STARTER KIT

New to the world of road cycling? We round up some of the best beginner-friendly gear

If you’re new to the road you don’t need to spend a fortune to get going. We round-up the best kit on a budget.

It can be confusing out there in the road cycling world. ‘What should I buy? or ‘do I really need this?’ In fact, you don’t need that much, but if you are spending your money, just where do you start? What are SPD pedals, for example? Why do you need a pump that’s 60cm tall? And Lycra, do I really need to wear Lycra? And bib shorts, what’s that all about?

Well, we’ve got stuff here that will kit you out from head to toe, clipless pedals and shoes that complement them, a helmet, waterproof jacket, locks, tools, lights and more. These are mainly products we’ve tested before and in many cases ones we’ve used for years – so we know they work. Some of them may appear quite expensive, one or two of them quite niche, but we’ve selected products that we think represent a very good balance between quality and value. After all, spend too little and – as with buying a bike-shaped object – it could be a purchase that you regret. Equally, a number of these are pretty much always available at much less than the RRP, so look around.

We don’t expect you to buy all of these either. That would be a very expensive start to 2019. But if you are taking up road cycling, we think these are some of the products you should consider. You wouldn’t want to be like our tester, who did his first major tour in cut-off surfing shorts and cotton underpants. Until he learnt…