Perfect kids bike fit (part 2) from Harlingen bike shop

www.bicycleworldrgv.com

In the most recent blog post from our Harlingen bike shop, we discussed the sizing of children's bicycles, and the importance of proper fit. No kid should have to ride an ill-fitting bike! While it might seem like a good idea to get a size up for growth, an oversized bike can be difficult, frustrating, and dangerous for a child to ride. Before purchasing a bike, choose a good size for your kid by checking standover height. As your child grows, knowing how to adjust the seat will allow for some growth with their bike before you have to replace it.

To check standover height, have your child straddle the top bar of the bike with feet planted on the ground. There should be 1-2"  of space between their groin area and the top tube. 

Next, adjust the seat's height. Position the seat so your child can be in a comfy riding position. Kids should ride in a mostly upright position. Their elbows should be gently bent with their hands on the grips. Allow slight flex in their knee at the bottom of a pedal stroke, not hyper-extension. 

Come into our shop in Harlingen to see our selection of quality kid's bike that can safely withstand tough riding providing lasting enjoyment.

Perfect kids bike fit from Harlingen bike shop

Check out our bikes for all ages at www.bicycleworldRGV.com

Our Harlingen bike shop has been sharing our tricks of the trade for selecting a proper bike fit, and making adjustments. Each style of bike has it's own fit guidelines, that will maximize the benefits for it's particular type of riding. Proper fit is important for safety and will improve comfort, ergonomics, performance, and efficiency of your bicycle. 
We covered guidelines for mountain bikes, and in this two part post we examine children's bike sizing and fitting.

Kids’ bikes are sized according to the size of the wheel, not the frame. A great way to start is to come into a local bicycle retailer with your kid, and have a bicycle expert direct you to the right size. If your child is pretty average sized for their age, the wheel sizes translate approximately as follows:

14"-  4 to 6 years 

16"- 5 to 8 years 

18-20"- 7- to 10-years

24"- 10 and up
You can use this chart as a starting point, but you should make your selection by fitting the bike to your child's body, not their age.

More on Perfect Mountain Bike Fit from bike shop near Weslaco

Our bike shops (close by Weslaco) just posted the first of a few tips for how to adjust your mountain bike for perfect fit. 

Some riders may make adjustments to these guidelines because of their specific style, but these are the most common things we consider for the right fit. We already covered standover height and reach. 

Here are a few more of the things we look at with fit...

3. Adjusting saddle height: When on the saddle, feet on pedals, your knees should be slightly bent at the bottom of a pedal stroke. If both your feet are able to sit flat on the ground, you probably need raise the seat.
4. Stem adjustment: Have another person hold the bike up while you sit on the saddle. If your arms are stretching or your elbows are locked, your stem needs adjustment. Some models have an adjustable stem. If not, you can have a bike shop replace your stem with one that is the right length and angle for your proportions.
5. Adjusting saddle position: The saddle is usually parallel to the ground. With your feet on the pedals,  your knee comes directly over the ball of your foot. When you pedal, your shin is angled slightly forward. If your legs are positioned different than this, you may need saddle adjustment.

Our bike experts can always assist with finding the right bicycle for your needs and body, as well as getting your bike fitted for your perfect ride.  

Bicycle shop Harlingen: Perfect Mountain Bike Fit

If you buy your new mountain bike at one of our bike shops (Harlingen, Brownsville, or McAllen) you can trust that your new bike will be fitted properly, or you can bring it back for adjustment. Having a bike that fits you well is essential for your bike to have top performance, fitness benefit, and comfort.
The following are a few of our bike shop's tips for achieving perfect fit. These tips are general guidelines, and some riders may choose to make adjustments to them to reflect their riding needs and style.
1. To find standover height: Straddling the top tube, lift your bicycle. On a typical hard tail, this should leave at least 2 inches between the tires and the ground. For some types of riding, the preference may be for up to a 3-5 inch clearance. On a full suspension bike, 1" may be adequate. Full suspension will mean your bike's height will be compressed when you're seated.
2. To adjust reach: When seated, with your hands placed on the handlebar grips, your elbows should be gently bent, not hyper-extended. This will allow your arms to absorb some of the impact of bumps and rough terrain without undue strain.

See our next post for more of our tips on adjusting mountain bike fit...

2013 Specialized Crosstrail Review by Times Writer

Roy Wallack writes about bicycles for the LA Times.  He also is the do-author of "Bike for Life:  How to Ride to 100," Roy  checked out four fitness bikes in a recent column for the Los Angeles Times.  He gave this overview of the fitness bike category:

If you're ready to ride a bike for fitness but not ready to hunch over like a Tour de France racer or tackle death-defying single-track trails in the mountains, a single-speed, bulbous-tire beach cruiser won't do. You need a "fitness bike," what the industry now calls the broad category that combines the large, fast-rolling 700-C wheels of road bikes, a tough multi-tread tire and the straight handlebars of a mountain bike. Formerly known as hybrids, these lightweight aluminum-frame bikes have become more refined, stylish and specialized; all work for commuting while sporting varying capabilities for pavement and mild dirt paths.

Roy' review of the 2013 Specialized CrossTrail Fitness Bike was almost all thumbs up:

Specialized CrossTrail: A versatile pavement and dirt-path bike with Shimano Altus 24-speed trigger-shifter gearing, light-duty suspension fork with 60 millimeters (2¼ inches) of travel, tough multi-belt 38-millimeter-wide tires and anti-numbness platform handlebar grips. 

Likes: Rugged, fast and comfortable. Perfect if you ride on the street and well-graded dirt paths. Although not designed for it, the CrossTrail even got me through some rocky single-track trails due to its shock and bulletproof knobby tires. Higher-end models add disc brakes, a lock-out on the fork, internally run cables and better components. 

Dislikes: Since the fork tempts you to do challenging trails that you probably shouldn't do, I would have preferred a higher, mountain-bike-style bottom bracket (pedal axel) for rock clearance and a wider frame spacing to accommodate wider tires.
Price: $580 ($630 with disc brakes).

2013 Specialized Allez Review? Test Ride at Bicycle World Harlingen

Our bike shop in Harlingen has new 2013 bikes in, including the 2013 Specialized Allez!

If you are new to the world of road cycling, and want a top-ranking entry-level bicycle that packs excellent value, look no further than the 2013 Specialized Allez. The Allez uses Specialized’s A1 Premium Aluminium which is light, while still offering a sturdy stiff feel on the road. It is equipped with a Shimano 2300 groupset with 16 gears through a compact 50/34 chainset and 8-speed 12/25t rear cassette, enough to take you up steep climbs and give you plenty of speed on flat areas as well. 

The Allez is designed to have a strong frame, and great performance and handling. The riding position is quite comfortable, making it a great first road bike. Alliz picks up speed nice and fast.

It features Specialized's excellent Espoir Sport tires, which have an outer tread, performing well in all-weather conditions, nice and sharp on corners. 

Overall, this is a smooth, comfortable road bike, with great performance at an excellent value.

2013 Specialized Camber at bike shop Harlingen

Trail enthusiasts, get ready…the 2013 Specialized Cambers are in at our bike shop in Harlingen.
Here is a look at some of the changes to this fast and capable trail bike:
The new Camber is only available as a 29er. 26 and 650b have been discontinued.
The standover height of the new Camber is lower than the old model. Riders looking for great value will appreciate the availability of the new M5 aluminum model.
Autosag is now included on all models of the Camber. The new rear shock linkage offers much stiffer torsion, while carrying lighter, and giving better action. Specialized has added lighter Royal rims on all models. All in all, some great improvements on an already outstanding trail bike. The new 2013 Camber offers a lighter, more nimble ride with great climb! Come in and check them out, along with our other new 2013 bikes from Specialized, Giant, Raleigh, and more...

Newest bikes: Specialized 2013 Roubaix

Come into our Harlingen bike shop near Mercedes and see the new 2013 models we have coming in!
Specialized has done it again with the new 2013 Roubaix, their best-selling endurance bike series. The popularity of endurance bikes is growing and Specialized’s Roubaix bikes are enduringly popular.
Specialized designed and tested a number of different innovations, including putting suspension in the back of the new Roubaix. They developed several of these and the 2013 model is the final result of their creativity and meticulous research. The goal was to make the 2013 Roubaix faster than ever.
Changes included, notably, size-specific steerer tubes, which are 30 g lighter, and according to Specialized, result in forks that are 20% more compliant. The tubing sizes and layups have also been made size-specific, improving both comfort and performance. The newly designed Zertz seatstays are straighter, giving more rigidity while still absorbing vibrations, and the Zerts elastomer insert is redesigned to make layup easier and increase consistency.
Come in an check out these and other new 2013 bikes! Read more about the new Roubaix from Specialized at Bikerumor.com

Is There A Cardboard Bike in Your Future?

Will this bike soon become the cheapest to hit the shelves at our bike shop near Weslaco?
A new design for a bicycle from an entepreneur Izhar Gafni, out of Israel, is made from light-weight, durable, eco-friendly, inexpensive, and waterproof cardboard! That's right, you heard that right.
Gafni wanted to create a bicycle that would be too inexpensive to be vulnerable to theft, and began experimenting with building a bicycle out of cardboard boxes. Though he was met with skepticism from engineers, her persevered and now has a working model- an actual bicycle made from cardboard.
The bicycle prototype may still undergo changes, but currently the production cost is between $9 and $12 per bike. Gafni has not yet found a manufacturer for the bikes, so it is uncertain what the total cost will be, but Gafni says it will cost less than $90 off the shelf.

bike shop Harlingen: Team Sky's win strategy makes its mark

As we followed the 2012 Tour de France from our bike shop in Harlingen, Texas, one thing that was memorable about this year's competition was the strategy of Britain's Team Sky. Sky's success reminds the world, that this is, for better or for worse, a team sport.

Bradley Wiggins took home England's first yellow jersey, no surprise to anyone who had been following the race. Wiggins held a comfortable lead for a good part of the race. The win was a virtual certainty by Saturday, after Wiggins won his second time trial. It would have taken something major to turn the tides on his win at that point.

Wiggins finished on Sunday with his teammate Chris Froome close behind. Froome followed just 3:21 after him, dramatically short, especially considering the team dynamics which had caused a stir in some of the previous stages.

Froome surpassed expectations with his outstanding performance on mountain climbs, putting Team Sky's winning strategy to the test. The team had put its money on Wiggins ability to win the time trials, and Froome was held back in several stages in order to ensure Wiggins' lead. The tension over this strategy erupted in an exchange of catty tweets between Froome's girlfriend and Wiggins' wife, starting in the 11th stage. 

 Team Sky's teamwork also made its mark when Mark Cavendish was supported in taking a fourth consecutive stage win on the Champs-Elysees. Wiggins was happy with Sky's teamwork. "It's magnificent," he said. "For us to finish like this as a team, helping Mark to victory and allowing him to defend his record here... it's incredible."

Cyclist injured in theater shooting

News of the tragic shooting in Colorado has touched our Harlingen bike shop. We heard the news that a cyclist on a cross country trip was one of the fifty people injured in Friday's shooting that killed twelve others. 

The cyclist, Stephen Martin, from Connecticut, was riding cross country with his travel partner Ethan, and they decided to go to the movies with a friend at the Aurora, Colorado theater. Martin was shot in the the neck, and sustained other injuries from shrapnel on his chest and face. He underwent surgery for his injuries, and is recuperating in the hospital.

He says he hopes to continue and finish his trip, which he has been planning for almost three years. Martin said today that he had not yet been told whether or when he will be able to finish, but he is hopeful. "In some sense, I'd feel like if we can't complete it, it's like the terrorists have really won...I have some scars, but I'll be fine," he said. "I really want to ride."

Our thoughts are with those affected by this tragedy.  Stephen Martin, wishing you a speedy recovery, and a victorious finish to your trip!

Tour de France stage 17

 Nicolas Bouvy / EPA / July 18, 2012

Our bike shop near Rio Hondo is following the Tour de France in its final exciting days!
Brit Bradley Wiggins endured the grueling, mountainous stage 17 of the race Thursday, and said he feels it is "pretty much over". With just three stages remaining in the 2012 Tour de France, Wiggins seems secure in his place as the yellow jersey holder. Wiggins finished 3rd in stage 17, with a 2 minute 5 second overall lead over his teammate Christopher Froome, who came in ahead of Wiggins in stage 17, in second place. 
The remaining stages in the Tour de France are two flat stages and a time trial, which Wiggins is expected to do well in. With any luck, Wiggins will, in three days, be the first Tour de France winner from Great Britain.
Alejandro Valverde of Spain enjoyed an emotional win in the 17th stage, after returning from a two-year doping ban, and a rough tour start, including surviving three crashes. A teary Valverde said of his victory, “It erases all of the past.”

Bike shop Mercedes: Tour de France 12th stage

Follow our bike shop bike shop Mercedes' blog updates on the 2012 Tour de France from now until July 22nd. 

Britain's David Millar claimed an emotional victory in the 12th stage yesterday after what has been a harrowing tour for the Garmin-Sharp team which has lost a number of riders including their team leader, Ryder Hesjedal. 

Bicycling.com asked David Millar about the 12th stage win in light of the team's difficulties. "It's massive. It's been a horrific Tour for us so far," said Millar. "I really wanted to do something...prove that we're still here and show that Garmin-Sharp is one of the best cycling teams in the world." 

France's Pierre Rolland took his maiden victory in the 10th stage, followed by another win in 11. 

Britain's Bradley Wiggins further secured his lead against Australia's defending champion Cadel Evans in the 11th stage. Evans had begun stage 11 in second place, only one minute, 53 seconds behind Wiggins, but dropped to fourth overall at 3:19. 

Tour de France 2012 from bike shop Rio Hondo

Our bike shop here in Rio Hondo will be watching the events of Tour de France all this month. The race has gotten off to an exciting start, with a few cringe-worthy bumps along the way.

There were a number of major news reports about the Tour de France in the weeks that led up to the race's start.  This year was marked by special situations such as rider injuries, changing of teams, and the doping charges brought against Tour de France legend Lance Armstrong, stripping him of his seven titles.

The first week of the race had plenty of action as well, with several notable crashes, including the multi-bike pile-up that included Mike Cavendish in the closing of Stage 4. Cavendish emerged from the crash uninjured, but unhappy.

Andre Greipel of Germany won Stage 4, and crossing the finish elated at his Tour de France maiden victory.

He then came in ahead again in Stage 5, coming ahead in the final 100 meters in what he called "the hardest sprint of my life."

Looking forward to what the Tour de France brings next. Stay with us for updates.

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