Originally Posted by
AU Tiger
Quick story. My wife has recently expressed interest in getting a bike just for rail trails, and we had a list of comfort bikes for her to try (based on specs). When we went into the LBS yesterday, she rode those and liked several of them. But then she tried
another one which wasn't even in the same category, and therefore wasn't one we'd even looked at online to compare. When she came in from that test ride, she had a big smile on her face. As she says, that one spoke to her. So that's the one we came home with. Nothing wrong with research, but in the end you hope to find a bike that speaks to you when you get on it. May not always happen for everyone, but when it does it makes the choice pretty easy.
I hope it "fits" good. I'm a specs kind of guy, so if it doesn't fit me right, my mind will be fighting me, lol. But I know, if it's not comfortable, then I won't want to ride as often, which is the whole point!
And to the person who asked why I just don't ride the old heavy, steel framed 820 that I have. The front shock is about shot, the tires are starting to dry rot, so I'm just waiting for those to go, the shifters miss, and I skip gears sometimes, and have had the chain come off a time or two. Yes, half that might be fixed with a good tune up. But I rather not put money into such an old bike, that I know I won't want to keep if I ride as much as I hope to.