day or before April 1st. Whereas the road cyclist will most likely be riding his bike in his house in the winter to stay in shape. Hence he will be buying components all year long.

And bike shop owners know this. They are aware that dedicated come in at any time and to buy a bike, so their needs to discount aren't going to be as common. As a result, this is where the higher price points originate from.

If you're looking to get a deal on a road bike, I would say you want to focus on the $1,000 to $3,000 price segment. That's your best opportunity to find a larger inventory and more markdowns at the end of the year.

At this moment, sixthreezero doesn't focus on manufacturing road bikes for sale. There are a couple of different reasons that contribute to this. First I would say a big reason is that my personal lifestyle doesn't involve road biking. I have tried the road bike lifestyle, and have decided that I like bicycling and cycling more. I love recreational and social, exercise elements associated with cycling. But not to the point of competitive of long and intense rides. That's not me. Consequentially, our brand doesn't reflect products that enable that type of riding.

Road Bikes Carry The Biking Industry

I'm definitely a proponent of cycling every day or using bikes for everyday transportation. However, I believe that we can fulfill those usages and needs not with road bikes, or elements of road bikes. Instead, we should opt for more use of the hybrid bike category.

That's the primary reason why we don't carry road bikes for sale. It's not part of our brand or who we are. One thing I can say about road bikers is that they make a big contingency of bike sales. A lot of the road bikers are the most dedicated riders of all the segments. Hence they are driving the industry as a whole with the competitive culture.

There are riders that are riding 60 miles a day. Or if not per day, hundreds of miles a week. And so, it's been great for the industry as it fosters relevancy in the bike riding culture. This also helps numbers when pushing for legislation. Their efforts have resulted in more bike lanes and rules for sharing the road with cyclists.

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