Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Landshark
are they really THAT crappy? i was thinking about getting some crap $200 Mongoose mtn bike  sometime for dicking around on. i don't plan on driving it down the face of Mt. McKinley - would a casual rider really need something more than this - your opinions please. i've been out of the bike scene for a LONG time.
i guess i need to check with my pops, too - he has a couple old Gary Fishers, and some Italian (?) skinny street bikes. |
A $200 Mongoose is just fine for dicking around on!
Personally I have a 9-year old Trek 7000 that is plenty of bike for what trails I ride. I think it was around $800 new. Its predecessor was a $100 Peugeot out of Value City. It was so cheap it was cool to ride, because you plain didn't care if you dropped it and it performed fine too, albeit it was as heavy as a boat anchor and the shifting was always an adventure.
The reason I'm saying to spend as much as your budget allows: I have ridden a Trek 1000 road bike for years. It's under $500 - or it was when I got it - and adequate for most recreational riding. You can talk yourself into thinking how smart you are for not spending mega-bucks on a big buck carbon fiber bike, because this bike can get you down the road just fine, and it's your conditioning and skill that makes the difference anyway, right?
Well, for my big 50th b-day, I bought myself a Cannondale carbon fiber road bike with much better components as well. The difference is phenomenal. It costs 4 times as much as the Trek 1000, but if you plan on riding a lot it is well worth it. Best money I have spent for a long time.
Of course the key question is how much are you going to ride and how serious to you want to get into it?
If you're just dicking around, $200 will get plenty.
