The stages of cycling

malvicino road bike tour Crete Krousonas village feature
Malvicino
9 February 2018
the-super-cyclist-of-the-future-cyclingcreta -feature img
The cyclist of the future
14 March 2018
malvicino road bike tour Crete Krousonas village feature
Malvicino
9 February 2018
the-super-cyclist-of-the-future-cyclingcreta -feature img
The cyclist of the future
14 March 2018

The stages of cycling

 
How many of you can remember your first bike or your first ride. Can you remember this special time of falling in love with cycling and the intense feelings that begin to develop? It was love from the very first moment or it has been long before you realize it. And if you think this is the sport you will do for the rest of your life how much your habits and your bicycle theories have changed. Cycling is an exciting sport and regardless the stage we are, we can not live without it.
 
 

Novice

 
You have just started the sport and you do not know what type of bike and equipment to buy or how much money to spend. You believe that those who buy expensive bicycles are wasting their money. Bike purchase more than 500 euro is madness.
Your first bike is from a super market or the cheapest from the bike shop of your town. Your budget for equipment and accessories is minimal, simultaneously with the bike you buy a basic helmet, a pump, a tube, two cheap lights (front and rear) and definitely a bell and a sidestand.

You make frequent visits to bicycle shops and check what else you can add on the bike, mirror, stickers, gel saddle cover, etc. You do not care about the weight of the bike and you add various accessories so that it looks more like a motorbike.

You do not spend money for cycling clothes. Initially you ride with blue jeans, sneakers a t-shirt. As a back bag you use the one you had in school.

Your first rides are in your city or in the countryside around it. After every bike tour you feel so exhausted that you eat 5 spaghettis to recover.
 
 
 

Mature

 
Now you are strong enough to ride more kilometers. You have lots of cycling friends and all your conversations are for bikes. You know everything about the geometry of the bicycles, the equipment and the bike standards

You follow the technology and you know all the trends of the bike industry. You are looking forward the main cycling exhibitions to see the new products. You spend many hours on internet to check prices, what new you can buy and to watch live cycling races.

You buy expensive bicycles, and you give your old bikes to your children as a gift for their birthday.

You save money in order to buy bicycle products and you have a piggy bank for the next bike. Your casual clothes are not as expensive as your cycling clothes and maybe your bike is more expensive than your car You never tell your wife how much actually cost your cycling purchases. You have placed racks on your car to go for bike tours in faraway places. You believe that new super expensive shorts or a super light handlebar will make you faster.

You use STRAVA more than facebook.
 
 
 

Experienced

 
You are in love with cycling but you are no longer interested in expensive, light or hi tech bikes. You like to participate in races for the experience not for the victory. You do not follow any training program and not you are not chasing KOM times on STRAVA. A short ride with your friends with coffee stops and exploring new regions is more interesting than many hours of exhausting training.

You spend more time on internet to read travel guides and discover new cycling destinations to explore.

Now you have one or two bikes for several years and you just do some upgrades when something goes wrong to keep them in good working condition. You have so many cycling clothes that you do not have to buy new for the rest of your cycling career. You save money from purchasing equipment and bikes in order to do cycling journeys to your favourite places
 
 
 

The cycling cost curves