In Need of Bicycle Advice

D

Deep Gloss Auto Salon

New member
I am looking to get into bicycling with my son.



We are not going to start off hard core with 30mile rides or anything. Really just looking for something to do with my son as he gets older. Since he is into sports/fitness I figured this would be a great way to find an activity he is interested in that also interests me so we can get some additional quality time together under our belt.



Not sure if I want a mountain bike, hybrid bike or comfort bike. Primarily will be used for 2-5 mile rides around town and around paved lake shores.



I am hoping to tap into the brain of my fellow autopians that may know more than me (little to nothing) about cycles.



Below are some of the bikes I have been looking at for myself - My target budget for my bike is about $350. I don't want to spend nearly as much for my sons bike since I recently bought him a BMX bike which is where his main interest is.



My son and I are both 5'9 (he is 125lbs and I am 200)



Amazon.com: Diamondback 2012 Sorrento Mountain Bike (Satin Black): Sports & Outdoors



Schwinn Crest Urban Men's Hybrid Bike (700c Wheels): Amazon.com: Sports & Outdoors



Amazon.com: Schwinn 700c Men's Connection GSL Hybrid Bike: Sports & Outdoors



Amazon.com: Schwinn Network 7 Men's Hybrid Bike (700C Wheels): Sports & Outdoors



Thanks for any help!



Jason
 
I am an avid cyclist, both mountain and road...



I would always suggest going to your local bike shop to get fitted for the proper size bike. If you are both 5"9 I would just be guessing, but you will probably be on a medium. I am 5"6 and I ride a medium road and a small 29er mtb.



I would definately go with a giant if you want to buy a good brand and keep the price down. Entry level good brands far exceed the quality of a department stores best. Your budget is realistic even for a good brand, but don't be afraid of entry level or to say no to the bike shop guy upsell tactics.



If you are only going to do short rides I would suggest either a hybrid or comfort as comfort is paramount for a casual rider.



I hope that helps. If you have any further questions just let me know.
 
Your money will go much further buying used, you've got two issues buying used though:



-Its the start of biking season, prices are usually high now

-As a newbie, its very hard to tell what is a good bike and what is crappy old hardware, you are going to need to network a bit and find a buddy who is into bikes. There are just too many variations to even begin listing. For example you won't know that a 10 year old Shimano 105 group is probably worse than a 1-2 year old Tiagra setup.



The bikes you posted are the equivalent of the cheapo buffer that you can find at Sears. You really have to spend $500+ to get a fair quality bike. Used is definitely the way to go, but if you insist on new, try to find a Performance Bike shop in your area. You can coupon stack on top of an already good deal bike. Their house brand Scattante is fairly nice and they also sell Fuji's which are a great value and a nice bike as well.



I can't tell you what to get, mountain vs road, but I will say there is about a 1-1.5mph difference between each grade bike with the same rider, meaning that if you get ride a mountain bike using the same effort, on the same road, you will be about 2-3mph slower than a road bike, this can be a huge difference if the both of you get different bikes. And 30 mile rides aren't extreme! I've seen 70+ year olds doing centuries (100 miles) and even saw a middle aged guy do a century on a unicycle.



Anyway, welcome to another great hobby, its fun and its healthy!
 
Justin (Phishy4) is a bike wiz....I'll see if I get get him to comment. ;)





I bought a Trek 7.2 last spring and while I do love it, I wish I had gotten a road bike as I'd like to be a little faster.
 
Jason, I've worked in a bike shop going on 11 years now. If you have any questions, shoot me a pm. FWIW, I think Garry's advice is spot on. You should be looking at comfort/hybrid bikes for what you're describing and at your heights, either medium frames or 17-18" frames are what you'd want. Sizing can vary a little bit according to manufacturer, but that should be the ballpark for you. And just as an example, our entry-level Specialized comfort bikes start in the $420 range. I've sold more brands than I can remember in my time, and what sticks out most is to find a shop you can trust vs. fixating on a brand. Most entry-level bikes will have similar parts, so whether you get a Specialized or Trek or Giant or Cannondale or whatever, you probably won't notice any tangible difference between any of them. Find the shop that treats you best, and go from there.



Good luck!
 
mikenap said:
Jason, I've worked in a bike shop going on 11 years now. If you have any questions, shoot me a pm. FWIW, I think Garry's advice is spot on. You should be looking at comfort/hybrid bikes for what you're describing and at your heights, either medium frames or 17-18" frames are what you'd want. Sizing can vary a little bit according to manufacturer, but that should be the ballpark for you. And just as an example, our entry-level Specialized comfort bikes start in the $420 range. I've sold more brands than I can remember in my time, and what sticks out most is to find a shop you can trust vs. fixating on a brand. Most entry-level bikes will have similar parts, so whether you get a Specialized or Trek or Giant or Cannondale or whatever, you probably won't notice any tangible difference between any of them. Find the shop that treats you best, and go from there.



Good luck!
Click to expand...



Jason, why don't you just buy my Trek 7.2 :D
 
Thanks for all the great advice so far gents! I really appreciate it as I have been looking at cycles for over 8 weeks now yet I still stare at the computer screen like a deer in headlights.



RaskyR1 said:
Jason, why don't you just buy my Trek 7.2 :D
Click to expand...



Hey Chad, Didn't know it was for sale :smile:



If you're serious shoot me a PM with what you are thinking and we may be able to keep my money "all in the family"!
 
Deep Gloss Auto Salon said:
Thanks for all the great advice so far gents! I really appreciate it as I have been looking at cycles for over 8 weeks now yet I still stare at the computer screen like a deer in headlights.







Hey Chad, Didn't know it was for sale :smile:



If you're serious shoot me a PM with what you are thinking and we may be able to keep my money "all in the family"!
Click to expand...



LOL. I'm just giving you a hard time. I'll probably let the wife use the 7.2 if I do buy a road bike...too many other things on my plate right now to worry about buying though.



Scottwax rides a lot too and he'd be a good person with!
 
RaskyR1 said:
Justin (Phishy4) is a bike wiz....I'll see if I get get him to comment. ;)





I bought a Trek 7.2 last spring and while I do love it, I wish I had gotten a road bike as I'd like to be a little faster.
Click to expand...



Thanks Chad. I did 12 years as a bike mechanic in a previous life, and still have a small side business doing one off bike stuff (custom builds or wheel building stuff like that). I don't have specific brand oriented advice necessarily, but for entry/mid level stuff I do think you get a lot of bang for the buck with Trek, Giant or Specialized. I'd stay away from anything owned by the pacific group (schwinn/gt/whoever the hell else they've bought in the last decade) as they've degenerated into what amounts to department store bikes if you will. Mike is correct about the type of bike to consider, the only other thing I'd say is if you can find a deal you like on a good entry level mountain/atb type bike, a set of Continental Town and Country street tires will get you what you want for the most part as well (had them on my bridgestone frakenstein commuter for a decade or so). He is also 100% correct about finding a shop that treats you well, be good to them and they'll take care of you. Eat the $20 difference between the indy shop and the megamart sporting goods store and it will pay for itself very very quickly. A good shop/mechanic/manager will generally go out of their way to help you out (I know I did for good customers every day).
 
Another thought is to consider buying a "better" bike than what you think you need. If you move on to longer/harder rides, you may be disappointed with a bike that is pretty basic.
 
Look on craigslist, you can usually find a lot better bike for the money there. Bought my frame, wheels and stem on craigslist and saved some serious money over new.



Honestly, I'd get a road bike over a hybrid. You will quickly find you can't get in any sort of a workout in a short ride and hybrids really aren't that great once you get over 15 miles or so. I went from a hybrid to a road bike after just 6 weeks and immediately was able to bump my mileage from about 15 per ride to 22-25. The road bike (even though it was an older Cannondale) was light years ahead of the hybrid in terms of weight, handling and comfort.



I started back riding in January of 2007, and I am just under 19,000 total miles since then to date. Its very addictive and you'll find as your fitnes level improves, you will want to ride further and faster.
 
dirtdiggler said:
Jason,

Yep - K2 Brand has been around.. What model K2 ? Suspension or Hardtail ?
Click to expand...



The K2 I was looking at ended up selling...



I am going to take the advice of those that suggested going to a local shop.



Below are two cycles that I have found.. I am hoping to pick one of these up today due to the fact that riding weather has reached Michigan.



ONLY because I have heard of Trek I am leaning towards the Trek... Anyone have any input?



Thanks!



2011 GT Aggressor 3.0 Mountain Bike

2011 GT Aggressor 3.0 Mountain Bike - Performance Sales Exclusions



Trek 3500

http://americancycleandfitness.com/product/10trek-3500-57248-1.htm
 
My wife has a K2, its a decent bike. The GT's are decent too, nothing spectacular. I'd say in general Trek is a notch or two above, but your link doesn't seem to work so I can't see the actual bike.
 
I looked both and both are quality entry level bikes. The GT has a more revised fork model and aluminum handlebars and compact gearing. Sometimes Performance will have a sale if you go during lunch time there is an added discount. I've had GT bikes in the past ( Zaskars ) and the triple triangle frame is still a tried and true design. Both frames are made overseas, probably by Giant. You really can't go wrong with both of these bikes. One thing to consider is that the Trek is sold by local bike shop and Performance is a mail order company ( North Carolina based) that set up shops in several states. The LBS may have better service. I don't know. I tend to go to whichever.. Good luck with your purchase and ride it plenty.
 
Dan said:
My wife has a K2, its a decent bike. The GT's are decent too, nothing spectacular. I'd say in general Trek is a notch or two above, but your link doesn't seem to work so I can't see the actual bike.
Click to expand...





dirtdiggler said:
I looked both and both are quality entry level bikes. The GT has a more revised fork model and aluminum handlebars and compact gearing. Sometimes Performance will have a sale if you go during lunch time there is an added discount. I've had GT bikes in the past ( Zaskars ) and the triple triangle frame is still a tried and true design. Both frames are made overseas, probably by Giant. You really can't go wrong with both of these bikes. One thing to consider is that the Trek is sold by local bike shop and Performance is a mail order company ( North Carolina based) that set up shops in several states. The LBS may have better service. I don't know. I tend to go to whichever.. Good luck with your purchase and ride it plenty.
Click to expand...



Dan/Dirt: Thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge with me!



Performance Bike shop has a store not far from me so with either option I would be buying from a local bike shop. I am leaning towads the LBS option due to the experiences/opinions shared earlier



Thanks again gents!
 
If you have a performance bike shop in your area, don't discount them as far as service goes. There are three in my area, and while they aren't as good as the top end shops, they are a great value (for service) and seem to be much more honest than the middle of the road shops. As a result, they do have longer backlogs. Last time I bought a bike from them, they included lifetime adjustments for free.
 
Dan said:
If you have a performance bike shop in your area, don't discount them as far as service goes. There are three in my area, and while they aren't as good as the top end shops, they are a great value (for service) and seem to be much more honest than the middle of the road shops. As a result, they do have longer backlogs. Last time I bought a bike from them, they included lifetime adjustments for free.
Click to expand...



Their house brand frames, Scattante, are also very good. Nothing fancy about the styling but they are light, stiff and a great value. Come from the same factory that makes Fuji, Giant and a few other's frames.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top