Mountain Biking - Money or Muscle

Ok quick question for good and bad riders. If your skill level is low but you have the funds to buy a expensive bike should you. I'm seeing a very nice bike might hurt you at entry level skills more than help you. Is this true, or is it like skiing where you can't use it to its full potential and you can just grow into it. I'm looking at buying a Scapel 3000 but I haven't ridden serious in 6 years. But I belive I have the ability once back in shape to increase my skill lever rather fast. Sorry for all the NEWBIE questions but I promiss to make it up with informative post in the futur.

Welcome to the forums. Most people ask "How much should I spend?" You are asking, "Am I spending too much?" In my opinion, you can never spend too much. Buy the best you can afford. It is cheaper than buying several less expensive bikes until you get better and can afford to "move up". Good equipment makes the relearning and the riding much more enjoyable with out the frustrations of possible equipment failure. That doesn't mean good equipment won't fail if mistreated, but not in normal useage.

Like most equipment dependent sports, the gear won't make you a better athlete, but it won't hurt either! Buy what you can afford and grow into it! If you buy a good bike from the start, you won't be limited by it as you improve! Sure you can spend $600 and get a good bike, but you sound a lot like myself and won't be happy with it in a short period of time. My philosophy is to buy the best (from the start) take care of it and have fun!

L8R

I agree, just buy the best bike you can afford... just make sure you can afford it, that's the most important. And if things break, you can always replace them with higher end components!

Originally posted by 1320Carlsbad
If your skill level is low but you have the funds to buy a expensive bike should you.If you truly have the funds, yes. Provided you're sure you're buying the right type of bike, the bike fits you, and you're sure you're going to continue riding.

I'm seeing a very nice bike might hurt you at entry level skills more than help you. Is this true,... I don't think so.

I say go all out anf get the best that you can buy. I let the bike shop tell me the other way around was better and the only person it is better for is them! Oh well the bike i got is fine for now . . .

With whatever you get, just make sure to have fun with it!

Jared

Well, I'm going to go against the grain on this one. It's the rider, not the bike. That said, don't run out and buy a Huffy!

Buy yourself a decent solid bike. Then, as your skills progress, you're going to know better what you want in your bike, how you want it to feel, what works and doesn't work for you. If you plop down a fat wad on cash on a nice high end bike, and then realize it's not the bike for you as you develop as a rider, you'll either sell it and take a loss or stick with it because it's a nice and expensive bike - even if it's not right for you. Also, as you develop your skills (or redevelop), you're going to be wasting parts along the way. An XTR rear derailluer won't stand up any better to being bashed against a rock than an LX will (in fact, it probably will fair worse) but it's a lot more expensive to replace.

Most important of all, get a bike with a frame that fits you.

I would say get a decent bike. Practice, practice, practice. If you jump on a high end bike it will make some tricks and such seem easier. Which doesn't help in the long run for skills. Besides when you first get back into it you will run into trees and land hard more often I would rather be fixing a cheaper bike then a 4000 bike. Both break when used by rookies. :)

Agreed. Get a good entry-level bike. Once you learn more about the sport and bikes in general...plunge in and get a high-end bike. The entry-level can now become a beater for a friend to ride along or for your commute.