Bike Cross: photos and reviews

Choosing for yourself or your child even the simplest bike is not as easy as it might seem at first glance, not to mention expensive and professional models.

The main criteria that a beginner is guided by when choosing a bike are personal preferences. Many people make this mistake, not realizing that the extra half hour spent on the right purchase can save not only money, but also nerves spent in the future.

Let's try to figure out what exactly is worth paying attention to when choosing a bicycle, compare the opinions of experts with customer reviews and designate the most distinguished models using the example of the famous Cross line.

So, in order to make a choice and narrow down the huge assortment of bicycles to a more or less acceptable number, the first thing you need to answer a few questions.

1. Why do you need a Cross bike, how much time and where do you plan to ride it?
2. The price of the issue, i.e. your maximum budget.
3. Your age, weight and height.

Riding style

Someone uses a bicycle for a simple walk around the city or village, while someone needs to conquer all the ravines, curbs or stairs of the nearest supermarket. Over the 30-year history of cycling , many riding styles have formed, but the very first was road racing .

In order to more specifically determine the choice of a bicycle, you need to decide for yourself what kind of riding style you like.

Mountain bikes

One of the most popular styles of mountain biking is cross-country. Here you can conquer forest paths, steep descents and climbs, go on long bike trips or just do fitness. A cross-country bike in this case will be your best friend and helper.

But this style has one more purpose - racing! Endurance, technicality, frantic speed and grace - that's what distinguishes cross-country from other styles. Believe me, a start with hundreds of fans like you will fill a mass of indescribable feelings and will be remembered for a long time.

Cross-country mountain bike for cross-country has both pros and cons.

Advantages :

• universality;
• availability (from 12,000 rubles);
• wide range of spare parts;
• the possibility of modification.

Disadvantages :

• weight (12-15 kg);
• hesitantly behaves on an asphalt surface;
• The bike’s functionality and aesthetics are primarily focused on sports riding, not comfort.

Interesting and noteworthy is the Stels Cross 700C.

The frame of the bike is made of aluminum alloy, and the fork has excellent cushioning. Wheel diameter - 28 inches at 24 speeds. All Cross bikes are responsible for the good build and quality of the material.

Reviews about them are mostly in a positive way. The only thing many buyers complained about was an uncomfortable saddle, but after careful adjustment, the problem was more or less solved.

Prices for this model can vary from 12,000 to 15,000 depending on the store and additional equipment.

City bikes

One of the main positive features of a city bike is a good roll on an asphalt surface along with comfort and convenience. Not everyone likes to conquer ravines, climbs and participate in races, sometimes you just want to ride along city streets or parks for your pleasure.

The main admirers of urban bikes are people who keep fit or use it as a commonplace vehicle. Looking at European streets, you can see that literally every second participant in the movement rides a bicycle.

For city streets or for fitness, the Cross bike is the best option with no frills and with a good front shock absorber. Someone is attracted by practicality, which means the lightness and compactness of the bike, and someone is attracted by the speed with smooth tires and a large wheel diameter.

Advantages and disadvantages

Pros:

• comfort (high steering wheel, wide saddle, soft landing);
• excellent driving performance on soil and paved surfaces;
• choice of models (speed or comfort).

Minuses:

• harsh frame;
• narrow wheels (not for dirt and broken roads).

Bright representative of the city bike - Bulls Cross Bike. The bike has 28-inch wheels, a fork with a shock absorber and 21 speeds with a weight of 14 kg. The main parts are made of aluminum alloy and well set.

Reviews about the model are varied, but mostly positive. She perfectly shows herself in urban traffic, as well as on long trips to the countryside. Owners of the bike consider a small minus the poor patency after rain and on coarse soil, but only the Cross children's bike suffers from a characteristic patency problem.

The price of Cross Bike varies within 20 000 rubles. with a slight variation and depends on the configuration and pricing of the store.

Touring bikes

A distinctive feature of these bikes are large 28-inch wheels, which provide excellent speed and excellent reel. Thanks to them, the Cross bike copes well with both asphalt surface and rolled soil.

On tourist models, you will spend much less energy riding in parks, squares or field roads, and in the city you can easily get to work or just walk. For all this, the bike is considered sports, i.e. aerodynamic design and saddle are designed for high-speed driving on relatively smooth surfaces. To conquer uneven ground in the bike there is a fork with a small stroke of 50-80 mm.

Pros and cons

Advantages:

• universality (a combination of urban and mountain qualities);
• excellent rolling over almost any surface;
• patency is much higher than urban, and slightly more mountain bikes;
• lightness of the whole structure.

Disadvantages:

• maneuverability leaves much to be desired;
• high price.

The best model in terms of price and quality is the Cube Cross 2015 bike. It is equipped with a hydroformed aluminum alloy frame, an adjustable fork, double rims on wheels and hydraulic brakes.

The bike is universal, it is designed specifically for those who love speed along with comfort. A bicycle can be used every day for a trip to work and to the store, or for a long trip with friends.

Reviews of bikers about this model are exclusively positive with the only reservation - price. But the bike is worth the money, it will give you a lot of pleasant experiences.

The cost in the basic configuration starts from 55 000 rubles. and depending on the "bells and whistles" it can reach up to 190,000 rubles.

Road bikes

This type of bike is designed to reach maximum speed. Their element is smooth highways and roads. The road racers are distinguished by thin wheels inflated up to 8 atmospheres to minimize rolling friction on an asphalt surface. A light frame, a light saddle, thin tubes and all that will make it as airy as possible, because the main thing for this bike is speed (some models can weigh up to 5 kg).

There is absolutely no depreciation, so on flat roads such bikes have the highest possible rollback. Naturally, due to the lack of depreciation, driving on a rough road will be a problem, and on dirt it is an impossible task.

Positive and negative qualities

Pros:

• speed;
• ease.

Minuses:

• extremely picky about the quality of the road surface;
• impracticality.

The rather popular model Merida Cross M. is interesting. The bike, reviews of which are very flattering, is offered at a relatively low price. The bike has an aluminum base, ultra-thin frame tubes, a lightweight sports saddle and 20 speeds.

Cyclists sometimes complain about an insufficient level of saddle adjustment, but if you adjust the seat with the steering wheel, the problem is minimized.

Depending on the type of frame, the price also changes. Options may include steel, aluminum, titanium or carbon frame. Accordingly, the cost varies in a wide range from 20,000 to 70,000 rubles.

Budget

The lower price limit of more or less acceptable models is a little more than 12,000 rubles.

12,000 - 18,000 rubles.

For this money, you will get the youngest in the line of Stels Cross bikes. All accessories and spare parts are designed for an inexperienced consumer with a short experience. By and large, the models can be called walking, and the minimum price threshold will provide you with a quality bike that should not cause any serious problems.

If the price tag of the model you like is below 12,000 rubles, then you should be wary, because miracles do not happen, and poor quality materials, poor staffing and inept assembly can be hidden behind such a price. As a result, after acquiring a bicycle, you risk constant investment in repair and maintenance.

18 000 - 50 000 rub.

This group belongs to the golden mean. With a bar of 20,000 p. usually start the most popular and popular Cross bikes. Manufacturers stamp more than enough photos and video materials for the selection and subsequent operation of bikes of this category, therefore it can be designated as “seriously and for a long time”.

Models are distinguished by a lighter and better design, disc brakes and good tires. They are reliable, convenient and beautiful.

50 000 - 200 000 rub.

This segment is designed for true racing cars. The depreciation of both wheels, carbon, exclusive finishes, only the best components - all these and many other nuances make your purchase unique and solid.

This also includes a great design and an unforgettable experience even from owning this bike, not to mention a ride on such a bike. Vivid examples: Cross M model, Cube Cross bike and Cross Professional.

Frame size

As a rule, each model of a bicycle the manufacturer tries to release with different sizes of frames for a more comfortable choice, depending on the height of the person. It is also worth noting that the sizes of frames in stores can vary not only in height but also in length.

Some difficulties arise when the seller, for the sake of versatility, or some other principles, measures the height in different ways, so it often happens that a size of 20 inches can actually correspond to 19 or 21 inches.

In this regard, when choosing a bike, special attention should be paid, in addition to numerical, to letter designations of sizes. Orientation in them is sometimes easier than in an inch ruler.

* 1 inch = 2.54 cm.

Some useful tips

When choosing a frame, do not focus on any particular size; a one-inch error is not so critical and quite fixable by local adjustment of the bike (steering wheel, seat).

Be sure to consider the riding style. If you prefer slow walks in the park or choose a bicycle for an elderly person, then you should stop at a small frame size, in which case the back will be in an upright position and not so tired.