Ataylor

A family member of mine use to ride a mountain bike (as do many people I know) on the road and it worked for him for quite some time. He recently wanted to upgrade since that bike was rather heavy in weight and the ride, too, was pretty "heavy" as well.

He wants a new bike, but I think a road bike might be too aggressive a frame for him. Is there anything with road bike qualities (light, fast, etc), but with an upright structure similar to that of a mountain bike? Is a hybrid what we're looking for? I'm honestly not sure. Whichever style you guys think is best, I would really appreciate if you could provide a few recommendations. Any and all comments and opinions are welcome as well. I'd like to be as informed as possible before we head out to the shop.

Thanks in advance.

Korina

He should be test riding bikes (is that still a thing?), probably hybrids, if he can find some. They've been flying off the shelves at every LBS I've seen. As for aggressive road bikes, you can raise the stem to be level with or slightly higher than the saddle for a more comfortable ride, or find a road plus/all road/adventure style bike. Depending on what kind of riding he wants to do.

Or, this.

Ataylor

lol...I'll pass on the suggestion. It does look pretty comfy, to be honest.

But yea', we are planning to test ride a bunch of bikes. I just wanted to have some degree of precision as to what we should aim for, since 1) his patience is limited and I can see him giving up rather quickly and making an impulse buy for something he won't really enjoy and 2) I don't want to take up more of the salesman's time than necessary with questions I could've found answers to prior to going there, so that they don't wind up losing out on other sales.

As for the style of riding? It'll be mainly casual, but he does intend to use it as a form of exercise as well. He plans to ride to work with it (10 miles round trip, but I think it's a lot for him) and things of that nature. He might eventually build up to doing longer rides, but I would imagine it won't extend beyond 20 or 30 miles. I don't know for sure at this point, though.

Korina

Ataylor , sounds like a hybrid would be up his alley. They also tend to be slightly less $$$$ than a road bike. What brands do you have available?

Ataylor

We're from Chicago, so I would assume that we have access to most brands. Worst case, we could always buy online, but I'm pretty sure we can find something for him out here.

GlennR

I would think so.

Looks at the Trek FX series. It's very popular, has flatbar handle bars, wider tires than a road bike but not as wide as a mountain bike.

FX3 is $800, weighs 25lbs
https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/b...orCode=reddark


FX4 is $1200, weighs 23lbs
https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/b...colorCode=grey

FX6 is $2100, weighs 20lbs
https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/b...olorCode=black

Ataylor

Thanks, Glen. That FX3 looks nice! I'd totally forgotten about Trek. Will give a few shops a call right now actually and see if they have it in stock.

ZHVelo

Those Holland bikes are a bliss.

rollagain

If comfort is the top priority, here you go--I call mine the 'Buick' --

https://day6bikes.com/

Ataylor

Thanks, guys. However, I think from an aesthetic standpoint, he wants a "regular" bike. Something like the Trek, but still comfortable. So...I guess we'll just have to test out the FX3 and see if he likes that or not. I appreciate the recommendations nonetheless. Thanks again.

NumbersGuy

The FX3 from Trek is just the type of hybrid that would probably be best suited to what he's looking for.

Just to give you some other options in the same genre, as most manufacturers offer something very similar, in case you can't find the Trek available locally.

Fitness bikes similar to the Trek FX 3:
Specialized Sirrus 3.0
Specialized Sirrus X 3.0
Giant Foastroad SL2
Giant Escape 1 Disc
Cannondale Quick 3
Cannondale Quick 3
Jamis Allegro A1

Slightly more upright comfort bikes:
Specialized Crossroads 3.0
Giant Cypress DX
Cannondale Treadwell 2

Online options if there is no stock available locally
Canyon Roadlite AL 7.0
Canyon Pathlite AL 6.0
Motobecane Mulekick CX Comp

Moe Zhoost

In my decades-long attempt to find a bike that my wife was comfortable on, we finally found a Trek FX that was satisfactory.

Comfort is subjective and can only be assured through riding. Buying a "comfort bike" is a good start, but your friend should not have the expectation that rides will be blissfully comfortable. There are so many small tweaks that have great effect on comfort.

Ataylor

Whoa...thanks, man. Great list. I appreciate it.

One of my first "nice" bikes was by Jamis and it was one of the most comfortable bikes I had ever ridden. It was so shockingly comfortable that despite the (for me) steep price at the time, I remember impulse buying it on the spot. So yea', we'll definitely have to check out Jamis as well the FX series. Glad to have more options, though. So thanks again.

Which FX did you get?

So there's tire width, tubes, seats, seat height, handle bar height, right? What else would you recommend to tweak comfort levels?

Moe Zhoost

We found a little-used 2016 FX 7.2 on Craigslist for a great price. Assuming that the frame is sized correctly, the above list is pretty much it. On my wife's bike, we did a lot of experimentation with the saddle height and angle, and actually changed saddles a few times until she decided that the original Trek one was the best. I switched the tires, which were 32-700 to a wider one (I think 38s). Pedals are important too - my wife prefers a platform type.

friday1970

While not my color, that pic of the purple/pink rockhopper above is pretty sweet.

mtnroads

I never found hybrids to be that comfortable - they are really just made for the bike path. Far more efficient and comfortable solution would be to find a nice steel drop bar touring bike, like All City Space Horse. Super comfortable with 40c tires, put 32's and it's fast.. Another great one was the Surly Crosscheck. I had one for commuting and general riding several years ago - great comfortable bike.

frizzen

One big factor in comfort is the tires. There is an optimum size for comfort, not too small or too big.

Tires that are too skinny require too much pressure and ride harsher. Fatter tires can be run at lower pressure and are much smoother (and heavier), but there's a limit.

I recently converted an old mountain bike into an urban bike and I put a Maxxis Hookworm 2.5" street tire on the front. I inflated it to 15 psi and hopped on for a ride. It felt great in a straight line, but when I tried to turn it was seriously awful. It wanted to tuck the front wheel and really resisted leaning into the turn. Minimum tire pressure for good handling seems to be in the low 20's range. It still rides pretty nice, but it's wider than optimum for a smooth ride. It does look great.

For me (150 pounds) the sweet spot for a front tire is about 45mm (1 3/4"). The rear tire can be a bit wider.