Large adult son wants to ride

[SandyLS]

I got a great call from my son last week. He is interested in starting to ride and has asked me to do a supported tour with him Sept. of 2009. The guy is about 6'3" and around 350 lbs. Do any of you have knowledge about buying a bike that will work for someone his size. I am so glad to see he is trying to take control of his health and excited about having another of my kids to ride with.

[Blueberry]

Lots of the touring bikes would work - a shop should be able to work on the wheels to make sure they're properly tightened, and sturdy. That would owrk well, too, given your goal. He may still break spokes - and may eventually need hand built wheels. Most bikes would actually work - I would worry more about the wheels than anything (though there are those who say that even the low spoke wheels work).

Kudos to him for wanting to ride - and what fun!!

CA

[farrellcollie]

He might want to check out the bikeforums.net clydesdale thread - it has a lot of encouraging information for larger riders including bike choice info.

[Eden]

As long as he avoids ultra light weight parts he should be OK - so no carbon or light weight aluminum on the breakable parts - handlebars, seatposts, cranks. I agree with CA, a touring bike would be a good choice. The wheelset is likely to be the fragile point for him, so high spoke count wheels would be the thing to look at, 36 spokes, which is what is often used on tandems should be fairly trouble free for him. (my 190 lb 6'4" husband used to break spokes on his touring bike, esp when the bike was loaded, until he got the heavier wheelset).

A hard tail mt bike with a pair of slicks might also be a good starter, as they are sturdy, but he'll may "out grow" something like that pretty quickly.

[KnottedYet]

One of my patients has similar needs, and was looking at the Surly Long Haul Trucker. (wheels are 36 spoke)

[sundial]

Ok, I'll shoot.....

We southerners have a tendency of running the gamut in sizes, particularly in the larger sizes. With that being said, I have known Clydesdales and Athenas that ride carbon fiber bikes. The trick to this is getting properly fitted bikes and then splurging on nice, bomb proof rims. A rim with more spokes will work better for the larger rider or a bomb proof rim with fewer spokes. I like the Mavic Ksyrium rim for road bikes and Mavic Crossmax for the mtb because not only are they super sturdy, they are virtually maintenance free. The spokes won't need truing for at least a couple of years. One gentleman who is 6'4" and 280 lbs rides with the Ksyriums and swears by them.

Hope this helps and it's nice to know your son is getting bitten by the cycling bug.

[Trek420]

www.konaworld.com/08_hoss_w.htm

[maryellen]

sometime in the last year or so, Bicycling mag had a piece on a guy who started riding at a similar or even higher weight. maybe you can find it on their website. might provide info re sturdiness of equipment as well as provide some inspiration for your son.

[SandyLS]

You gals are the greatest. Thanks for your suggestions. I'll keep you posted on his decision for a bike and his progress.

[Triskeliongirl]

FYI the surly long haul trucker is now coming prepackaged with s/s couplers (or actually I think it is the cross check, called the travelers check: http://www.surlybikes.com/files/Surl...008_lo_res.pdf), so if travel is in the future for him, its something to look into. From what I have seen, I concur with most of what has been said, a sturdy steel frame and high spoke count strong wheels are the two most impt. things to look for.

[SandyLS]

My son called every Surly dealer in Michigan. It seems everyone was willing to to order a bike for him if he wanted to purchase but not a one had any in stock to test ride or even view. Seems like a lot of money to spend sight unseen. Anyone in the Great Lakes area know of a dealer that actually has these bikes on site? I guess we could take a road trip to test one if necessary. Any other other suggestions for a bike for a big guy (350lb 6"3"tall) that wants to start some distance riding? Each bike shop we go to suggests that one of the bikes they sell will do the job for him. Usually a non-steel frame cross bike of one sort or another. I sure don't want him to have his first bike be one that is not strong enough to take the punishment his present weight will give it and discourage him from reaching his goals by being bothered by repairs all of the time.
I know most of you recommend testing lots of bikes to find the right one. What do you think about buying the Surly without testing it first? I know it is usually not a good idea, but I think his options might be limited. It seems most of the big name brands (Trek, Specialize ect.)around here don't even make steel any more. Oh, the Surly has bar end shifters. Any one have experience with those? Thanks for your help.

[Trek420]

Anytime I drool, stare or even glance sideways at a bike in my LBS if it's not in stock in my size they happily offer to order one. I decline saying I'm just looking, have more than enough bikes, don't need another, love steel just lookin' at the puhrty carbon etc blah blah.

More smiles and assurances from them that it's ok, if they get it in stock and built up they will sell it. I'm 5 foot nuthin'. It's not as if I'm the only short female rider around.

Same applies to your brother, it's not like he's the only tall big fella around.

It's all about great service. Find a local shop that treats him right!! He must try the bike.

[Blueberry]

I have bar end shifters on 3 bikes (including a surly cross check) and love them. True, you can't shift as quickly in a pace line, but otherwise (and since I don't generally do that kind of riding), they're great- a little less fiddly (and you can always shift the rear to friction if it gets out of adjustment). I find them more robust than STI.

I bought by Surly off ebay - and had never ridden one. I lucked out with fit - bought it off a couple of key measurements. I think it could work for your son to order one sign unseen *if* he has a local dealer that will do a fit kit on him. They should be able to tell if it will be a good fit for him, and they may be able to duplicate the geometry on the fit kit and/or let him try a bike that's similar in fit. When you order a custom bike, you can't really test it either. The key is finding a dealer he can trust. I can only think of 1 shop within 4 hours of me that ever stocks built frames - I think most buy sight unseen. Good luck!!!

CA

[Trek420]

CA, when folks here say "I lucked out with the fit" most are speaking from a ton of experience. My LBS keeps all the measurements of my bikes on file. Whether a bike is on TE, Craigs, Ebay .... I can check against his measurements and think "sure, close enough for government work". not that I want/need another bike

But for a new or newer rider, one with some health concerns I sure wish he could try the bike or similar.

[OakLeaf]

y'know, this just occurred to me, and pardon if I'm being rude - at his size, will his belly make it difficult for him to reach the drops, and thus the bar end shifters? And/or does he have back issues? Bar end shifters might not be the best idea for someone who can't lean very far forward.

Re: frame materials, I've known two very large guys with carbon frames who've had no problems at all. Wheels and spokes, yes - frames, no.