A lot depends on the condition and surface of the back country roads you will riding. If you are going to be riding mostly on pavement on fairly decent roads, I would think long and hard before making a decision to spend that kind of coin on a bike that has shocks on the front. If you are going to be doing lots of gravel and trails or the country roads are really rough, then suspension forks might be a good idea...
I do 90% of my riding on back country paved roads, 5% on gravel and 5% on greenways and other surfaces. I love my 2011 Fuji Absolute for this purpose. But if I were looking for a Giant starter bike, I'd be looking at the Giant Escape 2, or the Escape 3 if cost is an issue. For the price difference I would go with the Escape 2. But that's just me.
Other similar bikes:
Fuji Absolute
Specialized Sirrus
Trek FX
Note: My 1997 Trek 830 does have suspension forks, surprisingly good ones, especially for its age. I love it, and its makes a great backup and 'second' bike, but my Fuji is what I choose to ride much more often. I mention that just to say that I do have experience both with standard forks and suspension forks, and for decent paved roads I much prefer standard forks. When I'm riding gravel I'm more likely to choose the Trek with suspension forks. I don't ride trails/woods unless I'm just running a gap between paved roads or greenways. In other words, not if I can help it.
Last edited by Rje58; 06-08-19 at 09:49 PM.