I am looking to get back into cylcing again after about a 6 year hiates. I rode everyday from 6th grade till high school graduation. I lived in the country so it was about 10 miles back and forth. Back then I rode an mountain bike that my parents had bought me. Of course over 7 years I had changed out many of the stock parts. The closest bike shop was almost two hours away so I really new nothing about riding. I had to leave my bike when I left for college because the campus didn't accomidate bikes. Unfortunantly old faithful grew a lot of rust and I eventually had to just throw it away.
I am now looking to get back into riding. I would like to ride to and from work which is about 6 miles one way. There are a couple small hills along the way but they are nice smooth roads with plenty of room. I just don't even know where to start. There are a lot of different options out their if someone could give me some good advice while looking I would really apreciate it.
I guess I need to let everyone know more about myself. I am 5'9 tall. I would be taking a laptop back and forth with me and lunch. It all fits well into my back pack and is pretty light weight. I would choose speed over comfort in riding. I never seem to do anything slow and when riding I tend to want to get from one place to anther as quickly as possible. I will be able to store the back in my office once at work. My price range would be around $200 it could go up some for a great buy. I may buy a nicer bike if I begin using it to go everywhere but with still having college debt and now a morgage payment I think it would be best to start small. I figure if I buy a good bike to start with and slowly upgrade peices it would work best. I have been looking around at local shops but I have no clue what are good trusted brands. I'm not even sure what size bike I should get. For that matter I don't even know what questions to ask myself. ANY help would be appreciated.
Oh, I did find a local guy who fixes up older bikes in his garage and then sells them here in Louisville, KY. I'm not sure if any are worth the money or could work for what I would like it for. Here is a link to pictures of the bikes and prices.
http://s1036.photobucket.com/albums/...01/For%20Sale/