As little interest as I have in department store mountain bikes at this point in my life, I can't overstate how important they were to me in my younger years. I had a pair of Murrays (24" and later 26") that were my first geared bikes. Looking at them as an adult, I can't help but notice the one piece cranks and the painted steel rims, but as a kid, they were amazing machines of limitless potential. I doubt I've been as enthusiastic about any bike as I was about those.