Talk to local bike shops, I am 6’4” and when I started I was 425 lbs. I ended up starting with a $400 Giant Sedona hybrid which has a Suntour coil fork with the ability to lock out. I picked this up because of budget constraints. I ended up having a rear wheel built for around $130 after a few weeks of popping spokes and flexing the rear wheel. Afterwards I put tandem street slicks on it. After 3 years I replaced the saddle because it was just slap worn out. I’ve popped a few tubes, replaced a set of tires, replaced a chain and a cassette. That bike has close to 3,000 miles on it now and I still ride it for commuting and road rides when I wanna do 20-40 mile rides.

Don’t believe the BS about “must be heavy duty”, “needs to be steel” I’m a few lbs less than where you sit and I tear through the local MTB trails and pump tracks on a Specialized Crave which is a aluminum hard tail frame and has a Fox 32 Air Suspension Fork. Anyone who knows bikes knows that is not a high end bike.

Heres the short:

Find what’s comfortable for you. Try them out, if you pop a tire or bust a spoke don’t be embarrassed. It’s a learning experience for you and maybe for the shop.

Talk to local shops, I went to a few before I found a shop that didn’t blink when I told them what I weighed and what I wanted to do.

Be be prepared to have a rear wheel built.