Mountain Biking - Advice on buying new bikes...

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jimd118
12-06-07, 06:37 PM
Hey guys. I previously did quit a bit of mountain biking but havnt really done any for about 5 years now. Im looking at getting back into it for this spring and my girl friend wanted to start too. I have been out of the bike loop for a bit now so I not up on what the best bikes for the money are now. I might be getting one for her for christmas so i wanted to start there. She is totally new to mountain biking so for the first bike i dont want her to have anything spectacular. I figured under $300 for hers. Not sure on size for her either she is about 5'1" so cant be a full size but not sure how sizes are going now. I would appreciate any suggestions for her.
As for me ive got some time till I will be buying so i will probably go up to $600 for mine. Im about 5'9". I had a GT before which i loved however it had no suspension. After doing some riding on a bike with suspension and disc brakes i knew i wanted to upgrade to something along those lines. Look forward to hearing your guys suggestions.
Thanks you
Jim D.

Fable
12-07-07, 07:03 AM
Buying your girlfriend the cheapo bike won't help. I've seen several couples with the man on a flashy dually while the woman rides a cheap ass hardtail. I can only figure they don't actually want their female friend riding with them. The ladies usually don't look happy. Try renting her a bike to see if she is interested in riding. Or let her buy her own bike. Maybe give her the three bills and have her come up with the rest. $300 bikes are all the same saving the frame geometry. She also might want to preride whatever bike first, to ensure a good fit which will go a long way towards getting ANY newbie hooked on the "sport".
As for you, the same consumer rules apply to bikes. You get what you pay for. Most bikes in the $600 range are again fairly similar excepting frame design. Go ride some bikes. One last thing about the discs. Buying discs on a bike with an MSRP near to your price range will ensure low quality brakes and lessor quality components than a non disc equipped machine. On the upswing it will give you a *****un' look, you'll already have the disc wheels and parts are cheap on th internet.