@acidfast7:
I don't know what the hell you are trying to say. I think you mean to say mukracker, and actually I will get more replies and more advice the more mukracking I do.

I have noticed on bike forums that most people who do the majority of posting have large stables of bikes, and been riding for years, even decades, so you cannot take their advice seriously, despite what you say about the alleged experience factor. They do patently silly things like say advise newbies to get a single-speed because they love riding their when they are not riding ONE OF THEIR OTHER FIVE BIKES... Which is fine if you live in flat area or are very fit to begin with, which won't apply to most. I have called these alleged single speed cocaine sniffers out on this before already in my short time on this forum.

In 2012 I wanted to get Surly cross-check with my tax return but my cat got sick and I had to burn like $1000 fixing her up. If that were the case, I likely would not have had the same requirements-parameters for a new bike, or maybe I would not even have wanted one, but that is not the case.

About trying bikes, I could try lots of bikes, at bike store parking lots, and while telling if it not a totally sh1t ride is possible, you still cannot make much else of it. Unfortunately as a tactic bike manufacturers for their demos always seem to showcase ultra-high end bicycles costing several thousand, which most people will never buy to encourage upgrade-itis. So paradoxically I managed to get one hour of otherwise unrestricted saddle time on a bike I could never afford costing upwards of $11,000 but have no idea where to demo an affordable for me, Ion CX pro even in a parking lot...