Looking for advice for a good bike

Hi everyone,
I'm hoping someone can recommend a good mountain bike. My sister got into mounting biking this summer but is very hard on her bike. She has broke a few chains already and damaged the gear shifters on some of the cheaper bikes. If anyone can recommend something from a rider with very strong legs. Thanks

 

Wow, that woman is strong! Looks like a pro bodybuilder and not a cyclist.

When you say she broke cheap bikes you didn't say how cheap those bikes were if they were Walmart bikes I could understand breaking those, but if they were bikes purchased in bike shops well then how much did those cost?

If you want to keep the price relatively low then I would probably look at the Giant Stance 29 2 bike and see how she likes it. This bike is about as cheap as I would go for a fully suspended mountain bike, but it's very well equipped for the price that runs around $1,600 starting up to $1,800 for the Stance 29 1 model which includes a better fork, better shifters, better derailleurs, and better crank than the 2, plus the 29 1 comes with a dropper post, so it's worth paying a bit more and getting the 29 1 model, but you have to decide the cost value if you can afford to go to the 1 over the 2.

The only option I would consider if she's a real serious mtb'r is to get a dropper post for it.

There are hundreds of bikes out there, I just mentioned one, I think all around for the price it's a great value, but other people will mention other bikes so you need to entertain those as well, I'm just not going to spend time typing in 10 different bikes or more without knowing more details on what you want to spend.

 

Paying some attention to how to ride might be a good idea too. DON’T shift under full power. Ease up on the pedal pressure until the chain has settled onnthe new gear.
Also, most bicycling is more about endurance than brute force. If you have gears, use them. Keep the cadence pedalling pace - up. Aim for 80-100 rpm. Many new riders find this high, but it is the way to do it.

 

She's only been cycling for a few months, she's been a powerlifter for many years. This makes sense to invest more in a better product. The last bike she purchased from walmart and gave up on her as she was pushing up a steep hill. appreciate the information! it gives me something to look into

 

Actually anybody who wants to take up cycling should invest in a decent bike and avoid the Walmart stuff.

I had a Walmart bike and the crank fell apart after a couple of weeks and I have skinny weak legs. Has nothing to do with the size of the legs, it's about quality. Heck, our kids tore up Walmart bikes at 8 years old and 70 pounds with legs like sticks.

Some people have strong legs and some people have weak legs but a cheaper bike is going to fall apart on anybody that actually rides it.

 

While I agree Mr Beanz that Walmart bikes are junk, but for kids they're fine. I bought Walmart bikes for my kids and now my grandkids, and they ride the crap out of them...of course, I do find myself doing minor repairs frequently. The thing I noticed about Walmart bikes is back when my kids were young you could hand down a bike to the younger child, not so much now, once one kid has outgrown it's pretty much shot. But they're also cheap $50 bikes, and they still charge the same $50 today as they did 20 years ago, so they had to cheapen the product to fit the price point. I did buy my oldest grandson a Giant instead of another Walmart bike, with the intention of handing down to my next oldest one, then it will go down to the youngest; so I'll get about 13 years out of it, then I should be able to sell it or give it someone with a medium-size kid.