kanethagreat

The reason I ask this is because I'm going on a ride on a trail, and don't know what bike to ride. The ride will be a 30-32 mile round trip ride. The break up of the ride will be 8 road/dirt and grass on the side of the road, 2-4 on sidewalks, and 20 miles on the trail. The trail is the Silver Comet trail in northwest metro Atlanta, GA it's paved. This trail has some steep hills. I'm use to most hills on fixies and bikes with gears. Even though this will be my longest ride I am without a doubt prepared for the suffering involed with it. I've rode a stock non adjusted 20 or 22 inch bmx bike 13 miles through the hills on the road, and I'm 5'10". My bike choices are mountain bike or beach cruiser. The beach cruiser is a fixie, and the mountain bike is gear but sub par. The beach cruiser was a gift. My mountain bike I bought for $20 at a yard sale. The bike wasn't great but my other one broke on a ride after 6 years. The mountain bikes problems are only the two lowest gears work, and that it maxes out at like 5 or 6 miles per hour. By maxes out I mean it stops pushing the bike, and just spins the pedals and chain. The beach cruiser seems like the better option, but I wanted to get some options from knowledgeable people. Yes get another bike is perfect when I get that in the budget I will. Thank you for helping me or at least trying.

energyandair

I would get a new bike.

Plan B would be to fix the mountain bike.

Plan C would be to ride the beach cruiser but when you combine the riding position and the lack of gears, it doesn't sound like fun.

avidone1

ditto, This sounds to me like your asking for trouble with either bike. I understand that we are all limited by our money supply, but if your seriously considering 30 mile rides that include trails, grass and dirt, then I would check the local bike shops for used mountain bikes. It may not be pretty, but it should be safe and rideable.
good luck.

intransit1217

Whichever is the most mechanically sound.

kanethagreat

Thanks you guys for the help after looking at videos of the mountain bike I owned I found out that its a landrider autoshift. Which means that is it cant be indexed, and ECT. If I can find a belt to go on it it might come back to a good life. I'm not a big fan of street tires the slick ones. Possibly postponing the ride for a week or so I was supposed to take it with in the next 2 weeks, but it would save time and pain to wait on a better bike.

CliffordK

That look like a most unique bike. If the belt is bad, then I think you can get replacements from the company.

https://www.landriderbikes.com/contact_us.html

I'd seriously consider yanking off all the Autoshift stuff, and putting on a standard derailleur and shifter.

But, it is easy to get to more than the cost of another beater MTB, so don't spend a fortune on the conversion.

A cyclocross bike would be nice for mixed terrain with not very technical trails, but they can be a bit more expensive.

kanethagreat

Thank you I've been looking into other bikes. Considering I live in the country they don't believe in sidewalks unless its in the immediate area of a shopping center and the road isn't shared by a good portion of the drivers. I'd hate to go drop 200-500 on a nice bike imo. Then get on the road and someone hits me or runs me off and I mess up the bike I just spent all this money on. Then there is a good deal of people who steal bike in the areas of trail. Bike locks are secure but a pair of wire cutters and the right strength will allow someone to chomp through it. @CliffordK

lynnbike

With money limited,I would check the shop online to get a used mountain bikes. It may not be pretty, but it should be safe and rideable.

CliffordK

Around here, we have a bike co-op that has quite a few miscellaneous bike parts, but you can never count on some rare items like that autoshift belt drive. But great if you need a few miscellaneous parts to fix up a beater.

There are also a lot of beat up Dept Store MTBs at the local thrift stores, often needing a bit of tinkering, but at very good deals.

And, of course, Craigslist.

The deals are out there if you keep an eye open.

Anyway, there is no reason to not have a fully functioning bike for the ride.