Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - New ridder in NorthEast,PA

Well i have been poking around in here for the last 2 weeks and this seems to be the place i want to call home for my biking times.
Well a little about me im a 275lb male 6`2 ,46 yrs old I put on the weight in the last 16 months,had Plantar Fascia Release - Surgery on both feet in Jan 2010,was out of work for 5 months and still things aren't right (nerve damage) just cant be as active as i was,also have been out again for the last 6 weeks had to have Open gallbladder surgery,that seems to be going good hope to get back to work in the next 2~Weeks.So my 10 year old Daughter said to me i wish you had a bike so we can go for a ride, and then i thought why not? I told the wife i was going to take up bike riding with the lil one.Only to get a wise ass giggle from her.Well that just sealed the deal so later that night me and my lil girl head out and buy Dad a bike.Its a super store special but hey its a bike and its been 30years since i have been on one and i have been loving it.Thanks for having us.
http://i.imgur.com/GQoxTl.jpg

First off, welcome to the herd justtom :thumb:!

Soon enough your wife will be clamoring to join the two of you on your Daddy Daughter Day and you can giggle and say "but you don't have a bike" :p.

Just go out and enjoy time with the family and enjoy. Maybe put some slicks on that Schwinn and you got a pretty decent road machine.

Thank you exile for the welcome, about slicks how good are they on dirt paths? i have been riding with the lil one around the neighborhood and in the city but we also go on the bike trail on the river dike witch is pavement but also offers plenty of dirt trails so we have been mixing it up.now today i road my first 14 miles round trip alone and plan on doing that daily till i work myself up to more miles.I would say 2 1/2 miles where in the dirt and mud .i seem enjoy both worlds so slicks or knobby tires?

Welcome from Allentown!! Enjoy the bike.

I have cross tires on my bike. Kind of an inbetween road/off road tire. It has a center rib of small blocks for riding on the road. Larger blocks on the side tread for off road. I haven't ridden them off road yet but they are great on road. Wear those tires out and see what you do the most, road/off road. Maybe the cross tires will work for you.

Bill

Thank you exile for the welcome, about slicks how good are they on dirt paths? i have been riding with the lil one around the neighborhood and in the city but we also go on the bike trail on the river dike witch is pavement but also offers plenty of dirt trails so we have been mixing it up.now today i road my first 14 miles round trip alone and plan on doing that daily till i work myself up to more miles.I would say 2 1/2 miles where in the dirt and mud .i seem enjoy both worlds so slicks or knobby tires?

Slicks can get by OK on certain sections of dirt trails, but it kind of depends on the dirt and if you are going up inclines.

If a majority of your riding is on streets than slicks would work fine. When you start mixing in street and trails then you have some options. LongT hinted on the type of tires you might want to look into. Check out the Kenda K847 Kross Plus (http://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/kenda-k847-kross-plus-26x195-tire), Maxxis Holy Roller 26" Tire (http://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/maxxis-holy-roller-26-tire), or the Continental Town And Country (http://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/continental-town-and-country) for ideas.

The usual tires that come on MTB's have treads that are more suited for off road riding and not mixed conditions. When riding on pavement the knobs really do nothing more than slow you down. With mixed type of tires the center portion should be slick or with tightly packed knobs and the sides with wider spaced knobs. The Town And Country has an inverse tread which works well also.

Justtom,

Welcome! I love to ride with my daughters. Mine are a lot of fun to ride with.

How comfortable is that seat? Most people ride with their seat close to level. If I rode
with my seat tilted like yours, my junk would be numb in a matter of minutes.

Thank you everyone for the kind welcome and advice on the tires i think right now im going to just tear up the street and dirt with these like LongT sugested,i understand i will get a lot of drag with these tires but im really into this also to get a good cardo and to hopefully shed a bunch of pounds.But please im new and would love any advice you all have to offer.Arvadaman (http://www.bikeforums.net/member.php/150067-Arvadaman) yes it hurt the junk lol its tilted down a lil bit now.

Justtom - try these tires: http://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/michelin-country-rock-tire

I have them on my daughter's bikes. Very smooth rolling and fast on the road, and can handle dirt unless it's muddy. The others recommended might be good too, but I only have first hand experience with these.

Welcome and good luck bud!

Welcome justtom, nice to have you.

You did good with your bike choice, a nice hard tail like that is a very versatile bike. Even if it did come from x-mart. Bike snobbery really isn't much of a factor in this forum. Here, the mantra is that it isn't so much what you are riding, but the fact that you are riding.

To answer your question about tires, slicks will work just fine on a crushed limestone path providing the surface is dry. Just be mindful of your braking distance and be ready for your front tire to push on you should you make a tight, evasive turn. I used to use Kendra Kross Plus II tires on my mountain bike and thought they were ideal for mixed use. They were also cheap, like 15 a tire at the bike shop. They had a slick center and knobs on the shoulders. I really liked them, I really wish I hadn't sold that bike :(.

There are several posters in this forum that are in your general area. Maybe some day you could meet up for a ride.

Bau

Welcome.

I truely believe bike riding is the key to longevity in this life. Low impact and great excercise. There are some many little details that can get overwhelming with in the world of cycling. Tires, seats, cranks, handlebars, on and on and on. I would say at this point just Dont worry, Relax, Ride and Have fun.

Enjoy the time with your daughter because when they reach middle school and the teenage years they don't want to be seen in public with thier parents :D

Enjoy the time with your daughter because when they reach middle school and the teenage years they don't want to be seen in public with thier parents :D
Agree just went thru that with my 17year old for a spell,now shes back to normal for now anyway;)

Going for a ride now that it stopped pouring,trying to get things right sure takes some time lol.seat height/angel.Bar height and tilt,gears started slipping and what i read they call it ghost shifting also has been happening at times.going to try to fix this myself before i pay someone.bought this 2 weeks ago and i guess its normal for it to need adjustment after you break it in.I want to go and buy a patch kit and some road tools along with a helmet some time tonight and cant see paying money for repairs and purchases with out the wifey busting balls.:notamused:

Agree just went thru that with my 17year old for a spell,now shes back to normal for now anyway;)

Going for a ride now that it stopped pouring,trying to get things right sure takes some time lol.seat height/angel.Bar height and tilt,gears started slipping and what i read they call it ghost shifting also has been happening at times.going to try to fix this myself before i pay someone.bought this 2 weeks ago and i guess its normal for it to need adjustment after you break it in.I want to go and buy a patch kit and some road tools along with a helmet some time tonight and cant see paying money for repairs and purchases with out the wifey busting balls.:notamused:

Yeah, you gotta get a helmet! (I don't care what anybody else says!!!!)
For learning to fix/adjust stuff YouTube is your friend. Just be careful at first to watch more than one video on a particular repair/adjustment. I have seen some folks that you can trust them on everything. But, I have also seen videos that show an absolute wrong way to do things. Watch more than one and see if they all agree before you tackle something. But, don't be afraid to get in there and diddle with stuff!

Yeah, you gotta get a helmet! (I don't care what anybody else says!!!!)
For learning to fix/adjust stuff YouTube is your friend. Just be careful at first to watch more than one video on a particular repair/adjustment. I have seen some folks that you can trust them on everything. But, I have also seen videos that show an absolute wrong way to do things. Watch more than one and see if they all agree before you tackle something. But, don't be afraid to get in there and diddle with stuff!

Thanks for the heads up about youtube.

On new bikes the cables usually stretch out over the first several rides which is most likely the cause of your ghost shifting as you say. I second what DTSCDS said. Adjusting this stuff can be somewhat tricky the first couple of time you try it.

Tom - Park Tools website has good info on repairs. Here's a couple others that are useful:

http://www.utahmountainbiking.com/fix/index.htm
http://www.webmountainbike.com/maintenance.html

Once you do things a few times, you'll find what works for you and what doesnt -- and you'll probably discover your own little tweaks and shortcuts.

They look like some great sites billy-thank you.