Mountain Biking - MTB for an 11 year old beginner

Hi,

I was looking to buy my 11 year old son (he's 5'2") a MTB for Christmas. He has never ridden on any type of mountain trails before, so he won't be doing anything heavy or extreme at all.

I was looking at the Trek 6500 below on ebay or the Trek 820 and 3500, also below, new from a Trek store. I was wondering what anyone thought of these bikes for him.

Thanks

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...:B:BCA:US:1123


http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes...dtail/820/820/

http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes...3_series/3500/

Secialized Hardrock, KHS 500, are also good beginner bikes. If the Trek fits it'll be fine. Good to see you getting him out and riding.

Secialized Hardrock, KHS 500, are also good beginner bikes. If the Trek fits it'll be fine. Good to see you getting him out and riding.

Thanks. Would you recommend one over the other?

Fisher piranha is a good one. Disc brakes, tora shock, and SRAM 5-7 derailers for about $700.

fwiw (not much these days, I guess), I bought a Specialized Hotrock 24" wheeled MTB for my son new in like 2000 or so...he's 18 and 5'11" now, but his younger brother is 11, probably 5'0" and enjoying the heck out of that bike....low tech by todays standards, but a "real" bike and pretty light in general. It didn't get much real MTB use in it's first tour of duty, though...

Thanks. Would you recommend one over the other?

If you could find a good used bike that would be the way to go. You don't want to drop 500.00-800.00 bucks on a something untill you know for sure if he'll like it and stick with it.When my son started we went from a 24" Haro to a 26" hardrock and on from there. The Hardrock frame is solid,my son's is still being ridden by a friends son( I rode with him today). If your son likes it you could be in for many years of good times together.

Thanks for the replies. I was looking to stay under $400, so I thought I could get I better quality bike if I bought used. I was looking at the bike below on eBay (the auction ends in 4 hours). I was wondering what you thought it was worth and if I would be better off buying new, as buying used has it's own risks. I don't want to give a gift that has problems the first day.

I f he below doesn't work out, I would probably get a Hardrock (I have one myself) or an entry level Trek listed in my first post. Thanks for the help.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250533446273&ssPageName=ADME:B:ONA:US:1123#ht_2054wt_1167

That looks OK if it's in good working order.
I have a '09 hardrock as well, I've done a little upgrading to it to suit me but it's a great starter bike.Word of warning......
It starts like this.........
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w69/mtnbiker66/021_21.jpg

But he'll end up like this......
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w69/mtnbiker66/just%20stuff/bikes09/DirtyBird054.jpg

I can also get a Specialized Hotrock for $75. I think it's about 5 years old. It's advertised as a 26"-I thought 24" was the biggest Hotrock.

our Hotrock was a little under $300 about 10 years ago and maybe one of the best values in terms of use I've ever put into a bike....and I have a lot of bikes and many of them were free or sub-$50....

That looks OK if it's in good working order.
I have a '09 hardrock as well, I've done a little upgrading to it to suit me but it's a great starter bike.Word of warning......
It starts like this.........
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w69/mtnbiker66/021_21.jpg

But he'll end up like this......
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w69/mtnbiker66/just%20stuff/bikes09/DirtyBird054.jpg

Wow! I can only hope......Thanks

our Hotrock was a little under $300 about 10 years ago and maybe one of the best values in terms of use I've ever put into a bike....and I have a lot of bikes and many of them were free or sub-$50....

Thanks. I might be able to look at the Hotrock this week. It might be too small. I like him to be able to use it for a couple of years before he out grows it.

Here's the Hotrock for $75

Just like ours....great little bike...even better for $75 or less...!

That looks OK if it's in good working order.
I have a '09 hardrock as well, I've done a little upgrading to it to suit me but it's a great starter bike.Word of warning......
It starts like this.........
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w69/mtnbiker66/021_21.jpg

But he'll end up like this......
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w69/mtnbiker66/just%20stuff/bikes09/DirtyBird054.jpg

ha, awesome.

I can also get a Specialized Hotrock for $75. I think it's about 5 years old. It's advertised as a 26"-I thought 24" was the biggest Hotrock.

I was looking at that same exact bike. Looks like a good deal, from the photos, at least.

Thanks for all the replies. I think there's some decent sales at a local lbs that I'll have to look at. But there's also this 2007 16" Rockhopper on CL for $375, but it might be too small.

http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/bik/1486173460.html

Ad says it's a 15", not a 16". Might fit. Sounds like he's a hair shorter than me, but I'd ride that size.

what happened to the $75 Hotrock? sounded like a no-brainer hit to me.

on a side note, I took my 11 yr old on his Hotrock (as photo'd) the other day for the first time of real trail riding & he loved it. I got my butt kicked having been a 98% road rider for the last 10 or so years and finding out mid-ride my fork/shock needs rebuilding, but hey I've got another bike I can ride with him and it's great fun and a good challenge for the both of us. Not sure his height...I built a 47cm (classic geometry) road bike for him a few months ago and he can ride 'regular' 26" wheel mtb's pretty easily, but the 24" wheels & small frame make it nice for him to maneuver.

what happened to the $75 Hotrock? sounded like a no-brainer hit to me.

The HR was gone before I could see it.

My son has a 26" bike right now (from Dick's that he got last summer, looking to get a good bike for him), so a 24" might feel small to him. I'll have to look around. Thanks to all for the info.

At a permanent 5' 3", 15" MTB frames work well for me, even with longish legs for my height. That size should do well for your son for a year or two, depending on how fast he's growing.

Thanks. Do you think I'd be better off with the used Rockhopper for $375, or a new Trek 820 or 3500 for about the same price.......Thanks

Unfortunately I'm on a slow connection tonight so haven't been able to do a detailed comparison between those 3 bikes... but if the used Rockhopper is still available, I'd have a look at it before buying one of the new Treks. It's a cut above them in components, as far as I can tell, and small frame sizes like this are difficult to find used. I did see a couple of things in the ad you should check on; first, the rear derailleur is "new"- why was it replaced on a nearly new bike? Second, the original seat got bent by the owner; check that the seatpost is OK and not bent as well.

The new Treks aren't a bad choice either, if the Rockhopper is gone.