Hi there, I am looking to start riding to become more active. I am 290 lbs and do not know what to buy. I would be riding on paved roads or maintained trails. I don't want to spend a ton of money until I see if its something I can do, but don't want to buy a bike that my weight will break. Any thoughts? Thanks!
Get some sort of hybrid bike (preferably with no front suspension for reliability and expense control reasons)
Check out the plethora of "Hi, I"m a new rider what should I get" threads in this forum. There are a ton of them with some great advice.
I wish I'd got a cyclocross bike instead of a hybrid to start with. The hybrid has been good to me, though.
I like my road bike, but I love my hybrid.
Go visit your local LBS, and test ride as many bikes as you can.
It is a simple and complex question all at the same time. I agree with "avance" ^. You need to go to your Local Bike Shop and ride as many as you can. IN regards to The_DK's comment, I like cyclocross/touring steel frames. I am new to cycling as well, and chose the cyclocross/touring steel frame for the durability, as I am also a clyde, as well as the personal fit. WHich brings me to the next point; your bike should fit you, and should be purchased like clothes, especially for bigger guys like us, as a bike that does not properly will actually do you harm. THe last point would be your budget. Just like anything else you can always send more, lol. I was lucky enough to get my first ride as a gift ( by gift i mean I used excess loan and some graduation gift money to purchase), so I did dream a little bigger. I ride a Surly Long Haul Trucker. Several of my friends of equal proportions ( 6'0"-6'5" and 235-290) also ride surly, some salsa nikes, and some bianchi. These all happen to be steel fram bikes as well. They just have a bit more give...so when you hit bumps the bike, and your body take the hit a little smoother.
Cheers,
P.S. Not that I am an expert, I am just regurgitating the advice originally given to me from my cycling friends and my LBS.
I started with a Hybrid. I'm building a Surly Cross Check. I don't think I could have started with a drop bar bike as my core would not have been able to support the riding position they require. So if you really get into riding, expect your taste to change as your body adapts.
Thanks for your thoughts, I think sometimes it helps to take into consideration actual riders' opinions even if not an expert
It doesn't have to be steel. Aluminum could work for you too. There are a number of nice aluminum hybrids that would work well, such as the Trek FX series. The other major companies have similar bikes. So I would try them as well.
"The most important take-home message with diet and health is that anyone who ever expresses anything with certainty is basically wrong, because the evidence for cause and effect in this area is almost always weak and circumstantial…"--Ben Goldacre in Bad Science
1969 Schwinn Collegiate, original owner
Trek Madone 4.7 WSD
Cannondale Quick 4
Terry Classic
Trek 800
Okay, good advice - I really am new to this and assumed because of my size I would have to have steel. I'm on the hunt for a good bike shop to figure this all out!
Trek has a 300 pound weight limit for all its hybrid bikes. http://www.trekbikes.com/faq/questio...questionid=104 At least they have a posted limit, most bike companies don't have anything posted.Originally Posted by oboebyrd
Okay, good advice - I really am new to this and assumed because of my size I would have to have steel. I'm on the hunt for a good bike shop to figure this all out!
"The most important take-home message with diet and health is that anyone who ever expresses anything with certainty is basically wrong, because the evidence for cause and effect in this area is almost always weak and circumstantial…"--Ben Goldacre in Bad Science
1969 Schwinn Collegiate, original owner
Trek Madone 4.7 WSD
Cannondale Quick 4
Terry Classic
Trek 800
Find out you proper size from a bike shop or reasearch it on line. You could get a used mountain bike. There are plenty of them out there and good deals to be had. I would recommend slicks (tire with smooth treads) for road and paved trail riding. Also no suspension.
This would give you a strong bike with heavy duty wheels, lots of low gear options and an upright riding position.
One pair of riding shorts (tight or baggy), a helmet, gloves, waterbottle and tire changing stuff.
You'd be all set to ride.
Go through some of the old posts here and you will get all the info and opinions you need.
Good Luck
Last edited by lenny866; 04-29-12 at 06:25 PM.
Find and visit as many bike shops as you can, for the greatest variety of brands and types of bikes. Test ride as many as you can. And then buy the one that says "Take me home."
That which does not kill me has made a massive tactical blunder.
Too often I would hear men boast of the miles covered that day, rarely of what they had seen. Louis L'Amour
'07 Giant Cypress WSD "Radagast the Beige-and-Black" * '97 (?) Bianchi Premio "Orion" * '09 Trek Allant "The Black Pearl"
Trek Pure is a crank forward bike it lets people stop flat footed ,
rather than tippytoe.
but the distance to the pedals is far enough to work well..
Lots of people that are less secure with taller seat positions like them.
Be careful of that...they all say take me home!Find and visit as many bike shops as you can, for the greatest variety of brands and types of bikes. Test ride as many as you can. And then buy the one that says "Take me home."
My apologies, I didnt mean for my post to assume that you need steel as a clyde. I just know that it I personally like the ride of steel bikes. They are comfortable, I am into touring. Also the majority of the roads i ride ( country roads with very little traffic) are slightly terrible. Pot holes, loose scree and the like. The steel physically takes the bumps better. I had a friend (300+) that was a little too aggressive on his aluminum frame, resulting in weld cracks and so forth. It just stuck with me.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
