Buying my first bicycle. Need advices, answers, and decisions!! Please help.
That's right, folks! My first time buying my own bicycle. After researching for a few days, I became completely convinced that a hybrid bike is the right one for me. Now the questions come down to what brands, models, etc should I get? Well, after a lot of searching, I landed in between Montague's CX Comfort bike and the Cannondale Adventure 5.
HOWEVER! Depending on your answers to my following questions, I might have second thoughts about the 2 mentioned bikes:
1. I've read too much about Mountain bikes, but one thing still isn't clear to me. Are Mountain bikes suited for riding in the city streets? Lots of reviews say this bike is designed to be "tough" and "take a beating," obviously for when you go biking in rocky mountains and what-not, but are they fast, comfortable, and easy to use on the paved roads in the city? My dad is looking at a really expensive Mountain bike. His motto is "You get what you pay for" and he is totally convinced that a $800 Mountain bike will do justice in the city streets. I doubt it.
2. What exactly are Comfort bikes? I've been looking at comfort bikes for a while (CX Comfort is one of my choices as of now) and many say that it's like a hybrid but designed to "comfort" the rider (apparently, it has something to do with your sitting position, pedals, saddle, handlebars, and front fork suspension?). The said description for comfort bikes got me really interested in them. However, my friend, who has been biking for 2 or 3 years now, keeps telling me comfort bikes aren't really good. I don't get what's so bad about them. Can anyone explain?
3. I'm looking for a FAST, LIGHTWEIGHT, and DURABLE bike that can easily handle paved AND dirt paths and costs anywhere from $400 to $700 (I will give chances to look at those priced a bit outside the said range). Of the CX Comfort and Cannondale Adventure 5, which would you recommend? Which other bike that suits the said categories can you recommend?
I may ask more questions as I encounter them in the near future. Thank you for all your help!!