I've spent a good portion of the afternoon leafing through the forum here and appreciate all of the knowledge I've managed to soak up, but I'm still a little undecided what route to go in choosing my first "good" bike.
I rode casually growing up and through college, where I went through a number of lower-end bikes. As a result, I've been bike-less for the last several years and am now looking to get into it, this time a little more seriously. I've ridden my dad's Trek Navigator 300 a fair amount, my only experience in recent years. After visiting my LBS and doing some research online, I'm still torn by what sort of bike would suit me best.
My riding intentions are primarily for exercise and pleasure. I currently have no ambitions for 30+ mile rides, and no extremely rough off-roading. That said, I do expect to find myself in a variety of environments. Primarily road/shoulder riding, but also some bike paths, the occasional dirt road, and maybe even some trail riding, and also a little commuting. Though it'll mostly be paved riding, I feel uneasy about limiting off-road options, because I really don't know where I want to head with the sport yet.
I'm looking primarily at Treks, since that's what is easiest to come by in my (small) town. I'm very interested in the 7300, because the hybrid might balance my riding needs. But then, I wonder if I should look more closely at the FX series since I'll be doing a lot of road riding. And, since I'm familiar with the Navigator and because it provides some off-road options, I'm looking at the 3.0 a bit.
Again, I'm a complete greenhorn here and any advice at all would be much appreciated, and help me get started out. I'm already excited to get riding a bit when the weather improves! Thanks in advance.
I rode casually growing up and through college, where I went through a number of lower-end bikes. As a result, I've been bike-less for the last several years and am now looking to get into it, this time a little more seriously. I've ridden my dad's Trek Navigator 300 a fair amount, my only experience in recent years. After visiting my LBS and doing some research online, I'm still torn by what sort of bike would suit me best.
My riding intentions are primarily for exercise and pleasure. I currently have no ambitions for 30+ mile rides, and no extremely rough off-roading. That said, I do expect to find myself in a variety of environments. Primarily road/shoulder riding, but also some bike paths, the occasional dirt road, and maybe even some trail riding, and also a little commuting. Though it'll mostly be paved riding, I feel uneasy about limiting off-road options, because I really don't know where I want to head with the sport yet.
I'm looking primarily at Treks, since that's what is easiest to come by in my (small) town. I'm very interested in the 7300, because the hybrid might balance my riding needs. But then, I wonder if I should look more closely at the FX series since I'll be doing a lot of road riding. And, since I'm familiar with the Navigator and because it provides some off-road options, I'm looking at the 3.0 a bit.
Again, I'm a complete greenhorn here and any advice at all would be much appreciated, and help me get started out. I'm already excited to get riding a bit when the weather improves! Thanks in advance.