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Any Cyclists?


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Now that my daughter knows how to ride a bike, my wife and I are looking at getting bikes so we can all ride as a family a few times a week.  We would just be riding them on the local trail and maybe on the side streets around here.  No rugged terrain or steep inclines, etc.

 

We aren't looking to spend much, maybe $300 each.

 

The local Dicks has a couple different Nishiki and Diamondbacks in that price range.  Just curious what everyone thinks, if they have a preference or anything they suggest avoiding.  I am more interested in durability and comfort than lightness or number of gears, ruggedness, etc.

 

I have owned several bikes in the past and probably the two biggest problems I have is A) I am 5'4" so I can't do a bike that is really tall and B) I don't like the position on a racing bike because I get a stiff neck from being hunched over and then looking forward.

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Cyclists are the bane of my existence here.  Talk about breaking every possible law on the road and then complaining that you almost hit them because they ran a stop sign.  I would have no problem with them if they just played by the rules.

 

Sorry Nate, I kind of hijacked your thread.

Edited by 1nutkruk
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I don't care.

 

Bicycles bought for adults are for unforgivable assholes, Nate.

With that in mind, how do you not already have seventeen in your garage?

 

Sold them before we moved.  Didn't like the one I had anyway.

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I wouldn't spend very much unless you plan on 20+ miles a week.  I think I would look for an acceptable bike in a store, then search Craigslist to see if anybody has one for sale. 

 

Some trails will eat you alive with a cheap bike (i.e. Fullerton Loop in the OC), but I don't think you have anything to worry about back in Wisconsin.  I wish I had better advice but I'm not active anymore.  Good luck!

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Well it sound like you will all hate me, but it's cool, I have been hated by better ;) .

 

I have been a cyclist since high school. Road Bikes and Mountain Bikes. Shaved my legs for years, wore the lycra (had the tan line to prove it) and rode anywhere from 150-275 miles a week on average with my longest week being over 500 when I rode San Francisco to LA. 

 

With that being said, I always followed the rules of the road and understood cars were a lot bigger than my 16 pound Carbon Fiber bike. The only serious crash I ever had was when a car decided to pull into my lane and slam his brakes for the fun of it, sending me into the cyclist ahead of me and both of us into the car at 30mph. I have  been yelled at as an attempt to scare me, had milk shakes thrown at me, spat at and called all sorts of names.

 

I ride mostly Mountain Bikes now, but might start commuting to  work when I can.

Nate- You have some options. If it was me, I would be looking for either a Townie type of bike like these-

 

http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/town/recreation/verve_hybrid/verve_1/#

 

http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bikes/fitness/crossroads/crossroads

 

Or If you want something you could take on super easy dirt trails, you could look at something like this-

 

http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/mountain/sport/820/820/#

 

 

I think all of the bikes above also come in a women's design for your wife.

 

I know these were a bit above your $300, but they are better bikes. It is also time for the 2015's to come out, so you might be able to find bikes on sale. You might see what REI has to offer, they have a 20% off sale coming up

 

Finally you might want to look at a single speed because they are just fun. No gears to shift, just pedal and go like when you were a kid. Just make sure it has a freewheel or a flip flop hub so you don't get stuck with a fixed gear. You can find them at Sport Chalet or on line. Let me know if that is something you may be into and I will post up some more links.

 

If you are set on either Nishiki or Daimondback, I would look at the latter. Nishiki had gone out of business several years back and I didn't even know they were around again until I saw them at Dick's. They may only be sold there, I am not sure.

 

Have fun!!!

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Well it sound like you will all hate me, but it's cool, I have been hated by better ;) .

 

I have been a cyclist since high school. Road Bikes and Mountain Bikes. Shaved my legs for years, wore the lycra (had the tan line to prove it) and rode anywhere from 150-275 miles a week on average with my longest week being over 500 when I rode San Francisco to LA. 

 

I used to think lycra was something gay cyclists wore to advertise their goods -- comparable to a woman wearing a tight bikini.  That was in my young teenage years. 

 

Once I got older found out why, I still didn't understand the appeal, except for maybe range of motion problems with tight fitting shorts.  Baggy shorts flapping around in the wind never bothered me, and to this day, I still use Gold Bond medicated lotion to prevent skin chafing and blisters when I run.

 

Cycling strikes me as being really trendy.  Guys (and gals, too) seem to dump huge sums of cash on the latest and greatest bikes and clothing.  Am I way off base Sully151? 

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I used to think lycra was something gay cyclists wore to advertise their goods -- comparable to a woman wearing a tight bikini.  That was in my young teenage years. 

 

Once I got older found out why, I still didn't understand the appeal, except for maybe range of motion problems with tight fitting shorts.  Baggy shorts flapping around in the wind never bothered me, and to this day, I still use Gold Bond medicated lotion to prevent skin chafing and blisters when I run.

 

Cycling strikes me as being really trendy.  Guys (and gals, too) seem to dump huge sums of cash on the latest and greatest bikes and clothing.  Am I way off base Sully151? 

 

Yeah, the lycra is partly a range of motion thing, but it is also a flapping in the wind thing. A semi fast road cyclist cruises in the 20-25 MPH range and goes down hill at 40 MPH without much thought and the flapping is annoying. Chafing is also a concern ( no underwear under those tight black shorts) and a typical road ride is a couple of hours. That means your legs, clothes and parts of the bike are rubbing up against each other thousands of times a ride. Finally, the lycra really wicks away moisture from the skin and helps keep you cooler.

 

When I ride road, I wear the tight lycra, but when I mountain Bike, since the speeds are way slower, I wear baggy mountain bike shorts that actually have the tight lycra shorts built in and a less form fitting jersey.

 

I think with a lot of sports, there are the people that like to be trendy and that's cool, but I can't afford it. My road bike is from 2003 and my mountain bike is a 2007. I might be getting a new mountain bike with a different wheel size in the next few months. Mountain bikes are changing a lot with regards to wheel size (26", 27.5" and 29") while road bikes are just getting lighter. Trek just came out with a road bike that weighs 10.25 pounds total. That is CRAZY. It is also $15,000. For a lot of people it is their main hobby and that is what they spend all their money on, even if they aren't fit enough or fast enough to do the gear justice.

 

For most people, I think it a really good social outlet. They ride of a while then they get coffee or beer. I think that is pretty rad.

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Does lycra really help your endurance, or could you survive without it?

 

My problem with everything athletic is that I sweat a lot.  When I'm done, all I feel like doing is going home to take a shower and rest for a little bit.  I wish that wasn't the case and could make it more of a social activity like you mentioned. 

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Sully, one more question.

 

Some of the trails around here are loose gravel instead of being paved.  Would the hybrid bikes still make sense for that or would I be better off with the Mountain Bike?

 

What is the biggest difference between the Mountain Bike and the Hybrid ones?  Looks like the frame on the mountain bike is steel so I am guessing more heavy?

 

REI was too expensive when I checked.  Everything they had was $600+.  Don't want to spend that much.  There is a bike shop down the street that carries all of the different Trek models so we are going to check them out.

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check electra townies on craigslist. they are a pedal forward bike, not so hard on the knees and great for short guys because the seat sets low.

i have a 21 speed townie that i can ride for 25/30 miles with no knee pain at all. they are not "speed" bikes by any measure, but comfortable as all get out.

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When we went to the shop, the 7.2 FX's were on sale for $500 so we got two of those.  We also got my daughter a MT220.  She had a crappy $100 Schwinn so it is a nice upgrade for her.  I love the riding position on the FX, the Verve was nice but the FX is just a bit nicer, and feels much quicker.

 

Some crappy pictures because it is already dark.

 

My daughter's bike:

15631_10203410659614939_3597074548191819

 

My wife's, it is actually gray and purple:

10358146_10203410658974923_7150588625925

 

And mine it is matte black:

10314508_10203410659254930_2217105801344

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A little late to the party, but I might have a couple of things to add:

 

 

This stuff is like slime, but a lot better. It's meant for higher end no tube systems, but I've had good luck using it in tubes with removable stems. It beats fixing a rear flat on a ride.

 

If you don't use a sealant, I would have these with you:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Park-Tool-GP-2-Super-Patch/dp/B000WY730O/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1407093814&sr=8-15&keywords=tire+patch+bike

 

Quick, easy, and work well.

 

This has also come in handy:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Portland-Design-Works-Object-Inflator/dp/B003M2PNGY/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1407094089&sr=1-1&keywords=co2+inflator+bicycle

 

I use the 12oz cartridges because you can get them so cheap on Ebay.

 

Flats happen. Best to be prepared.

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