I used to love riding through the woods jumping over tree stumps and down trails etc but then I moved. I haven't been riding much in several years but I'm eager to get back into it. What I need help with is pricing, quality, and type. Basically I'd like to be able to ride on trails and do mountain bike type of things, but I live in the city and the majority of riding I'll be doing is probably going to be paved trails. But I'd still like to be able to make a trip and take my bike on some off road type trails.
I talked to a sales guy at a local bike shop and he was suggesting either a marin bike(forgot the model) with road tires at about $470; or for a mountain bike, a Kona(forgot the model) at $560. Now I'm somewhat out of the loop on prices and yes I know a model name would make a lot of difference, but what is a reasonable price for a good bike? I'm no expert so I don't need racing or expert bikes, but I'm not sure what a good price range is. I have a feeling this bike shop may be over priced or very specialty. The majority of bikes they had were 500+, and then I see bikes at Sports Authority(and other stores like it) for bikes starting at 250. I guess I just don't know what's worth it. The guy did show me one bike they had that was 260, but he said it was **** and would wear out much faster. How do I know if he was just being a salesman trying to get me to spend?
I have been searching and searching on the net for a good reliable site for bike reviews, but have had a hard time finding one. This is the first site that is actually up to date with content. Does anyone know a good bike review site? Do some brands have a bad name where some are more reliable?
The sales guy told me that if I ever wanted to go on rough trails I should probably pick up a mountain bike. He said that if I wasn't on a rough trail I could always put road tires on, but if I was ever going to do some off road I should get a mountain bike. It made sense to me, but he was also suggesting a more expensive bike. Anyone have an opinion on the direction I should go?
Thanks for any suggestions in advance!!
I talked to a sales guy at a local bike shop and he was suggesting either a marin bike(forgot the model) with road tires at about $470; or for a mountain bike, a Kona(forgot the model) at $560. Now I'm somewhat out of the loop on prices and yes I know a model name would make a lot of difference, but what is a reasonable price for a good bike? I'm no expert so I don't need racing or expert bikes, but I'm not sure what a good price range is. I have a feeling this bike shop may be over priced or very specialty. The majority of bikes they had were 500+, and then I see bikes at Sports Authority(and other stores like it) for bikes starting at 250. I guess I just don't know what's worth it. The guy did show me one bike they had that was 260, but he said it was **** and would wear out much faster. How do I know if he was just being a salesman trying to get me to spend?
I have been searching and searching on the net for a good reliable site for bike reviews, but have had a hard time finding one. This is the first site that is actually up to date with content. Does anyone know a good bike review site? Do some brands have a bad name where some are more reliable?
The sales guy told me that if I ever wanted to go on rough trails I should probably pick up a mountain bike. He said that if I wasn't on a rough trail I could always put road tires on, but if I was ever going to do some off road I should get a mountain bike. It made sense to me, but he was also suggesting a more expensive bike. Anyone have an opinion on the direction I should go?
Thanks for any suggestions in advance!!