Originally Posted by
jgedwa
I am not at all a bike snob, but almost all the bikes sold at the x-marts are really bad.
Disagree somewhat. I ride them without major problems. Of course, I do my own maintenance and such, but you've got to maintain any bicycle on the planet. But I do agree about the assembly at times, you should check the assembly and tweak what's needed or assemble it yourself. It's a small price to save a few hundred dollars.
Remember that the majority of the world's bike riders (China, India etc) don't ride LBS type bicycles.
An inexpensive, but decent bike can be a joy to ride.
As can a Walmart bike, which happens to be inexpensive. I ride mine for two reasons. First is fun, second is exercise. I don't give a darn about speed, fitting in with the neo-snobs, or spend mega bucks on cycling gear.
jgedwa, what this thread did was to totally discourage someone from riding a bicycle. These snobs aren't bicycling advocates at all, if anything, they turn people off from it.
I'm an advocate for anyone riding a bike , rather it be a LBS bike, a Walmart bike, or a Goodwill bicycle. The idea is supposed to get people riding and support their activity no matter what they ride.