Tons of people ride bikes in this town. Not one of these people and want to join them? Pull up a chair and get ready to learn what you should look at when buying a bike
Determine your needs. Are you planning on traveling to France to ride in their little race, or are you just tooling around town?
New Bikes
If you like that new seat smell, there are several stores in town that sell bikes. Shop around a bit, several of the stores will allow test rides, and all of them can offer helpful advice.!
Bikes for sale, 3rd st., by JASH
Used Bikes
Buying a used bike offers several advantages.
- Older mid-ranged bicycles are of higher quality than today's mid-ranged bicycles
- Older high-end bicycles are affordable and will continue to run for many years
- You're recycling. Very very literally recycling. With all the benefits to the environment.
- Won't contribute to the Magna Sink effect
If you know nothing about bikes and are afraid of buying the wrong thing, bring a friend who does. They'll often be happy to help you find a bike.
Places to find used bikes
The Bike Auction is another way to obtain a bike. You may want to head over to the The Bike People Davis Bike Collective after you buy an auction bike, or if you just want to put one together for yourself. Pretty much all of the bicycle shops in town will do repairs for you. APEX Cycles & Service and the Davis Bike Exchange sell used bikes already cleaned up. If you want to browse the internet, there's always Craigslist, which has a forum for bikes for sale. See also Bike People, Green Bicycle Depot, and T&M Bike Shop. Bike Forth usually has the parts necessary to rebuild an old bike.
Also check out the "Bicycle Shop Alternatives" on the Bicycle Shops entry as well as the Renting a Bike entry.
