Hoping to get back into cycling

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Hi all,

as a young tacker I used to ride around on a trusty BMX, which has
probably long since rusted through.

Lately the idea of starting to ride again has become quite attractive
for a number of reasons: I have friends who ride, good way to get to
the shops, a new part time job I've got near my house, fun, exercise,
etc.

Based on advice from above mentioned cyclist friends, I understand
that a good bike to start with would be a hardtail mountain bike. This
seems good as it would do a lot of the things I want - get me around
town, (albeit less efficiently than a roadie, but I'm ok with that -
having any gears will take some getting used to after the BMX) and let
me do basic mountain biking or off-road riding.

So my questions are:
1) Do you also recommend a hard-tail mountain bike as a good entry-
level bike for my listed uses? If not, what do you suggest?

2) I'm told I'd be looking at $700 or so for an entry-level bike. Is
this right?

Any info or comments appreciated.
Cheers
Dave

On Nov 10, 2:52 pm, Dave_pH <david.hin...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> as a young tacker I used to ride around on a trusty BMX, which has
> probably long since rusted through.
>
> Lately the idea of starting to ride again has become quite attractive
> for a number of reasons: I have friends who ride, good way to get to
> the shops, a new part time job I've got near my house, fun, exercise,
> etc.
>
> Based on advice from above mentioned cyclist friends, I understand
> that a good bike to start with would be a hardtail mountain bike. This
> seems good as it would do a lot of the things I want - get me around
> town, (albeit less efficiently than a roadie, but I'm ok with that -
> having any gears will take some getting used to after the BMX) and let
> me do basic mountain biking or off-road riding.
>
> So my questions are:
> 1) Do you also recommend a hard-tail mountain bike as a good entry-
> level bike for my listed uses? If not, what do you suggest?
>
> 2) I'm told I'd be looking at $700 or so for an entry-level bike. Is
> this right?
>
> Any info or comments appreciated.
> Cheers
> Dave

Pick up the lates Australian Cyclist in the newsagent for a few bucks
for answers to those exact questions.

On 2007-11-10, Dave_pH <david.hinder@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi all,

> So my questions are:
> 1) Do you also recommend a hard-tail mountain bike as a good entry-
> level bike for my listed uses? If not, what do you suggest?

Yes, try not to get anything with suspension forks though, at that price
level, and for your intended use they're not worth the expense or
weight. ditto disc brakes. If you decide to get into more serious MTBing
buy a set of good suspension forks or if you need to go faster/further
put good quality high pressure slick tyres on. Many people tour or do
fast commuting on rigid MTBs and keep up with the guys on roadies.

> 2) I'm told I'd be looking at $700 or so for an entry-level bike. Is
> this right?


If you think riding will become a serious life style option spend more
may end up being cheaper in the long run (particularly if you're a bit
of a gear junkie like myself).

Cheers

Joel

--
Human Powered Cycles | High quality servicing and repairs
joel@humanpowered.com.au | Affordable second hand bikes
(03) 9029 6504 | Bicycle reuse centre
www.humanpowered.com.au | Mechanical and on-road training and instruction

"Dave_pH" <david.hinder@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1194670337.019117.246370@y27g2000pre.googlegroups.com...
> Hi all,
>
> as a young tacker I used to ride around on a trusty BMX, which has
> probably long since rusted through.
>
> Lately the idea of starting to ride again has become quite attractive
> for a number of reasons: I have friends who ride, good way to get to
> the shops, a new part time job I've got near my house, fun, exercise,
> etc.
>
> Based on advice from above mentioned cyclist friends, I understand
> that a good bike to start with would be a hardtail mountain bike. This
> seems good as it would do a lot of the things I want - get me around
> town, (albeit less efficiently than a roadie, but I'm ok with that -
> having any gears will take some getting used to after the BMX) and let
> me do basic mountain biking or off-road riding.
>
> So my questions are:
> 1) Do you also recommend a hard-tail mountain bike as a good entry-
> level bike for my listed uses? If not, what do you suggest?
>
> 2) I'm told I'd be looking at $700 or so for an entry-level bike. Is
> this right?
>
> Any info or comments appreciated.

MTB would be good, as long as you run slicks for road use around town. Save
the knobbies for true off-road, and gravel roads or trails.

Where are you? In Melbourne, I just noticed a very nice Giant Perigee flat
bar road bike (700c tyres) at Bicycle Recycle in South Rd, Moorabin, for
just $1000. Very good deal for a better quality town bike, with XT
deraileurs, Avid Single Digit 5 V-brakes.
--
Cheers
Peter

~~~ ~ _@
~~ ~ _- \,
~~ (*)/ (*)

PeteSig wrote:
> "Dave_pH" <david.hinder@gmail.com> wrote in message
> news:1194670337.019117.246370@y27g2000pre.googlegroups.com...
>> Hi all,
>>
>> as a young tacker I used to ride around on a trusty BMX, which has
>> probably long since rusted through.
>>
>> Lately the idea of starting to ride again has become quite attractive
>> for a number of reasons: I have friends who ride, good way to get to
>> the shops, a new part time job I've got near my house, fun, exercise,
>> etc.
>>
>> Based on advice from above mentioned cyclist friends, I understand
>> that a good bike to start with would be a hardtail mountain bike. This
>> seems good as it would do a lot of the things I want - get me around
>> town, (albeit less efficiently than a roadie, but I'm ok with that -
>> having any gears will take some getting used to after the BMX) and let
>> me do basic mountain biking or off-road riding.
>>
>> So my questions are:
>> 1) Do you also recommend a hard-tail mountain bike as a good entry-
>> level bike for my listed uses? If not, what do you suggest?
>>
>> 2) I'm told I'd be looking at $700 or so for an entry-level bike. Is
>> this right?
>>
>> Any info or comments appreciated.
>
> MTB would be good, as long as you run slicks for road use around town. Save
> the knobbies for true off-road, and gravel roads or trails.
>
> Where are you? In Melbourne, I just noticed a very nice Giant Perigee flat
> bar road bike (700c tyres) at Bicycle Recycle in South Rd, Moorabin, for
> just $1000. Very good deal for a better quality town bike, with XT
> deraileurs, Avid Single Digit 5 V-brakes.

You guys are crazy. What he needs is a full suspension bike with at
least four inches of travel at both ends. If you're not spending at
least two grand on a bike you're not going to enjoy riding it anyway.
The reason there's so many bikes rusting unridden in sheds is because
they were crap bikes to start with. Treat yourself to something decent.
Life is for living.

Dorf

"Dorfus Dippintush" <Dorfus.Dippintush@kippinbot.com> wrote:


>
> You guys are crazy. What he needs is a full suspension bike with at least
> four inches of travel at both ends. If you're not spending at least two
> grand on a bike you're not going to enjoy riding it anyway.

TIC I hope?

'Horses for courses' is what he should be looking at

>> "Dave_pH" wrote:
>>> good way to get to the shops, a new part time job I've got near my
>>> house, fun, exercise, etc.

Tends to suggest that 4" suspension travel is a tad irrellevant.
--
Cheers
Peter

~~~ ~ _@
~~ ~ _- \,
~~ (*)/ (*)

In aus.bicycle on Sat, 10 Nov 2007 22:10:49 GMT
PeteSig <petesig@bigpond.com> wrote:
>
> 'Horses for courses' is what he should be looking at
>
>>> "Dave_pH" wrote:
>>>> good way to get to the shops, a new part time job I've got near my
>>>> house, fun, exercise, etc.
>
> Tends to suggest that 4" suspension travel is a tad irrellevant.

Besides, if he was going to spend a lot (and it doesn't seem like he
wants to) he should also be looking at recumbents.

Comfortable, fun, and mine certainly got me riding for the sheer fun
of it which the previous upright bikes never did.

Zebee

Zebee Johnstone wrote:
> In aus.bicycle on Sat, 10 Nov 2007 22:10:49 GMT
> PeteSig <petesig@bigpond.com> wrote:
>> 'Horses for courses' is what he should be looking at
>>
>>>> "Dave_pH" wrote:
>>>>> good way to get to the shops, a new part time job I've got near my
>>>>> house, fun, exercise, etc.
>> Tends to suggest that 4" suspension travel is a tad irrellevant.
>
> Besides, if he was going to spend a lot (and it doesn't seem like he
> wants to) he should also be looking at recumbents.
>
> Comfortable, fun, and mine certainly got me riding for the sheer fun
> of it which the previous upright bikes never did.
>
> Zebee

Yes but you ride a Guzzi also Zebee,
you are already used to living out on the edge ;-)


G-S

In aus.bicycle on Sun, 11 Nov 2007 12:29:07 +1000
J5 <signupbox@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> "G-S" <geoff@castbus.com.au> wrote in message
> news:13jci9vbuept69f@corp.supernews.com...
>>
>> Yes but you ride a Guzzi also Zebee,
>> you are already used to living out on the edge ;-)
>
> pot calling kettle *over*
>

Hey, he not only has a Guzzi, he has a sidecar! That's the entire
bloody kitchen range talking about dark colours there.

Zebee

Zebee Johnstone wrote:
> In aus.bicycle on Sun, 11 Nov 2007 12:29:07 +1000
> J5 <signupbox@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> "G-S" <geoff@castbus.com.au> wrote in message
>> news:13jci9vbuept69f@corp.supernews.com...
>>> Yes but you ride a Guzzi also Zebee,
>>> you are already used to living out on the edge ;-)
>> pot calling kettle *over*
>>
>
> Hey, he not only has a Guzzi, he has a sidecar! That's the entire
> bloody kitchen range talking about dark colours there.
>
> Zebee

I reckon that a recumbant is sort of the cycling equal of a sidecar
actually :)


G-S

"G-S" <geoff@castbus.com.au> wrote in message
news:13jci9vbuept69f@corp.supernews.com...
> Zebee Johnstone wrote:
>> In aus.bicycle on Sat, 10 Nov 2007 22:10:49 GMT
>> PeteSig <petesig@bigpond.com> wrote:
>>> 'Horses for courses' is what he should be looking at
>>>
>>>>> "Dave_pH" wrote:
>>>>>> good way to get to the shops, a new part time job I've got near my
>>>>>> house, fun, exercise, etc.
>>> Tends to suggest that 4" suspension travel is a tad irrellevant.
>>
>> Besides, if he was going to spend a lot (and it doesn't seem like he
>> wants to) he should also be looking at recumbents.
>>
>> Comfortable, fun, and mine certainly got me riding for the sheer fun
>> of it which the previous upright bikes never did.
>>
>> Zebee
>
> Yes but you ride a Guzzi also Zebee,
> you are already used to living out on the edge ;-)
>
>
> G-S

pot calling kettle *over*

;)

In aus.bicycle on Sun, 11 Nov 2007 13:22:32 +1100
G-S <geoff@castbus.com.au> wrote:
> Zebee Johnstone wrote:
>>
>> Hey, he not only has a Guzzi, he has a sidecar! That's the entire
>> bloody kitchen range talking about dark colours there.
>
> I reckon that a recumbant is sort of the cycling equal of a sidecar
> actually :)

Hey! 'bents are comfortable and practical and it's just because they
are rare that other riders look down on them and...

Ah. OK.

Zebee

On Sat, 10 Nov 2007 06:52:47 +0000, Joel Mayes wrote:

> Yes, try not to get anything with suspension forks though, at that price
> level,

Actually I'd say at the $700 level to get them. Finding a bike with rigid
forks that's reasonably adept offroad these days is hard. Finding a bike
with surprisingly capable forks at that price isn't. The same applies down
to about $500, but below that you're basically paying for an extra layer
of metal on the rigid forks.

Disc brakes are a maybe at that price level. If they're a name brand
(Avid, Hayes, Shimano), then it's probably OK. If they're another brand
then they're probably not worth it.

Best bet is to find your local bike shops and have a look at what they've
got, or can easily get. That'll also give you a feel for who you'd like to
give money to.

--
Dave Hughes - dave@hired-goons.net

On 2007-11-11, Dave Hughes (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:
> On Sat, 10 Nov 2007 06:52:47 +0000, Joel Mayes wrote:
>
>> Yes, try not to get anything with suspension forks though, at that price
>> level,
>
> Actually I'd say at the $700 level to get them. Finding a bike with rigid
> forks that's reasonably adept offroad these days is hard. Finding a bike
> with surprisingly capable forks at that price isn't. The same applies down
> to about $500, but below that you're basically paying for an extra layer
> of metal on the rigid forks.
>
> Disc brakes are a maybe at that price level. If they're a name brand
> (Avid, Hayes, Shimano), then it's probably OK. If they're another brand
> then they're probably not worth it.

If they're name brand, at that price, wouldn't they be skimping on the
rest of the bike? Vital but unsexy things like hubs and bottom
brackets, for example?

--
TimC
Conclusion to my thesis -- "It is trivial to show that it is
clearly obvious that this is not woofly."

On Nov 10, 4:52 pm, Joel Mayes <j.ma...@invalid.invalid> wrote:
> On 2007-11-10, Dave_pH <david.hin...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Hi all,
> > So my questions are:
> > 1) Do you also recommend a hard-tail mountain bike as a good entry-
> > level bike for my listed uses? If not, what do you suggest?
>
> Yes, try not to get anything with suspension forks though, at that price
> level, and for your intended use they're not worth the expense or
> weight. ditto disc brakes.

Bollocks.

A $700 bike will have perfectly adequate suspension for basic off road
riding. Likely it will have reasonable disc brakes as well. My wife's
bike certainly does, and it was rrp $600. Shimano discs, and, well I
forget what forks. 80mm travel, anyway. Sure, the forks aren't up to
downhill racing, but for the use you describe (shops, commuting, fire
trails, easy singletrack), they're fine. My first ever suspension
forks had all of 25mm elastomer "travel", and they were so much better
than rigid it wasn't funny. With better forks, the bike was better
still, but my point is that that 25 mm *really* got me convinced that
mtbs were fun.

For $735, http://www.phantomcycles.com.au will sell you an 08 Giant
Yukon. Rockshox Dart 100mm forks, Shimano mechanical discs. Same frame
as their more expensive models. That was just the first bike I looked
at near $700, no doubt other shops and brands would be similar.

> If you decide to get into more serious MTBing
> buy a set of good suspension forks or if you need to go faster/further
> put good quality high pressure slick tyres on. Many people tour or do
> fast commuting on rigid MTBs and keep up with the guys on roadies.

If you buy a bike with a good frame with cheaper components, you can
replace the bits that need replacing as they wear, or as you get more
into riding.

My road bike is better than any of my mtbs on the road. It works
better because the package is designed for road use. But it sucks off
road...

> > 2) I'm told I'd be looking at $700 or so for an entry-level bike. Is
> > this right?
>
> If you think riding will become a serious life style option spend more
> may end up being cheaper in the long run (particularly if you're a bit
> of a gear junkie like myself).

This is true. ;^) But unless you're sure, I'd start cheaper and build
my way up. Second hand can get some great, almost unused, bargains,
generally at about 50% or so of new prices. Run out models can be a
great deal as well, and all shops will generally come down a bit from
rrp (even on new models) to make a sale.

Tony F
www.thefathippy.com

Dorfus Dippintush wrote:

> You guys are crazy. What he needs is a full suspension bike with at
> least four inches of travel at both ends. If you're not spending at
> least two grand on a bike you're not going to enjoy riding it anyway.
> The reason there's so many bikes rusting unridden in sheds is because
> they were crap bikes to start with. Treat yourself to something
> decent. Life is for living.

Theo checks MTB he rode to work for many years. Suspension travel? Mmmm. I
obviously didn't enjoy riding that.
Oh, I see, you were being facetious.

Theo

On Nov 10, 1:52 pm, Dave_pH <david.hin...@gmail.com> wrote:
> get me around
> town, (albeit less efficiently than a roadie, but I'm ok with that -
> having any gears will take some getting used to after the BMX) and let
> me do basic mountain biking or off-road riding.

The Upland is about half your budget, and would probably
do the job just fine:
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-AU/bikes/mountain/1134/28952/

I was looking at that for my Christmas present, but I will probably
go with the Elwood, since I have no intention of actually going
off road. Actually, I suspect that very few people do. I think MTBs
are a bit like 4WDs.

Thanks very much to everyone who replied.

I will be looking around my local cycling shops, working out where
they're all at, what size frame I need, etc.

Probably some time in the NY. may end up buying second hand but I am
feeling somewhat overwhelmed by the range of brands, components, etc
out there and feel that at a decent shop with good sales staff I'd
have a higher chance of buying something suited to my needs.

For PeteSg, I'm in Sydney. And on the North Shore I do indeed see many
4WDs that don't get driven off-road...

While I do appreciate that spending more on a bike will get me a much
better bike, I don't feel that I can justify the expense at the
moment. Horses for courses indeed :)

Thanks again, everyone have a Merry Christmas.