|Around the Academy:
These are the kind of bikes used in the Tour de France.
Also known as racing bikes they are designed to go as fast as possible over a flat tarmac road.
Everything is kept to a minimum to cut down on weight and reduce air resistance.
This is called improving the aerodynamics.
Road bikes have quite a lot of gears.
But they are grouped very close together so that the rider can choose the exact gear he needs for any condition.
The bottom and the rest of the low gears are for climbing hills.
The top and the other high gears are for descents or going along the flat.
They have curly, drop handlebars which you can use either hunched over or sitting up depending on the conditions.
The tyres are very skinny and are always kept at a high pressure.
Because they are so thin they can be uncomfortable to ride, especially on cobbles and rough road surfaces.
A basic road bike starts from around £150 but if you want to use it to race you'll need to splash out at least double that.