Biggest and first: against the advice of people who knew better - - in 2000, I bought a Mongoose MGX D50i from my local Costco.
Here was how
Mountain Bike Action graded it in the Nov. 1999 issue:
Originally Posted by MBA
C - Value
F - Weight (34 pounds)
C - Frame design
D - Fork performance: RST 281-R
C - Rear suspension: DMN coil/over shock, monoshock type, 2.5" travel
D - Component selection
D - Climbing efficiency
C - Cornering ability
D- Descending prowess
Teacher's notes: You get what you pay for with this inexpensive dual-suspension bike. You should probably spend your money on a lighter, more dirt-worthy hardtail. The Mongoose MGX D-50 is exciting to look at, though, and performs well enough for a beginner to have fun in the dirt. We thought it was a pile - - but a lot of mountain bikers will get their first off-road thrill on this department-store cheapie.
Yup.
Miraculously, it survived everything I did to it, up to and including installing a dual-crown fork and a beginner season of downhill racing.