5 quick habits for your next pre

Jun 15, 2023

Create a personalized feed and bookmark your favorites.

Already have an account?

Create a personalized feed and bookmark your favorites.

Already have an account?

A man working in a bicycle repair shop. Photo: Getty Images/Mint Images RF

Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! >","name":"in-content-cta","type":"link"}}">Download the app.

Getting a new bike is exciting, but before you head out on your first ride, a good pre-ride bike inspection is a must. Sure, it could have been built by a professional mechanic, but we are all human, and things get overlooked. These are the five things I check on all bikes, new or used.

Check the headset tension to ensure your bearings are in good, working order. Too tight and it could bind, and too loose and it could damage the frame or lead to a frame or fork failure. This is an often-overlooked component of a pre-ride bike inspection.

Check all of the stem bolts and set the correct position. Ensure the stem is straight and the bars are at the appropriate position. Always use a torque wrench to tighten bolts to the recommended tension. This will ensure nothing is damaged or compromised. Do not torque just one bolt down and then the next. Tighten a little on each back and forth until the correct torque is achieved.

Read more: The evolution of road tubeless

Similar to number two, always check your shifters. Like the stem, ensure they are in the correct positions and torque them down so they don’t move on the bar. This is one that people often overlook in a safety check. If you have a cable-actuated drivetrain, shifter movement will affect your shifting and lead to a lot of frustration since it doesn’t need to move much to affect the entire system.

Always check thru-axles or quick releases. This is also a good time to make sure the multitool in your bag has the correct size tool. Sometimes you may have the correct size, but the tool is too short to fit into a recessed thru-axle. Ensure they are tight and secure the wheels. If your bike has quick releases, also make sure the wheel is in the dropout all the way, as well as tight.

The last thing I check in my pre-ride bike inspection is the brakes. For disc brakes, check that the correct rotor size is used and that the pad is contacting the rotor completely. I can’t tell you how often I get a bike with a 140 mm rotor, and only about ¼ of the pad is contacting the rotor.

Once you know you have the correct size rotor, align and tighten the caliper. For rim brakes, check that the pads and the holder are tight and aligned correctly. Also, make sure you have the correct rubber brake compound for your rim material for rim brakes. Never use the same brake pad on alloy wheels then carbon wheels.

There are a lot of other aspects that you could and probably should check, but these are the minimum for me when I do a bike inspection. If the bike is new, take your time, and don’t jump into a race or big group ride. Slowly shift through all of the gears and test the brakes. If anything is incorrect, you might want to head back to your local shop and have them do a safety check. If you built the bike yourself, consider having someone else give it a full service.