A lot of people on here talk about how crappy department store bikes are, and honestly, I'd agree with them, except for the fact that nearly every bike that I've had up to now has been a department store bike, and they've all been bulletproof. Now, granted, these were the steel frames, so they wouldn't crack, and they didn't have suspension to be messed up, but if you could deal with the occasionally skipping derailleur, they got you around, and put up with a LOT of abuse.