Another newbie advice required

[Nowhere]

Hello all

My wife and I have decided to purchase bikes this weekend.(Good old Tax
Refund from last year) We have a friend who suggested we purchase Hybrid's
for the riding we will be doing. We do not want to ride on the road, mainly
bike and rail trails. As we are nearer the 50 age bracket we have no
intention on trying to break every speed record known to human. Is our
friend correct re the Hybrid and what is a comfort bike. Is there anyting we
should be wary of? We do not have a tow bar or pack rack on our car so is
there a bike that will fit into the boot size of 535 litres, or can the
front wheels be removed.
Thank you in anticipation and we wait for your responses

 

[gravelmuncher]

Hello all

My wife and I have decided to purchase bikes this weekend.(Good old Tax
Refund from last year) We have a friend who suggested we purchase Hybrid's
for the riding we will be doing. We do not want to ride on the road, mainly
bike and rail trails. As we are nearer the 50 age bracket we have no
intention on trying to break every speed record known to human. Is our
friend correct re the Hybrid and what is a comfort bike. Is there anyting we
should be wary of? We do not have a tow bar or pack rack on our car so is
there a bike that will fit into the boot size of 535 litres, or can the
front wheels be removed.
Thank you in anticipation and we wait for your responses

There's a section on the front page called 'Bike Buying Advice'. If you take a look through that you should find answers to your questions 1000 times over.

Good luck - stay upright.

gm

 

[Bleve]

On Apr 19, 3:32 am, "Nowhere" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Hello all
>
> My wife and I have decided to purchase bikes this weekend.(Good old Tax
> Refund from last year) We have a friend who suggested we purchase Hybrid's
> for the riding we will be doing. We do not want to ride on the road, mainly
> bike and rail trails. As we are nearer the 50 age bracket we have no
> intention on trying to break every speed record known to human. Is our
> friend correct re the Hybrid and what is a comfort bike. Is there anyting we
> should be wary of? We do not have a tow bar or pack rack on our car so is
> there a bike that will fit into the boot size of 535 litres, or can the
> front wheels be removed.
> Thank you in anticipation and we wait for your responses

A hybrid could well be a good solution, make sure you test ride some
to find what's most comfortable for you to ride. Most bikes these
days have quick release wheels so removing them to fit them in many
cars is quite easy, but you may find that a rack is a better solution.

Things to be wary of? Bikes from k-mart! Generally, bikes bought
from LBS's (local bike shops) are properly assembled and not 'junk'
bikes. Take advantage of your local LBS's expertise and have a good
talk to them about what you want and then testride ... testride and
testride! Expect to pay around $350 or more for a good quality
hybrid.

A comfort bike is generally a type of hybrid, but it's a marketing
term and different manufacturers will give that name to different
bikes.

 

[Evan]

gravelmuncher wrote:
> Nowhere Wrote:
>> Hello all
>>
>> My wife and I have decided to purchase bikes this weekend.(Good old
>> Tax
>> Refund from last year)

How much were you planning on spending?

>
> There's a section on the front page called 'Bike Buying Advice'.

gm refers to the front page of

http://cyclingforums.com/

 

[Bugbear]

I would recommend purchasing a bike rack for the back of your car -
one that is removable might be suitable for you. I picked up one from
by local bike shop for about $90 - holds 3 bikes and is fastened to
the car boot via straps (it also can be fitted onto my hatchback).
Originally I was planning on doing similar to you - removing the front
wheel and putting in the back of the car. Problems I discovered with
this plan:
i) the hassle of constantly removing and reattaching the front wheel,
ii) the dangerous angle you would get your back into trying to reach
into the back of the car to lift the bike,
iii) risk of getting grease and dirt inside your car and on yourself
when reaching over in the back of the car.

If finances allow it, do yourself a favour and get a bike rack that
can hold 2-3 bikes.

Oh and just a small warning sign - if these are your first bikes, then
get ready to spend a bit on all the lovely accessories that go along
with cycling

 

[Nowhere]

Thank you all for responding to my questions. Our local bike shop has quoted
us $329 for a Raleigh 700C Gents and $259 700C for the Ladies.

Thanks again

"Bleve" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Apr 19, 3:32 am, "Nowhere" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> Hello all
>>
>> My wife and I have decided to purchase bikes this weekend.(Good old Tax
>> Refund from last year) We have a friend who suggested we purchase
>> Hybrid's
>> for the riding we will be doing. We do not want to ride on the road,
>> mainly
>> bike and rail trails. As we are nearer the 50 age bracket we have no
>> intention on trying to break every speed record known to human. Is our
>> friend correct re the Hybrid and what is a comfort bike. Is there anyting
>> we
>> should be wary of? We do not have a tow bar or pack rack on our car so is
>> there a bike that will fit into the boot size of 535 litres, or can the
>> front wheels be removed.
>> Thank you in anticipation and we wait for your responses
>
> A hybrid could well be a good solution, make sure you test ride some
> to find what's most comfortable for you to ride. Most bikes these
> days have quick release wheels so removing them to fit them in many
> cars is quite easy, but you may find that a rack is a better solution.
>
> Things to be wary of? Bikes from k-mart! Generally, bikes bought
> from LBS's (local bike shops) are properly assembled and not 'junk'
> bikes. Take advantage of your local LBS's expertise and have a good
> talk to them about what you want and then testride ... testride and
> testride! Expect to pay around $350 or more for a good quality
> hybrid.
>
> A comfort bike is generally a type of hybrid, but it's a marketing
> term and different manufacturers will give that name to different
> bikes.
>
>

 

[Joel Mayes]

On 2007-04-19, Nowhere <[email protected]> wrote:
> Thank you all for responding to my questions. Our local bike shop has quoted
> us $329 for a Raleigh 700C Gents and $259 700C for the Ladies.
>
> Thanks again

Hi, Don't be suckered by the sales staff into buying a bike with
suspension (even front suspension) in that price range it will brake
pretty quickly if fou ride often.

Cheers

Joel

 

[Brendo]

>
> Hi, Don't be suckered by the sales staff into buying a bike with
> suspension (even front suspension) in that price range
..
it will brake pretty quickly if fou ride often.
>
> Cheers
>
> Joel
As in it will stop your forward momentum quickly (brake) OR it will
cease to function correctly quickly (break)?

Pedantic, I know...

Brendo

 

[OzCableguy]

"Joel Mayes" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> Hi, Don't be suckered by the sales staff into buying a bike with
> suspension (even front suspension) in that price range it will brake
> pretty quickly if fou ride often.
>
>

Bah! I bought a Giant Sedona comfort MTB for a tad over $400.00 around 2
years ago when I weighed around 150kgs and I've been hammering 20-30 kms a
day into it ever since. Suspension technology has come down heaps in price
and cheaper bikes IMHO represent surprisingly good value for money these
days.

--
www.ozcableguy.com
www.oztechnologies.com

 

[[email protected]]

On Apr 20, 11:14 am, "OzCableguy" <[email protected]>
wrote:
> "Joel Mayes" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>
> news:[email protected]...
>
> > Hi, Don't be suckered by the sales staff into buying a bike with
> > suspension (even front suspension) in that price range it will brake
> > pretty quickly if fou ride often.
>
> Bah! I bought a Giant Sedona comfort MTB for a tad over $400.00 around 2
> years ago when I weighed around 150kgs and I've been hammering 20-30 kms a
> day into it ever since. Suspension technology has come down heaps in price
> and cheaper bikes IMHO represent surprisingly good value for money these
> days.
>
> --www.ozcableguy.comwww.oztechnologies.com

Hear hear! For the type of riding that comfort/hybrid bike purchasers
do (i.e. road/bike paths) cheap suspension is perfectly adequate and a
damn sight more comfortable than rigid. Of course with the cheap
stuff you don't get to win any pissing contests, just enjoy a smooth
ride.

 

[Joel Mayes]

On 2007-04-20, OzCableguy <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> "Joel Mayes" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>
>> Hi, Don't be suckered by the sales staff into buying a bike with
>> suspension (even front suspension) in that price range it will brake
>> pretty quickly if fou ride often.
>>
>>
>
> Bah! I bought a Giant Sedona comfort MTB for a tad over $400.00 around 2
> years ago when I weighed around 150kgs and I've been hammering 20-30 kms a
> day into it ever since. Suspension technology has come down heaps in price
> and cheaper bikes IMHO represent surprisingly good value for money these
> days.

There's a whole lota difference between a $400+ bike and a sub $200
bike which is what the OP was posting about.

heers

Joel

 

[Nowhere]

Thank you
So should I buy these Raleighs They look all right

Cheers
"Joel Mayes" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On 2007-04-20, OzCableguy <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>> "Joel Mayes" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> news:[email protected]...
>>
>>> Hi, Don't be suckered by the sales staff into buying a bike with
>>> suspension (even front suspension) in that price range it will brake
>>> pretty quickly if fou ride often.
>>>
>>>
>>
>> Bah! I bought a Giant Sedona comfort MTB for a tad over $400.00 around 2
>> years ago when I weighed around 150kgs and I've been hammering 20-30 kms
>> a
>> day into it ever since. Suspension technology has come down heaps in
>> price
>> and cheaper bikes IMHO represent surprisingly good value for money these
>> days.
>
> There's a whole lota difference between a $400+ bike and a sub $200
> bike which is what the OP was posting about.
>
> heers
>
> Joel

 

[Joel Mayes]

On 2007-04-20, Nowhere <[email protected]> wrote:
> Thank you
> So should I buy these Raleighs They look all right
>
> Cheers

I'd say that's up to you, but (in my opinion anyway) if they don't
have suspension and their for casual riding they should be OK.

One thing to keep aware of in any bike is `wobbles' appearing in the
moving parts, particularly the bottom bracket (that's the bit which your
cranks connect to). This sort of unwanted movement can cause expensive
damage very quickly or, in the case of the bottom bracket, can cause
irreparable frame damage.

I'm a bit sensative about this at the moment 'cause I've had four bikes
come in to work this week with this sort of problem.

Cheers

Joel

--
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