jeff7602

I am going to start riding bike to work, which is only 2 miles away. I know for most of you that is not even a ride, but I'm lazy and out of shape so I thought that this would be a good start! It is a very steep hill going uphill 1 mile, then down hill 1 mile. I only have $200 to spend on a bike right now...which I know is little to nothing. Can anyone give me some advice on if there is anything I can get for $200 that is decent. The ride will be on good pavement and commuting is really the only thing I plan to use the bike for. Thanks!

Jeff

lil brown bat

I'd start by borrowing a bike from a friend or family member first. Chances are you know someone who has a bike that they aren't using. $200 could buy you an okay bike if you know what to look for and can find it used, say on craigslist or at a yard sale...but you have to know what to look for first. With only $200 to spend I don't think I'd even bother walking into a bike shop.

(In Boston, however, I'd walk into Bikes Not Bombs and see what I could do there...but you're probably not in Boston)

Is the $200 your total budget for bike, helmet, lights, etc., or is it just for the bike?

CBBaron

I think for $200 the only good bike you are going to get is an older used bike. Also make sure you budget for a helmet, floor pump, and a few tools. If you continue to ride you will want to add fenders and lights to your kit.

That said a cheapy from a big department store will get you there and back. It just might not be very comfortable, efficient and reliable long term.

Craig

Nicodemus

Even the longest journey must start with the first step.

ollo_ollo

Like lil brown bat said: borrow a bike from a friend or relative & shop Craig's list, yard sales & thrift stores for a nice used Touring Bike. It is ideal for commuting & overkill for your short commute but you will be able to do any ride you choose with it. More likely, you will find an 80s or 90s "Sport Touring" bike in lightly used condition. A good way to I.D. a good quality frame is to check for axle adjusting screws & forged dropouts. These are a sure sign of a mid level or higher frame. They look like this & don't have to be chromed. Don

East Hill

First step is to 'fess up and tell us where you're located. We can get a better idea of what would be suitable on CL etc.

How tall are you--what's your standover height?

East Hill

East Hill

Ah, does that explain the new avatar and avatar message, or did I miss the explanation in Foo?

East Hill

Flimflam

Congrats on your decision and motivation, maybe you'll be bitten with the cycling bug, maybe not - but you're taking the only step there is to find out

You know, I'm not against advising the Xmart bikes. If you are planning to ride to work and back only, then those bikes will be just fine IMO, not much of an outlay and they'll still do the job. If you plan on riding a lot more, then perhaps not. I've done 1500 miles on my el-cheapo MTB and it's been mostly just fine (and abused quite a fair bit, too) - had to replace the crank as the cotter pin sheared off/out. I paid $148 inc. taxes for that bike, and it's my regular all-weather commuter. I've ridden it through all seasons and it's stood up to the job. Granted, it's heavy, I've swapped out and added a couple things (fenders, lights, new cables/chain, slicker tyres, new saddle) but it's still just fine for riding my work commutes (formerly 16mi. RT now an 8mi RT from work to home).

Borrowing a bike is a fantastic idea, and if they don't use it, you don't have to worry about constantly re-fitting the bike to your size (seat/bars, etc.).

If you're unsure about cycling generally, I'd borrow, save the $200 and add to it to build a little nest egg. If you find you don't like cycling so much, then you have a bunch of cash to use on something else, else, you'll have more cash to put towards a nicer (perhaps used from a trusted bike store?) bike.

Good luck!

swwhite

Some bike shops sell used bikes. I just happened to spot one recently when I had it in my head that I needed a backup bike, so I bought it for $80 and it turned out to be really nice. I think the bike shop had tuned it up, it shifts smoothly, it's light; I got lucky.

A couple years ago I spotted a nice-looking bike at a garage sale for $40, but did not buy it because a shift lever was broken. If you know your mechanical abilities and what you are able to fix, youi might turn up a fixer-upper somewhere.

lil brown bat

I should also clarify -- my main reason for recommending borrowing is not so much as a permanent solution, but because it will allow you to get some data points re: what type of bike will work for you, without having to spend any money. Suppose you do find a bike to purchase for under $200, and it turns out to be a bad fit, or just not suited for what you're trying to do? There goes your money. If you borrow Cousin Jack's hybrid and Brother Tom's road bike and ride them for a bit, you'll start to establish some preferences.

acroy

Congrats on starting to ride! good job!
you're lazy and out of shape now, but keep at it and soon you'll be in shape and energetic
as far as a bike, do what the others have said.
figure out what works for you and go from there. Maybe try your area forum and see if there's someone close with a nice bike they'd part with.
Cheers and best o luck!

pedalMonger

I think bike shops near large college campuses (if you are near one) that cater to students often have some decent used bikes, maybe more this time of year if students who graduated decided to sell a bike back to the shop.

jeff7602

I live in Brea, CA. Where it's pretty much 70 and sunny everyday I am 5'11"...and I don't know what standover height is. There is a huge college (cal state fullerton) really close...actually across the street from where I work, and there is a bike shop not far from there. As of now, before looking at Garage Sales, thrift stores and the like I saw this bike at Target and thought I might give it a try. What do you guys think about that bike? https://www.target.com/gp/detail.html...sin=B000KZ1GHQ

lil brown bat

I think it's a mistake to buy anything just because it fits (just) within your $200 budget. And yeah, I know, you asked "what do you think" -- what I think is that none of us can even tell what style of bike would be right for you, much less whether that particular one is a good choice.

Go do some riding. Try different styles, a road-style bike like that one vs. something more upright. What good will you get out of a $200 Target bicycle if you ride it for a mile and find that it kills your back?

jeff7602

I like all of the suggestions to get out and ride a few different kinds of bikes, but other than borrowing them from people, any ideas how to do that? I don't really know anyone who rides...most of my friends are lazy and out of shape just like I am...and if not it's because they run, not ride.

Buglady

Is there a bike-rental place near you, maybe in a touristy part of town? Or try posting in your area forum (go to Bike Forums>Regional forums) as someone said, to see if you can connect with someone local that way.

pedalMonger

Hang out by a bike rack thats loaded with parked bikes. When the owners return, offer to be their friend if they'll let you test ride their bike!

Seriously though, most bike shops will let you test ride. Some might say its unethical if you have no intention to buy from a shop (I don't see the harm though if you don't damage the bike on a test ride, and besides, you might return there someday to buy parts if you like the shop), but, you could try some of the commonly available brands (I see lots of Giants around here, for example), then when you find a size and model that fits, you could search for a used one of that model thats within your budget. A lot of the time the basics of any particular model, such as frame, don't always change year to year, and you can confirm by doing specs research online

Artkansas 

I have a similar ride. Short but hilly.

My recommendation to you would be to get an old mountain bike, no suspension, not too worn and slap some fenders, lights, street tires and a rack on it.



In my case the bike was Free! It's an old Specialized Hard Rock. Friends of my ex-wife gave it to her because they were upgrading. It had low mileage and all I had to do was equip it as you see. It's given me over two years of service and only needed the rear wheel to be trued a little after 2 years. The mountain gears get me up the hills and the rugged tires get me across the rough streets of Little Rock.

You could probably find such a bike at a thrift store or a garage sale for $10-50.

lil brown bat

Right, but that doesn't mean they don't have a bike in a garage or attic gathering dust. Sedentary people are one of the very best sources for a long-term loaner, trust me!

And, yeah, rentals are not a bad place to start, if there's a bike livery near you (look for recreation areas or ask a local bike shop who rents). These bikes will tend to be "one size fits all", meaning reasonably accomodating to a variety of body types and levels of experience/fitness: they won't be high-performance, but they'll be easy to use, and will get you riding.

Some things that can make a lot of difference that you should pay attention to:

Pedals: probably platforms if you're renting, probably pedals or clips if you're borrowing. How do you like them? Do you find you slip off them? Are they roomy enough for you, too big, what?

Shifters: there are several different styles -- some are part of the brake, some are part of the handle, some are near the brake, etc. What style are you most comfortable with.

Brakes: a bit less variation here but the same idea, there are some differences in style, so identify what you like.

Bar style: the bike you linked to has drop handlebars, which are fine but not a real advantage for the kind of ride you're talking about. I have a road bike with drop handlebars, but for my commute I prefer my hybrid, which has straight bars and a more upright riding stance -- I feel more comfortable dealing with the "oh no" factor like that.

Size: standover height has already been mentioned. Think about standing astride the bike's top tube: the height at which it is not too high for you to be able to stand flat-footed and have a little clearance, but not any lower than it needs to be, is the standover height. It's a good place to start when sizing a bike. Then there's your body shape: like many women, I've got a shorter torso in relation to my height than a man of the same height would, so a bike that fits a 5'6" man well would be too long for me to comfortably reach the handlebars.

Those are just a few things to check out.

Also...you gotta get a helmet if you're gonna be a commuter. Really. And unlike the bike, I really don't think it's a good idea to borrow someone else's. Get your own, that fits your head, that's new and not a dozen years old.

nightc1

I ride a GMC Denali Road Bike purchased from Walmart. I've had to adjust the seat height, stem/bar height for my comfort and then adjust the brakes very minorly and the deraileurs a couple turns on a few screws to get it dialed in. Overall for $150 it was a good investment. I've put just over $200 into it total though as i bought a little under the seat bag, a new helmet, a floor pump with pressure gauge built in, and a couple other items like a bike lock.

The Shwinn Varsity runs $200 at walmart, it's a decent bike as well for the $$. I'm not familiar with the schwinn that target has, but it probably isnt' that bad.

The thing I like about the Denali which most people wouldn't that ride road bikes is the gears are basicly mountain bike gears. So you get a bike that weighs a lot less than most mountain bikes yet you get the low gears for those dreaded hill climbs.


2 miles though? Even out of shape you should be able to walk that in around 30 min.

Just an option as well since it would be free.

Buglady

+1 for the helmet. You can get decent ones (well, they're safety rated anyway) at any chain store - Target will have them for sure. The super-fancy helmets you see at bike shops are a lot more expensive, but to be honest I don't know if they are that much "safer". Better a cheap helmet that you wear than bashing your brains out while you save for a better one anyway!

I have a feeling that you'll find a mountain bike frame (the hard kind, nit suspension, or front suspension only) more comfortable than a road bike (with those dropped curved handlebars) if you have not ridden in a long time. That was my own experience anyway. I had a handmedown ten-speed that I thought was going to kill me! I felt a lot more secure when I was sitting more upright and had wider handlebars.

Nicodemus

No, I just thought it was a relevant one-liner to thwack into the thread.

No explanation in Foo, I just got bored of Mr. T standing there beefy-like and all. Thought I'd kick it real with the South Park me

East Hill

Soon you'll be changing your signature .

Jeff, as you live in Brea, you probably have multiple LBSs in your area, not to mention sedentary folks looking to unload those bikes that make them sweat just thinking about it. Try to check out the fit at the LBS, and if you are adventurous, try looking at CL/garage sales/etc.

East Hill

GCRyder

jeff -- "standover height" is a euphemistic way of asking how high your crotch is off the ground, when you stand flat-footed. It's more often applied to the bike than the rider, and refers to the measured distance from the ground to the top tube of the frame, right in front of the saddle. At 5-11, assuming proportions in a normal range, you probably want a bike with standover of about 32-33 inches, and a seat tube that measures about 23 inches or 58 cm (+/-).

You might want to spend some time over on the Classic & Vintage board as well as this one. There are lots of great older bikes to be had for well under $200. Recognizing them takes some knowledge that can be picked up pretty quickly from posts over there. There is a sticky on "ebay and craigslist finds" that runs for dozens of pages with discussion of various bikes found in those listings. A lot of it's banter, but there's a lot of knowledge to be gleaned, too. Also, the board is slanted steeply toward road bikes, but the knowledge of things like frame materials and joinery mostly carries over to the MTB's that work best for commuting. CAVEAT: Those bikes from thrift shops and craigslist can become almost habit-forming. Those really worth looking at generally comprise only about 2% of what's there, but once you realize there are nuggets in the gravel, it's hard to stop looking. I just scanned the L.A. craigslist, and see a few poking out from the gravel just from the past week.

jeff7602

I'm more of an instant gratification guy than an adventurous one...which goes against me here. I'm so tempted to just go out and buy one. All of you guys telling me to find the right fit has deterred me from doing that so far...but I'm getting anxious. I just want to have a bike and call it my own. I'm going to go down to a bike shop this afternoon. The more I read the more I think that I probably don't want the road bike handlebars. We'll see.