What You Don't Need On A Bicycle (if city cycling or short rides)

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Just bombing about town? Not looking to ride crazy distances at a leisurely pace? While the cycling industry would love you to believe otherwise, you really don’t need most of that fancy stuff.

In fact, some of it might actually make your riding experience worse (and your bank account definitely sadder).

What you do not need on your bicycle - BikePush

Here’s what you can happily skip if you’re just riding around town or commuting. Racing enthusiasts, you might want to look away now…

Table of Contents

1. Clipless Pedals

You know those scary-looking pedals that lock onto special shoes?

Unless you’re riding longer than 30km or planning to compete, regular flat pedals work just fine.

The clipless pedals (your shoes actually “clip-in” to the pedal, so silly name) are handy for applying power on more than the normal downstroke. This is good for evening out the full pedal stroke, but for short or social rides, they’re not necessary

You can compromise by using double-sided pedals. One side flat, the other for mountain bike cleats:

2. Suspension Systems – You’re Not Mountain Biking

That fancy front suspension fork might look cool, but on regular roads, or around the towns and cities, it’s about as useful as a chocolate teapot.

All it does is make your ride a bit squishier and slower (suspension systems are heavy!). Save your money for something more important – like actual chocolate.

The original Trek full suspension bike:

3. Disc Brakes – Nice But Not Necessary

Regular rim brakes work perfectly fine for most city riding. Unless you’re bombing down mountains in the rain or mud, traditional rim brakes should be more than adequate.

We were all using disc brakes up until a few years ago, and we all seemed to ride along just fine.

💡 I was on the fence about putting disc brakes on the list. They might be “essential” for some cyclists who lack confidence under braking, and the discs may give them that extra layer of confidence. Most bikes ship with disc brakes these days anyway, so a little bit of a moot point

4. Carbon Fiber Everything – Not Worth Your Life Savings

Yes, carbon fiber is incredibly light. It’s also incredibly expensive and can be as fragile as your grandmother’s china.

Is A Carbon Bike Overkill For Commuting?

For regular riding, aluminum or steel frames will serve you just fine – and you won’t have a heart attack every time your bike gets a scratch.

5. Too Many Gears – The Great Gear Myth

Remember when bikes had like, three gears, and somehow people still made it up hills?

Most urban cyclists end up using the same few gears most of the time, treating their bike like it’s basically a 3-speed anyway.

🚵 The caveat to this is if you live in a particularly hilly area. It’s probably useful to have a larger array of gears if that’s the case.

6. Knobby Tires – Smooth Operator

Unless you’re regularly riding through mud, those aggressive mountain bike tires are just slowing you down.

Smooth tires roll faster and easier on roads. Save the knobby ones for when you decide to tackle that mountain trail.

💡 You can buy a hybrid of smooth slick and knobby tires as a compromise between the two. The smooth part is in the center and the knobby parts are off-center, so a little grip when cornering)

Read more: The best tires for city riding

7. Expensive “Special” Cycling Food

You don’t even need to eat if you’re just riding an hour or so.

If you do need to eat, a banana or some trail mix will do just fine for most rides.

If you are riding longer, faster rides, then you need to take on-the-bike nutrition seriously

8. Dropper Posts – The Up-Down Overkill

Ever seen those fancy seatposts that go up and down with the push of a button? You don’t need them on short city rides.

💡 Don’t get me wrong – dropper posts are cool. REALLY cool. In theory, they’re total overkill unless you’re shredding mountain bike trails where you need to quickly switch between climbing and descending positions.