I've been wanting to buy a bike but I don't know if I want a road bike or a mountain bike. I want something nice. Nothing too crazy expensive but better then a Walmart bike. Any suggestions?
I actually ride a bike as my main transportation (great way to stay in shape and cut down on costs). And in my experience it just depends on what your area is like. In most cases I say get a road bike if you plan on doing some long distance rides. They are really more effecient. If you want to ride on sidewalks mostly or just go on a bike trail than def get the mountain bike. Or you can take the third option, get crappy bike from walmart and slap a motor on it. Its a blast. And you will prob want to get a comfy seat. Most bike stock bike seats will seriously cause you some harm. The seat on the bike in the picture is probably the most comfortable seat I have ever had and it came from walmart.
My dad is huge into road cycling. First, decide what you really want from your bike, as there is a huge difference between how a mountain and road bike are designed. Going to a local bike shop and talking with people there is a great idea to learn more, as well as make some good connections on maintenance. There may even be people trying to unload some used bikes, which would be a great thing to start with, until you're ready to commit to a new one. Bikes can get incredibly expensive, especially high-end ones, but well taken care of they last for decades.
Depends on what you want to do with it. Commuting? Training? Road? Cross-country? Freeride? Downhill? All-mountain? Touring? BMX? Dirt jumping? Street?
I'm a huge biker, I've got a mountain, racing, and hybrid/city bike. I've got this one and convinced another guy to buy one as well. it's about as low-end as I could ever suggest, while still giving you a quality bike. decent shifters, brakes, etc. with road tires instead of knobbies for better rolling resistance/speed. the only thing is that the retail price has spiked $100 in the past three years: 2012 7.3 FX - Trek Bicycle
Now that right there is what I'm after. That is a beautiful bike. Just what I need. And a little cheaper then what I was expecting to spend. I'm sure later on as I get more serious I'll want to upgrade but for now that's more then enough. It'll probably be better to buy it from a local bike shop then online right?
Those mountain / street bike combos seem like the way to go. I miss my Scorpio. I like those Cannondales too, they're so light.
I used to race mountain bikes in XC and DH class. It was a lot of fun but a lot of work. I raced in the expert call for XC and Sport for DH. OP if I was you go to a bike shop and look around and talk to the people there and they can get you fit on the right bike for you. I would highly recommend getting a FIT KIT done at the shop. GL
I ride about 10 miles a day, at least 3 times a week in the summer. I have a hybrid bike. Road/mountain bike. How much are you willing to spend. I wish I could afford a cannondale or Giant lol. My bike is a Diamondback, it's not too pricey and gets the job done. But I would have preferred a better bike.
I think so, yes. You'll make some helpful connections, get an idea of what else is out there, and hopefully save an assload on shipping. Bike Shipping costs are unpleasant.
Hahahaha... I don't really want to go past $1,000. I just found out that there is a Trek super store a couple of miles from me. I'm gonna go take a look on my day off. There are a few other mom and pop store around here. Might as well check those out too. So I had another question, disk brakes. Are they worth it? Should I go for a model that has them? Or are standard brakes good enough?
I race XC and train with my mountain bike on the road because ultimately, a mountain bike will always be able to go anywhere when you need it, unlike a road or flat-bar road bike.
It's a question of use. If you're planning on putting top end tires on your bike and riding every day, then yeah, consider disc brakes. If you're just going to use run-of-the-mill tires, standard brakes should be okay. Just make sure you maintain them.
Ok, sounds good. As of now I don't plan on riding every day. Mainly on my days off. But I'll probably increase that to 3-4 times a week. Just depends. Could I start off with a bike like the one that was linked and later on adding disc brakes? Or should I pay a little extra for something like this. Trek Bicycle
If you're just getting into cycling, figure out if you can add disc brakes to the bike later, and if so, maybe worry about adding them in later, instead of risking spending the money up front for a bike you end up using less than you figured.
Thanks Aernaroth. I really appreciate your help. This is why I love this site. It's a wealth of knowledge. I'll be posting pics of what I get.
