essential gear for beginner cyclists | what I’d buy if I started again

all the essential gear I’d recommend buying if I was starting out cycling. Everything from the bike itself through to tools I’ve found helpful in my own experience with cycling since starting in 2023

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https://www.strava.com/athletes/39635109?num_entries=10

00:00 Intro
00:39 My Cycling Background
01:33 Some Context
01:56 Buying a Bike (things to consider)
04:21 Bottles and Bottle Cages
04:29 Padded Shorts / Bib Shorts
05:45 Bib Short Slander
06:08 Cycling Jerseys
06:43 Helmets
07:06 Sunglasses
07:35 Lights
07:52 Essential Tools
08:29 This is where things get expensive
09:06 Outro

[Music] dark [Music] [Applause] so my name is Dan I have been cycling now since May 2023 that is when I picked up my first gravel bike and since then I have become a bit of a road cycling Merchant I’ve been taking it a little more seriously this last year in that space of time I have gone on a very steep learning curve when I started back in 23 I had no idea about the kit what was was essential what was a luxury didn’t know a thing about bikes i’ spent the first 28 years of my life not cycling so it makes sense and cycling is a very difficult sport to get into the barrier to entry is massive just in terms of financial stuff the knowledge and the knowhow ETC it’s a very intimidating sport to get into so today we are going to go through things that I would buy if I was getting into cycling again knowing what I know now having been doing it for a year and a half cuz there’s a lot of things that you do need and there’s a lot of things that I think are just a bit more of a luxury than an essential the first thing to caveat this is from my own perspective as someone who’s involved in the sport of endurance cycling this isn’t what you need to commute down the road to your job this ain’t what you need for bike packing this is the sport of endurance cycling long days out in the saddle racing that kind of thing basically what you need if you want to get into the sport and be the next T Pacha so hopefully this won’t come as a shock but you are going to need to pick yourself up a bike now what bike you get it’s going to be dependent on two factors really it’s going to be the budget available how much you are willing to spend and also the type of riding that you think you are going to be doing so when you start getting properly into it you’ll learn that there are many different types of bikes within the two genres that I’m going to talk about endurance racing Arrow all that sort of stuff but to start I would either look at a road bike or a gravel bike I personally started with an entry-level gravel bike it cost me 650 quid used our Facebook Marketplace it was canondale topstone 4 it’s a very basic sort of entry level gravel bike the reason I picked a gravel bike to start was because I didn’t want to do Road cycling when I started the idea of cycling on a busy road just wasn’t for me and I thought I would just stick to off-road gravel stuff to begin with but if I did get into Road cycling eventually I knew the gravel bike would be able to do somewhat of a decent job on the road as well it’s a pretty versatile bike whereas if you buy a road bike to start you’re going to struggle to do any off-road graveling on that when I first started getting in cycling and was doing research as to what bike to buy I couldn’t get my head around why some bikes were £500 and some were 5 grand but knowing what I know now there is a lot of different variables that go into the price of the bike research and development marketing materials components performance Etc but if I was to recommend an entry-level bike under the 1,000 Mark i’ head straight to the cathon their triban range offers some of the best value for money uh when it comes to entry-level bikes things like the triban RC 520 is a very solid entrylevel bike all the established cycling Brands will have an entry level equivalent so specialized Cannon Bale Trek giant yada yada yada but you will get more value for your money at the cathlon I am sponsored by Van Rell who are owned by the cathlon so there is an affiliation there but if you ask most cyclists I would imagine they all agree in in the fact that you just get more value from the cathlon now you can obviously buy used off Facebook Marketplace Etc if you have a specific model of bik that you know you want obviously the downside to that is you don’t get the support from the shop or the retailer Etc if something goes wrong with it make sure the bike fits yeah that is a massively important bit bikes come in different sizes they have different frame sizes and geometries Etc if you can make sure you can try the bike before you purchase it this is a pro of going and getting it from a retailer often is the case the staff will help you with the sizing Etc compared to if you just buying it used off some Donnie on Facebook Marketplace you don’t necessarily know if it’s going to fit you right or not obviously with the bike you are going to need some bottle cages and Bottles so you can carry some liquids and drinks Etc out on your rides with you you got to stay hydrated in that you’re going to need some kind of padded shorts now these are probably one of the weirder things about the sports cycling especially when you’re not doing it and you look at people wearing these weird Lyra and spandex thinking what you’re doing you massive wet wipes but when I first got the bike and I went on like a 20 km route took me about an hour I did it in just a pair of normal shorts in the summer my ass was killing me it was not comfortable at all and that for me was the best advert for some kind of padded short so I went out and bought it was a 15 pair of padded shorts from the cathlon they didn’t have the actual bibs they were just a pair of shorts with a little shammy and you learn that you do get what you pay for when it comes to that kind of stuff they’ll do a job the cheap stuff will do a job for shorter duration rides it helps a lot on shorter rides but one thing to know about bib shorts and padded shorts in general if you go too cheap they won’t last very long and they aren’t as comfortable as some of the more expensive ones so I would try and spend a little bit more on a decent quality pair of biip shorts I’m with some of their stuff can be quite expensive especially if you’re first starting out but they do have a core range that is more suitable for sort of entry level stuff and it doesn’t break the bank so bad obviously the Caston again can’t go wrong but I would spend a little bit more than just the basic cheapest entry level stuff from there because like I said won’t last you too long whenever I’ve recommended bib shorts in the past there is always someone who comments without fail that back in 1983 I cycled the to of France with jean shorts and it was perfectly comfortable or something along them lines so so when you get your bike what I suggest is go out and try a ride without any bibs without any padded shorts and then you’ll you can make up your own mind now cycling jerseys I wouldn’t deem these as an essential they are more of a luxury but I would recommend them they are very functional bits of gear they often have pockets on the back so you can store things like phone and any snacks Etc and they are just very comfortable to wear as well now the jerseys are obviously designed with an element of functionality and performance compared to that of just a normal cotton t-shirt for example you’re out sweating your back out on a ride in a normal cotton tea that’s going to just carry the moisture whereas these are made from like sweat Wicked materials so are just a lot more comfortable Etc as well so would recommend but totally up to you terms of safety equipment you are going to need to get yourself a helmet this one again is from van rle it’s the rcrf it’s quite an expensive one they offer a load of different cheaper ones as well and I don’t actually know why some helmets are more expensive than others because I’d imagine even the cheap ones have to pass some kind of quality assurance thing to make sure they protect your D anyone does know why some helmets are more expensive than others then let me know in the comments but as long as you get a helmet that’s going to protect your Dome then you’re good to go similarly sunglasses now you don’t need top of the range Oakleys but these aren’t just a fashion thing they are there actually to protect your eyes from debris flicking up on the road if you are riding at 50k an hour and a stone hits you in the eyeball you are there no bueno it’s not good I mean touchwood it doesn’t happen but one thing to know about the more expensive higher end glasses are things like Oakleys tend to have shatter resistant lenses so it’s something were to flick up and hit them they are less likely to shatter than the cheap ones just something to bear in mind continuing with the topic of safety if you are planning on being on the road a lot I’d suggest getting yourself some bike lights these just stick on the handle bar and the seat stay cost about 30 C from the cathlon and are a great means to just be seen on the road even during midday rides Etc it’s better to have something where the cars can see you than can’t now bike tools and maintenance Etc as a bare minimum when you are out on the bike you need to carry with you things that can fix a pun be that a puncture repair kit or a spare inner tube Etc everything I carry is in this little saddle bag that just sticks under the seat and inside this is a spare inner tube in case I do get a puncture Tire levers to make sure I can easily remove tires cuz that is a b Lake you’ll find out a multi-tool just in case anything goes wrong whil you are out and about and a little pump of some description this one is just like a like a mini pump it’s not very good but it will get the job done if I do need to pump up a tire for example after a puncture that more or less covers all of the Basic Essentials that I would recommend to someone who wants to get into endurance cycling and be comfortable doing so when you start getting more into it there are loads of other things that you can get to enhance your experience things like cycling computers to help navigate you around and start tracking your performance Etc in the meantime you can do that with a phone things like switching from flat pedals and normal shoes to actual cycling cleats and SPD pedals if I have missed anything that other people would deem as essential for newbies getting into the sport then drop a comment and let me know cuz I may well have done and the final thing I leave you with is if you are on the fence about getting into the sport of cycling yes it can be expensive but my God it is an unbelievable sport I was the exact same a couple of years ago I thought why the hell would anyone get into that but now I’m into it I am fully obsessed with it it’s one of the biggest passion points in my life physical and mental benefits are unrivaled I just could not recommend itting North to anyone wanting to get into the sport resurrect me [Music]