The Difference Between Riding a "Shop-Quality Bicycle" and a "Wal-Mart Special"

When first considering a bicycle for exercise and occasional transportation, I started out by purchasing a 26" Men's Roadmaster Mountain Sport All-Terrain bicycle. Currently, it retails at Wal-Mart for $74.00. Now, this isn't meant to criticize Wal-Mart in any way. The purpose is to guide you toward the type of bicycle that you will ride again and again, and not one that you'll ride once or twice, and then store it in the garage or basement. I might hasten to add that Wal-Mart sells a 26" Roadmaster Sequence Comfort Bike for $149.00 that is likely to be a better option. Not having tried it, I can't comment.

To make the point a little clearer about the distinction between a low-cost Roadmaster bike and a shop quality bike, let me add that when I was just looking to do some occasional bike riding and wanted to get something really cheap, I went looking at Craig's List. There, I found a slightly used Men's 26" Roadmaster exactly like the one being sold at Wal-Mart for $74. Someone on Craig's List was offering the same bike for $40 and claimed that "it hadn't been ridden much." I bought the bike, thinking I had gotten the deal of the century. When I started riding it, I quickly found out it had some problems.

The first thing I noticed, was that the brakes weren't working, so I took the bike to a local bike shop. It cost about $10 to get them fixed, so I'm still money ahead, right? The frame on the used bike I had bought was in excellent condition with hardly a scratch on the paint, so the bike did look new. The tread on the tires looked barely worn, so I thought I was coming out ahead there as well. Well, guess what. The tires were riding a little wobbly. I noticed that the tread kind of zig-zagged as I rode the bike. The bike shop where I had the brakes worked on, informed me that the bike had been ridden "more than just a little." Turns out the wheels needed to be "trued," a bicycle repair shop phrase for adjusting the spokes on the wheels. I decided to just "true" the front wheel since the back wheel wasn't quite so bad, for an additional $10.

It wasn't long after that that the handlebar slipped and had to be tightened. The bike shop took pity on me and didn't charge me for that. But the pedals slipped off, one of which had cracked, and had to be replaced. It took another $10 to fix that. The cheap bike I had bought at Craig's List was beginning to nickle and dime me to death. Even with the bike shop graciously agreeing to lubricate the chain and adjust the gears at no charge, the bike was still difficult to pedal.

I had been asking the bike shop owner throughout my ordeal, if they had any other bikes for sale, and was surprised to hear that all of their bikes were "shop quality," and started at around $400 retail. I kept asking how Wal-Mart could sell theirs so much cheaper and emphasized that I didn't have plans to enter the Tour de France and chase after Lance Armstrong. Fortunately, the bike shop owner had the patience to explain to me the difference between a "shop quality bike," and a "Wal-Mart special." The difference was that buyers attracted to the Wal-Mart bikes may be drawn to the low price, but the bicycles they sold "may be ridden once or twice, and then left in the garage or basement like a discarded toy." I was then given the opportunity to "test-drive" a shop quality bicycle, a Specialized Hardrock. The difference was like night and day. The Hardrock did not feel "heavy," like the Roadmaster did. As luck would have it, the bike shop had a used Specialized Hardrock for sale, for about $200, that I promptly put in layaway.

Since I had spent about $40 fixing up the wheels, the pedals, and the brakes on the used Roadmaster bike I had, I decided to try to sell it on Craig's List for the same $40 that I had paid. I couldn't believe that I was able to sell the Roadmaster about five days later. I then went back and got the Specialized Hardrock bike I had put in layaway at the bike shop and could not believe the difference in riding. Rather than take my word for it, I would suggest giving any bicycle you're considering for purchase, a "test-drive." Granted, Wal-Mart may not be too eager to let you do that, but it might be worth taking a trip to a local bike shop and comparing what they have to what Wal-Mart sells. I wouldn't discourage anyone from buying a Wal-Mart bike, such as the Roadmaster. And as I said earlier, you might have a better experience with the Roadmaster Sequence Comfort bike. However, let me just add this. I had a Wal-Mart bike previously, a Huffy brand, that rode just as "heavy" as the Roadmaster. For some reason, if the bike you're riding is not shop quality, it feels like you have to pedal twice as hard as you do when you're riding a shop quality bike. It makes a huge difference when you have to pedal up a hill.

If your budget only permits the purchase of a Roadmaster bike, I'm not telling you to steer clear. I'm just suggesting that you'll miss out on what could be a far more enjoyable bike experience, if you don't at least consider upgrading to a shop quality bike as soon as possible. I had occasion to use the Roadmaster bike for some transportation reasons and not exercise reasons, and did not look forward to the ride. When I upgraded to the Specialized Hardrock, I not only looked forward to the ride, but felt that it was going to be much smoother and easier to pedal. This isn't meant to be an endorsement for either brand of bicycle. Ultimately, only you can make that decision.

As a last helpful hint, if you want to make it easier yet to pedal, consider putting narrower tires on the bike. Some of you bike experts out there may already know that, but I didn't. I try to use as narrow a tire as I can without getting so narrow as to make my tires vulnerable to being punctured by broken glass or something. I didn't realize something as simple as narrowing the width of the tires on your bike can make it much easier to pedal. Case in point: I took my Specialized Hardrock out for a 17-mile journey and met up with another rider who had the exact same model bike I had, only his tires were narrower. He had a much easier time pedaling than I did and consistently had to slow down on occasion to allow me to catch up. The bike shop told me I could swap out the tires on my bike for about $15 apiece, plus pay a $15 tire mounting charge. Almost sounds like an auto shop, doesn't it? No matter what your choice in acquiring a bicycle might be, keep in mind that there are ways to make the whole experience far more enjoyable. The Wal-Mart specials were just too heavy to pedal, and the first one I bought, the Huffy, spent several years in my garage, before necessity caused me to start using it. Whatever type of bike you may decide to get, just make sure you get one you intend to use, and not one that will just gather dust in a corner of the garage or basement like mine did.