Shifting Gears

Peter Griffith/Masterfile

You never forget how to ride a bike, the old saying goes. But if you haven’t seen the newest models, you might think that you’ve forgotten what a bike looks like. Changes regarding materials, technology and even the basic underlying philosophy of how body and bike mesh, which were in the works when we last covered bicycles 3 years ago, have come to fruition and now are widespread. The result is that today’s bicycles are more comfortable and efficient—machines that you’ll want to ride longer. And best of all, you’ll get more bike for your buck than ever before.

EASY RIDERS. The design philosophy of today’s bicycles is simple: Comfort is king. Features that increase comfort are apparent across all bike categories. “Comfort has swept the industry,” says Dave Hanson, the owner of the seven-location Jax bike-shop chain in Southern California.

Higher handlebars and shorter top tubes (which run horizontally to connect the steering column to the seat post) lessen the need to bend over so far—the main beef of many riders. Even the comfort bike is more comfortable than ever before, because many manufacturers added suspension forks and bigger wheels to provide a smoother ride, while others adopted “chopper”-like frame designs (or geometries) that result in high handlebars and low-to-the-ground seating positions.

But the migration of comfort features into expensive, high-performance road bikes, which position you in a back-breaking low position, has been the big surprise. Mike Sinyard, president of bike-maker Specialized, personally kick-started the trend in 2005. He had his engineers design the Roubaix, which adds 2 inches to a typical road bike’s handlebar height. The Roubaix now is an extensive line that incorporates a tall head tube (the steering column) and innovative shock-absorbing features, such as Zertz, which are vibration-reducing rubber bumpers that are integrated into the frame to smooth out the ride when you go over bumps. The Roubaix line’s “relaxed” design has been copied by most major bike-makers, which means that now you can find it at all prices.

Why has comfort become such a big deal? Besides aging consumers and the evolution of riding habits, the industry has just plain wised up. Jay Wolfe, who runs Helen’s Cycles, a bike retailer in Santa Monica, Calif., says, “Mostly, it’s that the industry has become more sophisticated in general about fitting people. They realized that keeping people out riding is all about being comfortable.”

In other words, you’ll ride more if you aren’t bent over so far. “There used to be a lot of complaints from average people that bikes didn’t feel good,” says Fred Clements, executive director of National Bicycle Dealers Association. “Not now.”

CARBON NATION. The comfort story is reinforced by a trend that might seem unrelated—the increasing use of carbon fiber.

Carbon fiber is made by encasing precisely placed weaves of carbon threads in hard resin and baking them. The result is frames that are strong, naturally shock-absorbing and ultralight. (The new low is 13.7 pounds by the $8,000 Giant TCR Advanced SL 0.) The shock-absorbing nature of carbon results in a more comfortable ride than what you get from aluminum or steel—traditional frame materials.

What’s even better? Carbon has tumbled in price because of increased demand and growing expertise in Chinese and U.S. factories. There was a race to be the first on the market with a sub-$2,000 carbon bike, Wolfe says, “and it happened last year.” This year, the low-price carbon king of the road is the Cannondale Six Carbon 6 ($1,799). Three years ago, you would have paid double that price to get a carbon-frame bike.

Carbon’s price decline also is reflected in bike parts. Nowadays, even a few $800 aluminum-frame road bikes have shock-absorbing carbon forks, which also improve handling. Farther up the price ladder, you can find carbon seat and chain stays, (the frame tubes that connect the seat and the crank, respectively, to the rear wheel), as well as some carbon seat posts and handlebars. In addition to improving your comfort on a ride (because carbon is such a good shock absorber), these parts help you to make the bike go faster, because, of course, carbon is lighter than metal.