Embarrassed to test ride in LBS

[AmyO]

Geez, I thought I was the only one to fall off on a test drive! I was at my LBS and took a $1300 road bike out for a spin, but used the straps/clip and took a nasty tumble when I didn't get my foot out in time. I think I was trying to save the bike!!! I was bleeding pretty badly from my knee and it was the same kind of thing...the guy at the store kept asking me if I was ok. I was more worried about the bike! It wasn't until I got home (I didn't buy that bike, I got one that was MUCH more comfortable to ride) that I realized how much blood was on my pants and what damage I had done to myself. It was over two months ago and it's finally healed. Now I have new boo boos from my more recent crash! I finally took a road cycling clinic @ REI, which amused my friends no end.

[limewave]

I took my mom to test ride a bike at LBS and she hadn't ridden a bike in more than 30 years! If she can do it, I know you can. It's so important to do that test ride before you make the purchase.

[PinkPilot]

You can't be any more green than I was a month ago when I rode my bike at my LBS for the first time. They had to ship in this bike from a shop in Texas for me, so test riding wasn't even an option. However, I was fitted on a similar aluminum Trek WSD model to ensure the 50 cm model was the right size. They wanted me to test ride the aluminum one but I was too embarrassed. I haven't been on a bike in more than 40 years, I'm betting. I learned to ride a bike as a young girl but I had certainly never been on a road bike, had never used gears or hand brakes or any of that. When my bike came in, I guess you would call that my test ride. I was convinced I could start with clipless pedals and cleats and shoes. Oh, mercy! Even though we practiced all of these things on a trainer and it seemed easy, it's obviously not the same as doing it while balancing and take-offs and stops, etc. I couldn't get clipped in, stayed in whatever gear I was in and pretty much managed only a one-footed pedaling job around the parking lot and the brakes! Luckily, it was a Sunday and there weren't very many cars in the lot (I would recommend that, by the way). When I got back to where the bike guy was standing, I stopped right next to him, and of course the bike tilted to the clipped-in side since I didn't know what I was doing. Oh, sweet heaven...I was sure I was falling and without even thinking, reached out to hang on to him and grabbed the guy in the crotch!! Talk about embarrassed!!!! Fortunately, he wasn't hurt. Another guy (customer) had obviously been watching and he was laughing as he walked to his car. We switched out the pedals temporarily, since I felt I was taking on too many new things at one time and I really, really wanted to ride this bike. And, I've done fine since, despite limited riding due to the horribly hot weather in NC. A week and a half ago, I rode 27 miles straight through, averaged 13.4 mph with 989 ft in climbs and (most importantly) taught myself how to get the water bottle out of the cage, drink, and return it to the cage while riding! That's a tough one for a beginner. Applied chapstick one-handed while riding, too.

The moral of the story is.....you can NEVER do as badly as some of the rest of us! And you will NEVER be the worst they've seen. They take these things in stride. It's not a private club -- EVERYONE who cycles was new once and EVERYONE has had these wonderfully (now) funny stories happen to them. Or maybe I just tell myself that!!!!!

[maryellen]

I think Sara has given you great advice on how to handle it. Although I enjoy trying new bikes when I'm shopping, I *don't* like test riding (if that makes any sense). I live in Manhattan and it is not a good place to test ride bikes. Curiously, when I had just about decided on what road bike to buy last year, the guy at the shop wanted me to try one more bike--it had been sold to someone who hadn't picked it up yet. That was nerve wracking--the thought of crashing someone else's brand new bike. Fortunately, I rode it and returned it without incident!

[withm]

you'll be fine, but be sure to wear a HELMET just in case the stuff hits the fan.....

I bet there isn't anybody on this board that hasn't fallen at least once.

[annie]

They can fit you in a very general way, without you riding the bike. But to make sure the fit is right, yep, there's no way to do that without you ON the bike. Personally, I think they need to set you up on a trainer, so they can actually watch you ride. If you haven't ridden for years, you probably aren't going to know whether or not the bike fits right, even if you ride it. They need to see how it fits you and make the proper adjustments. Then have you take it out for a spin and see how it feels in actual riding conditions. If you've lucked out and chosen a good bike shop, they'll keep working with you until you and they feel the bike is a good match. You'll probably still need to go back for some tweaking. As you ride more, your position of comfort can change.

I guess what I'm stressing is that a good bike shop is very important. Of course they are in the business of selling bikes! They wouldn't exist otherwise. They also need to be in the business of taking care of their customers. Hope you find a great shop and a bike that fits your needs.

Annie

[wiseowl]

And here I thought I was the only one to have fallen during my first test ride! No one saw, but I came in bloody so they probably did the math. Most of my test rides I just left a driver's license with them and waltzed out the door with the bike and was on my own. The one time someone did watch, though, he was pretty helpful in teaching me how to start and stop on the bike better- I tried to launch to the side when stopping rather than the front.

After I said I was interested, then they put me on a trainer or someone held the bike to do the more detailed sizing. And after the real bike arrived, the same, but for longer, to do the fitting.

On the same infamous first ride I also put my helmet on backwards, though- do try NOT to do that! The LBS guy just beckoned me over, flipped it around, and sent me back out. Arg.