Racing bicycle

A racing bicycle, also known as a road bike, is a bicycle designed for competitive road cycling, a sport governed by according to the rules of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). The UCI rules were altered in 1934 to exclude recumbent bicycles.

The most important characteristics about a racing bicycle are its weight and stiffness which determine the efficiency at which the power from a rider's pedal strokes can be transferred to the drive-train and subsequently to its wheels. To this effect racing bicycles may sacrifice comfort for speed. The drop handlebars are positioned lower than the saddle in order to put the rider in a more aerodynamic posture. The front and back wheels are close together so the bicycle has quick handling. The derailleur gear ratios are closely spaced so that the rider can pedal at their optimum cadence. Other racing bicycles, especially those used in time trialling, prioritize aerodynamics over comfort.

Bicycles for racing on velodromes are track bicycles; bicycles for racing offroad are mountain bicycles, cyclo-cross bicycles or cycle speedway bicycles; bicycles that race according to the rules of the International Human Powered Vehicle Association include faired recumbent bicycles which, on flat ground, are the fastest bicycles in the world. Recumbents were excluded from the UCI definition of a bicycle on 1 April 1934.

Time trial bicycles are a subset of road bicycles that are designed for time trial events. The UCI rules for these bikes are slightly less prescriptive than those for "massed start road races" (see rules 1.3.020 to 1.3.023).

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