Originally posted by roadie gal
All summer long I'm on my road bike, with only the occasional ride on the mountain bike. But come autumn, I only have eyes for the mtn bike. Well... I've been riding a GT Karakorum with is now 7 years old and starting to show it's age. So today I demo'd Marin's low end FS bike. I'm hooked! FS is the way for this aging corpus to go. Now I need some suggestions about what to pick.
I'm 5'6", weigh 145 lb, generally ride moderate single track with a lot of climbing. I don't want to race but I do want to keep up, and I'm not planning on hucking anything more than my lunch after a tough ride. I'm hoping to spend $1600 - $1800 US.
The Marin was OK. I'd have to go up a level or two. The Deore grupo was noticeably slower than my LX. I'm thinking about trying out a Jamis Dakar. What else should I look at?
Thanks in advance...
Hi roadie Gal. I'm jealous...you live in mountain bike heaven. If I could I would move to Tahoe in a heart beat. I've made several trips up there and ridden Toads, Flume and another trail I can't remember the name of in W. Tahoe.
As for F.S. bikes...The Jamis is a great bike for the money....I think someone has mentioned the Giant NRS2. Also take a look at the Specialized bikes. If you don't mind spending just a little bit more than $1800 you should consider the Santa Cruz Superlight. Great all-around bike for the money.
One more suggestion...because you live in Tahoe and the descents can be very long I would recommend disc brakes. You won't regret it.