Originally Posted by
EriktheFish
The Piccolo is an excellent suggestion. And you will be able to sell it in a year or two for nearly what you paid for it. Your avatar says you are in Illinois. There is a Piccolo listed on the Chicago Craigslist:
http://chicago.craigslist.org/nwc/bik/2321664421.html
If you still want to get him a bike and want to go cheap, I'd recommend finding a used high quality bike versus a new dept. store bike. You'll get lighter weight, better performing components, higher quality all around.
The Piccolo is nice but I've been looking at a Specialized Hotrock or a similar bike that Trek makes. I think it's an MT 220 or something like that. He's outgrown his starter bike and needs an upgrade. I'm still open to bike suggestions.