I post on a lot of different forums for various kinds of advice, most of which are very helpful, but you guys are right up there at the top ... I really appreciate everyone taking the time to help this biking wannabe sort this out.
For the old guy if that 25% off road is national forest single track type rides in the Ozarks than the 4300 would probably be better.
Yes, these trails, I believe, are what you refer to as "single-track" ... would one option be to get the GF hybrid and have a second set of fat tires to pop on when doing these trails, as opposed to getting the 4300?
I've got some more homework to do ... several other bikes have been suggested ... test rides seem to be in order, too ... not sure some of these bikes are available in our area, though ... we've been to the Specialized store (our second choice) and Cannondale, but Trek caught our fancy primarily because of the GF bikes and the fact that we just had a good feel about their store and service ... good test ride, too.
Bill