Originally Posted by jyossarian

Forget Craigslist. Everyone in NYC thinks selling the $90 Huffy they bought in 1988 for $300 is a good deal cuz it's vintage. The most important thing about that Schwinn is whether or not the wheels are true when you get it. When you get it from Amazon, take it to a bike shop and have them assemble it or at least check it out to make sure everything's cool. To grease the wheels, go into the bike shop to buy some accessories like locks, lights, helmet, tools, etc. and ask if it'd be ok to have them check out the new bike you got. If they act all uppity, don't buy anything and go find another bike shop. Also, grab a free NYC bike map from any bike shop. Lots of good riding in Queens and the rest of NYC. I'm in NYC too so if you have any questions specific to NYC, lemme know.

Next up is check out Times-Up! (times-up.org) to find out about the Women's Bike Repair nights (usually Mondays) and other bike related things like the monthly rides in Central Park, Prospect Park and Riverside Park, etc. It's a good way to learn basic maintenance and repair and some advanced stuff. Transportation Alternatives is another advocacy group based in NYC and memberships gets you discounts at bike shops and sponsored rides like the NYC Century.

As for the saddle problem, every cyclist has issues w/ their saddles. The one on the Schwinn looks way over padded, but it might work for you. Most bike shops have a sit bone measurement thing that tells you how far apart your sit bones are. That helps you pick out the right width saddle if the saddle that comes w/ your bike isn't working for you. Even after you pick out the right width, some people prefer more padding, others less. Give the saddle a good couple of weeks of solid riding to get used to it before you make a decision to replace it.