Looking at used mountain bikes, help?
03-24-20, 09:33 PM
#26
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I like to ride on trails but they are a 30 minute drive from me. The parking lot is next door, so it is just more convenient. I also don't like being around cars (Too many bad drivers here). I did have the Trek serviced a few times but I still ended up having issues. As far as a road bike, I have no idea if I'll like it since I have never been on one!
03-24-20, 09:45 PM
#27
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Well .... the First thing almost everyone mentions in all of these "What bike should I buy" threads is.... Go to as many bike shops as you can and test-ride as many bikes as you can.
You have only ridden two bikes in however long, and they are very different .... and any six bikes you ride might be equally different. Even any six "mountain bikes" you ride could be equally unique.
I can understand that on loose surfaces, a wider tire and a more forward-leaning riding position gives you a greater feeling of control .... but you can get the same feeling of control on a mountain bike, a rigid hybrid, a cyclocross bike, a gravel bike, or a road bike with wide tires. Nothing gets your weight low and forward like drop bars. But of course, you can ride in a very aggressive position on any bike, and certainly mountains bikes are good at going down mountains ... else all the mountain bikers would be crippled or dead and no one would buy or sell MTBs.
If the trails and the parking lot works for you, go to it. Nothing wrong with that. I have an online friend who regularly ride 30-60 miles a day---and pretty quickly---through trails and through single-entry housing developments because he doesn't like traffic. (In fact he posts on this site, I think.)
However .... after a while you will start feeling more confident on your bike, and you might get out Google Maps and find some routes with low traffic where you can ride safely .... or at least low-traffic routes to get to where you'd rather ride.
When I was based in Central Florida, it was regularly rated as the deadliest place to cycle in the U.S. Once I left (hmmmm .... ) Tampa and St. Pete took over that title ... so you are not wrong about bad drivers. However, there are times and places where cars simply don't go much, and those are usually pretty nice places to ride.
But if you find that circling a parking lot is all you need---awesome for you. The point is to enjoy the ride, and really not much else (unless you want other things.)
Anyway---------Test Ride. And if after you have tried 18 or 20 different bikes of different types, you decide what Kind of bike you want, then come back here with specifics and a budget and people will be able to offer more help.
Also .... if you go into a shop and tell your story and the staff seems snide, snarky, or superior, thank them and walk out. Some super people work in bike shops .... and some other folks. Some people will drain their bladders on you if you don't ride like they do---fast in a pace line, or fast on a dirt trail, or in triathlons, or whatever. Those people are useless. A good bike shop will have employees who will listen to your story, like we have, and ask you questions to help you find what is best for You ... whether it is a tricycle or a recumbent or a racing bike or whatever.
Don't put up with any elitist stuff. You are a cyclist, the same as every other cyclist. The elderly folks who ride trikes and electric bikes around the neighborhood for a mile every evening are just as much cyclists as any Tour de France winner. Cycling can be fun in a lot of ways. Find how it works for you, buy the bike you want---buy a full-suspension mountain bike and ride it on billiard-table smooth, flat parking lots. If it works for you, it is right.
You have only ridden two bikes in however long, and they are very different .... and any six bikes you ride might be equally different. Even any six "mountain bikes" you ride could be equally unique.
I can understand that on loose surfaces, a wider tire and a more forward-leaning riding position gives you a greater feeling of control .... but you can get the same feeling of control on a mountain bike, a rigid hybrid, a cyclocross bike, a gravel bike, or a road bike with wide tires. Nothing gets your weight low and forward like drop bars. But of course, you can ride in a very aggressive position on any bike, and certainly mountains bikes are good at going down mountains ... else all the mountain bikers would be crippled or dead and no one would buy or sell MTBs.
If the trails and the parking lot works for you, go to it. Nothing wrong with that. I have an online friend who regularly ride 30-60 miles a day---and pretty quickly---through trails and through single-entry housing developments because he doesn't like traffic. (In fact he posts on this site, I think.)
However .... after a while you will start feeling more confident on your bike, and you might get out Google Maps and find some routes with low traffic where you can ride safely .... or at least low-traffic routes to get to where you'd rather ride.
When I was based in Central Florida, it was regularly rated as the deadliest place to cycle in the U.S. Once I left (hmmmm .... ) Tampa and St. Pete took over that title ... so you are not wrong about bad drivers. However, there are times and places where cars simply don't go much, and those are usually pretty nice places to ride.
But if you find that circling a parking lot is all you need---awesome for you. The point is to enjoy the ride, and really not much else (unless you want other things.)
Anyway---------Test Ride. And if after you have tried 18 or 20 different bikes of different types, you decide what Kind of bike you want, then come back here with specifics and a budget and people will be able to offer more help.
Also .... if you go into a shop and tell your story and the staff seems snide, snarky, or superior, thank them and walk out. Some super people work in bike shops .... and some other folks. Some people will drain their bladders on you if you don't ride like they do---fast in a pace line, or fast on a dirt trail, or in triathlons, or whatever. Those people are useless. A good bike shop will have employees who will listen to your story, like we have, and ask you questions to help you find what is best for You ... whether it is a tricycle or a recumbent or a racing bike or whatever.
Don't put up with any elitist stuff. You are a cyclist, the same as every other cyclist. The elderly folks who ride trikes and electric bikes around the neighborhood for a mile every evening are just as much cyclists as any Tour de France winner. Cycling can be fun in a lot of ways. Find how it works for you, buy the bike you want---buy a full-suspension mountain bike and ride it on billiard-table smooth, flat parking lots. If it works for you, it is right.
