Originally Posted by Bohh
Thanks for the replies all. Yes, the LBS is Century. The Medina one. I went out and test rode both and prefer the Giant. It is a lot smoother and just feels better all around. I'll take a look into the bikes you all suggested as well.
Thank you,
-Mike
I see you came over to the commuter forums, Mike. Welcome.
Either bike will work for what you want to do. Either one will do relatively mild trails (rail trails and dirt roads) but both will suffer if you try to go on trails that have roots or rocks. They just don't have the clearance needed.
Another item to consider is that both have 52/11 top gears. That's really tall. I live in a state with lots of long steep downhills and I've given up my 52/11 for something more reasonable. Living where you do, I don't know that you'd get much use out of that high a gear. See if you can either swap the chainrings for a 48/38/26 or see if they would change the cassette to something like a 12-30 or a 13-30. The cassette is more likely because at this price point, I doubt that the chainrings are changeable. You're knees will appreciate it and you'll get more use out of your gearing.