bigbones73

I've been trolling here for a little bit and have really been inspired by the many success stories I have found in this sub-forum. I'm 6'4" and weigh in at 375 and I just celebrated my 64th birthday. I have had both hips replaced and have been pretty inactive due to the pain leading up to the surgeries and even post-op. I need to drop some pounds and improve my fitness level. I'd like to use bike riding as a tool to make some changes to my lifestyle. I resurrected an old Diamondback that I rode a little in the 1990's but I'm not feeling very safe on it, so I'm looking for a new ride. I'm not planning any major road races or hill climbs--I just want to be able to ride on my rural roads and some local trails. I have to ride on a quarter mile of gravel to get from my home to a paved road. So that's my story.

I'm looking at a Trek Navigator 3.0 at a nearby bike shop that I think will be a good starting bike for me. I like the price point and it seems to fit my needs pretty well. Am I on the right track?

Allen55

Hey guy! Im not one to offer much advice because Im still a noob myself, but I wanted to welcome you to the forums! These guys here really know what they are talking about.

Beachgrad05

I too want to welcome you! Others can maybe speak to bike questions tho I understand the Navigator is a good choice only question might be wheels

Myosmith

What model and year of Diamondback are you riding? It is possible that you could just make a few changes to your existing bike to make it more suitable. Why don't you feel safe on it the way it is?

BTW, if you have just been hanging around reading posts, you have been lurking. Trolling is the intentional act of creating heated controversies or otherwise stirring the pot just to watch the fighting.

TrojanHorse

He's from mid MN, probably thinking in fishing terms. Where in MN? My dad's from Faribault & my mom is from Walker. I spent the coldest year of my life in Northfield in 1978 or so and now I live in California.

What's wrong with the Diamondback? Any reason you shouldn't ride that for 6 months before springing for a new bike?

Generally chaps your size will have wheel problems more than anything else. The frames are usually plenty sturdy.

mcrow

It if it is a Diamondback Mountain Bike you might be better off with that to start with. I think most mountain bikes come with a solid rear wheel so you are less likely to taco a wheel if you hit a pothole. I believe that the mid 90's Trek 850 and 820 I owned had 36 spoke rims standard and I know the Talus 2.0 I bought earlier this year has a 36 spoke wheel.

I'm not sure how much you know about bike maintenance but you could probably bring the Diamondback to the bike shop and have it tuned up for under $100.

Also, welcome from MN. I live in Hutchinson which may not be too far from where you live if it's in central MN.

Mithrandir

That's actually where the term 'trolling' came from, initially. People would go trolling usenet groups with intentionally inflammatory posts, seeing how many 'fish' they could 'hook' into a heated discussion. Trolls in the original sense almost never believe in what they say, but just say it to cause trouble.

bigbones73

Lurking is the appropriate term, I'm not looking for trouble. The bike that I have is a Diamondback Crestview and it is not a mountain bike. I did have it tuned up at a bike shop before getting started on this journey. The tires are pretty skinny and riding on the gravel is the thing that has me most concerned. On the paved road, every expansion joint sends a jolt through my body. I have gained quite a bit of weight since I originally bought it.

I live on a lake about 30 miles southeast of Brainerd, MN. for those of you who are familiar with Minnesota.

Myosmith

Just did a quick search and it appears your Diamondback hybrid originally came with 700 x 38mm wide tires and 36-spoke wheels. If someone put narrower tires on that could be your problem. I just put some 40mm Schwalbe Smart Sams on my homebuilt trail hybrid based on a Trek 700 frame and they perform admirably on gravel. I took it out last week on roads that were a mix of hard pack, ruts, and soft spots I didn't have any problem even when I got into ridges left by the road grader. Another advantage is that the large volume of the tires really soaks up the road vibration and minor jolts. I have been impressed that the Smart Sams perform well in the soft stuff but still roll smooth and easy on pavement. I wouldn't recommend them for a time trial, but for fitness/pleasure riding on mixed terrain they are great. If you can squeeze the 45s or the 40s on would be ideal, but even the 35s should be OK on decent gravel road and trails.

https://www.amazon.com/Schwalbe-Smart...art+sam+700+40

That said, the Trek Navigator would also be an appropriate choice with 26" 36-spoke wheels but your tires will be only marginally wider as it comes with 2.0 inch H2s (not bad, but not much tread) which is only about 3/8" wider than the 40mm Smart Sams. My personal choice would be to stick with the larger diameter and slightly narrower tires on 36-spoke wheels (you can upgrade to 40-spoke touring wheels if you have problems) and a tire more aggressive than the H2.

vesteroid

My god, I spent a week once in brainerd. It was super bowl week. I have never been so cold in all my life. I still remember two things. All the roads had snow mobile track running along side them, and just leaving my hotel and walking to my car, my jeans would freeze up so bad that when I would sit In the car, they would make this crinkly noise.

I imagine it's a beautiful place in the summer, but brrrrrrrr in the other 8 months of the year

mcrow

You never did the cold test? It's cold in MN if you can put a banana outside for 15 minutes and it freezes so hard you can pound a nail into a 2x4 with it. I remember as a kid (growing up in far nothern MN) that some mornings it would be so cold you could spit and it'd freeze before it hit the ground. I road my snowmobile to school most of the winter as a kid.

bigbones73

Yes, the winters can be a little brutal around here but us big guys don't sweat so much in January and February so that's a real plus. We fish on the ice and ride snowmobiles for fun in the winter and as Vesteroid said, winter only lasts about 8 months so that's not too bad.

Myosmith

One of the fun things as a kid up here is to take a cup of boiling water outside and throw it up in the air to watch it come down as ice crystals.

owba

I've been lurking her a while too. I'm the same size you are (367 lbs) and purchased a Trek Navigator 3.0 a month or so ago. I have found the bike to be very comfortable for the type of riding that you plan on doing. I go for 6-10 mile rides regularly around the neighborhoods near my home. I find the bike to be very comfortable and am slowly increasing the length of my rides as I can. I like to see how far I can go in an hour in the evenings. I read a lot of posts about folks growing out of the Navigator very quickly which concerned me but I have to say I'm very happy with this bike. I visited two LBS's and both of the places directed me to this bike and after some test riding I agreed it is a good bike to start out for someone our size. I don't believe you would have any issues with this bike on gravel and the tire is not so heavily treaded that you would hate riding it on paved road. Seems to be good for both.

bigbones73

I'm so happy to read your post. That is great news as I just returned from an afternoon at the LBS and I purchased a Trek Navigator 3.0. I took my old bike along thinking maybe I would just get some new tires and see if that helped me feel better about things. I did straddle my old bike before I left though and either I have shrunk a couple of inches since I bought it or it was not the correct size for me in the first place. When I arrived at the LBS, the sales guy had prepped the one that I had inquired about earlier in the week. We discussed my options and he suggested that I take the new one out for a ride and see how I liked it. Well the decision was made in about 2 minutes. They had me take several more short rides and tweaked things after each trip. I'm happy with my new rig and very happy with the crew at my favorite bike shop.

Let the games begin.

goldfinch

Enjoy your new bike! My spouse has a Navigator and he likes it fine. The only issue he has had is with the seat post gradually lowering into the seat tube. He had a heavy duty clamp put on the post to address the issue.

I am doing a ride near Brainerd on September 8, the "Tour de Cuyuna." https://cuyunalakestrail.org/index.cfm/pageid/20 Nice part of the state to ride.

bigbones73

Thanks Goldfinch. I'll be sure to keep my eye out for that seat issue. I'm not sure if I will be ready for a tour of that length so soon but I will give it some thought and some effort. This type of event is definitely a motivational tool for me and I appreciate you bringing it to my attention. This is a whole new world to me.

goldfinch

You probably aren't ready for this year but your "neighborhood" has some great rides. The best is the Tour of Lakes. This ride has the best food stops ever and uses incredibly beautiful routes. Next year, June 1. I'll be there. https://www.paulbunyancyclists.com/To...f%20Lakes.html Here is my ride report from this year: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ury?highlight=

bigbones73

Very nice report Gold and congrats on successfully completing a ride of that length. At this point it is hard for me to imagine going that far-even if the food stops are that good. How long have you been riding?

goldfinch

I started about a year and a half ago at age 56. I started riding after getting about half way through my weight loss journey. I lost 1/3 of my body weight over the course of a year. Now I am continuing to work on maintaining my weight.

bigbones73

That is awesome! Congratulations on all that you have accomplished.

bigbones73

I went for my first ride at home on the new Navigator this afternoon and I really like it. It just seems to fit me so much better than the old bike that I had. The wider tires have made a big difference both on the gravel and on the tar road. I went about 3 miles which is a mile further than my previous best--I have only been at this a couple of weeks so even though this doesn't seem like much, it's pretty good for me.