Originally Posted by
recumelectric
OK. I have some ideas.
Spend as little money as possible. . .
I have so many problems with this advice I don't know where to start. First of all, life is too short to be riding a crappy bike. Riding a crappy bike that is right style for you is way more likely to steer you away from cycling than riding a quality bike that isn't quite the right match for your riding style. Plus if it really isn't the right bike for you, a quality bike will actually have some resale value.
Walmart is probably responsible for turning more people off biking than any other dealer. Please do not go there. These bikes will not be fun to ride or be representative of what cycling has to offer.
This poster has indicated he wants to spend the money to get a quality bike. Kuddos to him. He is already way ahead of 90% of the people who post here asking for first time bike purchasing advice. Let's give him recommendations for bikes we'd actually want to ride for more than 5 minutes instead of going for the cheapest option.