Originally Posted by mrt2you

congratulations for making the decision to get yourself in better shape. bicycling is a great activity to help you do that.
a hybrid or a cyclocross would both fit your needs well and should fit in your budget.
visit a cycle shop near you and ride both to help you decide. mountain bike could fit your needs also. be careful after you get 1 bike soon you might have 3 more.
as said before get Heavy duty wheels with lots of spokes. nashbar sells a set of Vueleta HD wheelset for less that $200. they claim they are good for riders up to 300 lbs. they have great reviews with many satisfied users. i am one of them.
another thing to consider is check the warranty. there have been several posts about the frames breaking from large riders. if you buy the bike new most major manufacturers will have lifetime frame replacement warranty to the original purchaser, save the receipt. some also have frame replacement if it gets wreaked in a crash, specialized has this thats why i bought by roubaix.
good luck with your choice.