Originally posted by Terrapinz
Im considering buying a fairly serious mountain bike to put to some good use starting in the spring. I will be riding almost everyday on my campus which is rather large (U. Maryland) but on weekends I anticipate heading to N. Virginia...
This is a little off-topic but if I understand you correctly you are going to ride this to school and lock it up. Don't! Get a junker for this purpose. I know it's a shame not to ride a great bike as much as possible but if you lock a bike like this up on a routine basis it will most likely disappear. Sad but true!