Completely New to biking. Don't really know where to start.
 

I'm surprised that there is so much information regarding biking. I'm completely new to this so I'm not exactly sure where to start.

I want to commute to work by bicycle and I think it is around 6 miles to work, mostly pavement and sidewalk. What kind of bike do I need? and which would be a good model/brand to look at first?

Also, I may end up using the bike to go around my community for exercise, etc, so it might be for recreational use as well. This will also be mainly roads, pavement, sidewalk.

I'm not sure how much to spend, so I'm thinking around $1000 is my budget. If you think I need to go a little higher, and it's worth it to spend a little bit more, I probably will.

Thanks so much!

Start by going to several bike shops in your area to talk about bikes then ride a few to get a feel. Your friends may be able to help you if they ride bikes too. A $1000 budget will get you quite far, for now.

I'm thinking $500 is more than enough for a bike the other $500 will go quickly when applied to fenders, lights, locks, apparel a small donation to my paypal account for saving you piles of money...

H

+1 Visit your local bike shops and go over your commute with them. They will be able to give you the best advice.

Do you have a secure place to store your bike at work?
How hilly is your commute?
Do you anticipate commuting solely by bike, in all weather, or do you have other options in foul weather?
Do you think you'd also like to get into other aspects of cycling (touring, road riding, mountain biking)?

Consider how much stuff you plan to take to work with you. If you go the rack and pannier route, make sure your bike will work with them.

I would concentrate more on accessories than on the bike itself. For the length of your commute, pretty much any old bike will do, as long as you stay from department store bikes, which usually have inferior components and lack skilled assembly.

One universal law of commuting is that what people think is the ideal bike when they start commuting is traded in after a year or two of riding. I am on my third bike since I started commuting, but still use the same lights, fenders, rain gear, and panniers that I bought on day one. These accessories make a big difference in the enjoyment of your commute, in my case more so than my bike.

Get something comfortable and in good repair, and treat yourself to a new bike after a winter of commuting when you really know what you want. You will have saved enough money in gas to make a big dent into the bike you really want.

My advice is not to sweat it too much.

Based on the wealth of information available on this forum and in other places it's easy to come to the conclusion that commuting by bike is a lot more complicated than it really is. Six miles is not so long that there's really a horrible choice as far as bikes are concerned. Most people who commute in all weather like to put fenders on their bikes, and some bikes are easier to get fenders for than others so that's a good question to ask the bike salesperson.

Go to a bike shop in the area you'll be riding in. There are forums for different regions so you might want to ask in there for a bike shop recommendation. If you post your location, you could ask here too. There are shops that cater more to commuters than others.

Test riding a few different bikes is a great idea. You'll have many choices with your budget.

Pick up a used bike and start riding it. A nasty old mountain bike will be fine for this purpose.

Have the intention of upgrading soon when you figure out what you like/need.

I would encourage you to read Bike Snob's book (http://www.amazon.com/Bike-Snob-Syst...3820536&sr=8-1). His book will not answer your question of what bike to get, but I think his attitude on cycling will be inspirational to you.

One message I took from the book is that you don't need any particular bike or equipment... you just need to start riding. And, ultimately, that would be my advice to you. You can start riding with any bike you get, new or used; mountain, road, hybrid, cyclocross, cruiser, etc. Ride in whatever conditions you feel comfortable, ride in your work clothes, whatever. Carry stuff in your old school backpack.

As you ride, think about what would make your ride or day quicker, easier, or more fun. Or if you're vain (like me) think about what you want to look like on your bike. Let these things guide your future purchases (clothing, accessories, replacement parts, or replacement/additional bikes).

If you ride in nice weather during the day, you can probably just get on your bike in your work clothes and pedal away. Maybe roll up a pant leg to keep it from getting chain crud on it.

If you start riding at dawn or dusk or when it is dark out, buy a good headlight and taillight. These will be critical for your safety (for cars to see you) when visibility is reduced.

Pretty much everything else is up to your personal preference. And pretty much the only way to figure out what is best for you is to spend some time on the bike.

Bikes are very much a personal preference thing. Any bike will work for a six mile commute, even your daughter's Barbie bike. The question is, which do you prefer, and we can't answer that. Nor can you until after you've been riding a while.

The suggestions to start cheap or used are good ones. This conserves cash for accessories and for your next bike. It's long been said, that the purpose of your first bike is to teach you what you want and need in your second bike. Viewed in this light, inexpensive and fairly generic is a good first stab at it.

Where most commuters agree is on accessories.

You'll probably need a good lock or two. You'll need a helmet. Even if you plan only to ride in daylight, lights are helpful to be seen, especially on dreary days. Even if you plan to ride only in fair weather, you'll likely get hit by the odd shower out of nowhere. Fenders are nice to have for that.

There's more variance among us on how we tote stuff, but you will need to tote stuff. Backpacks, messenger bags, trunk bags or panniers--it's your choice. We all have our own preferences and can make excellent arguments over why our own choice is superior.

Clothing is another issue. You'll probably need a rain jacket and geek straps for your pants at minimum. I sweat profusely, so the only sensible choice for me is separate cycling and work clothes. Most folks fall somewhere in the middle.

So you see, those accessories can add up pretty quickly. That's another good reason to stay on the inexpensive side to start.

Five years ago, I started on a $380 (new) bike path hybrid bike. I still have many of my original accessories, although these days I have four different road bikes--three of them pretty high end.

That's what works for me and my personal preferences. YMMV.

Don't overthink it. Start out with a basic, utilitarian bicycle. After you ride that for a few months to a year, you'll be in a much better position to decide what is really important to you.

I've been riding a $300 hybrid bike for 24000 miles and 6 years now. It's still my only bike. I change accessories based on season; lights and tires mainly.

Don't spend a ton of money on anything right now, but on the other hand, don't buy junk. I have more crappy lights than I care to think about, and I've spent more on junky lights than I eventually spent to get good ones. Same is true of some other accessories.

You can commute on anything, but you do want a bike to be, at minimum, safe. A used bike is great for this and springtime is a prime garage sale season. If you can find a bike that is in decent shape, great. The tires will probably be dead, but if you can pick up a good basic bike for $50, spend another $50 at a bike shop having them put new tires and tubes and brake pads on and giving it a basic once-over for you, you'll have a pretty good bike for cheap.

Watch out for wally-world bikes. The easiest way to tell if a bike is junk is to look at the brakes (the part of them that's at the wheel, not the grip levers). If they're made out of stamped sheet metal, the whole bike is probably junk. Similarly I'd personally stay away from a bike with steel rims instead of aluminum. Steel is a lousy surface for brakes to act against, and a bike with steel rims is probably really old. Old isn't necessarily bad, but an old bike at a garage sale has probably had spiders living in the gears for 20 years.

If you have mechanical ability and are willing to tinker look at used bikes there are tons of options there and some great deals to be had.

If you just want to buy a bike and get out riding and are willing to spend $1000 then go to the local bike shops (LBS) and look for a new bike. Keep in mind you are shopping for service not just a bike or the best deal. Try out lots of bikes and find something that you like. For $1000 you should be able to find something at pretty much any shop that will be nice for you. Its very possible you can find a bike you are plenty happy with for $500-$600 or even less, but it just depends on what you like. Just test ride bikes that the best way to figure out what you like and don't like for now. As others have said keep in mind what accessories you need the costs can add up really fast. Whatever you do get a bike get out and ride it. =)

Pretty secure, so not that worried.
Semi Hilly.
If it's rainy or windy or too dark, I'll probably just drive.
I would like to ride longer distances on weekends 15-20 miles on roads and some dirt paths.


Thanks everyone for giving their advice. Really appreciate it.

Ultimately, if you could recommend me some brands and models to take a look at, I will be very grateful.

If the bike is at a bike shop its good. Most bikes at cetain price points have simular components on them so one brand isn't exactly better than another. I guess my point is don't worry about brands. You need to go and ride some various bikes and report back what you liked and we can help more. Anything else is just swaying you to a direction before you know what you may like. Its been said before bikes are personal preferences and if you ride enough those preferences may change. Don't worry about that though just because you buy a bike know dosn't mean you are locked in to that bike. Have fun test riding. If you come back udderly confused and overwhelmed thats ok too. We will help you out. =)

I wouldn't spend more than $200 on a bike to start out with. As you grow as a cyclist you will have a better idea of what you want and need from a bike. Craiglslist is filled with $700 bikes that have barely been ridden, because the owner was sold the wrong size or wrong bike for their purposes. If you have a friend who is knowledgelable about bikes, they can help you buy a used one on craigslist. If you don't, study an internet guide like this-
http://www.mnn.com/green-tech/transp...t-used-bicycle

Then, once you've been riding a while and have a better idea of what you want, you can sell your used bike on craigslist for what you paid for it.

Don't buy a bike from a store like target or walmart, these bikes are poorly assembled and dangerous.
Buy a respected brand like Trek or Specialized. A hybrid or mountain bike with no suspension and slick tires would be a good starting point.

If you get a new bike, rei.com's closeout section has good deals. If you go to an REI store they can help size you, and you can go home and order it online. (I'm not sure if an rei store can order the outlet stuff directly for you. Maybe?) If you have it shipped to the store, I think they will assemble it for you and shipping will be free. They have a terrific return policy if the bike doesn't work out.
Something like this- http://www.rei.com/product/813383/ma...-2010-closeout

Other quality brands with inexpensive models in their lineup include Raleigh, Gary Fisher, Jamis, KHS, Fuji, Redline, Marin, Novara, GT, Giant, and Kona.

You want to avoid Pacific, newer Schwinns, and Mongoose.

Well you start on the bike, and very soon afterwards hitting the ground. After a while you can eliminate the ground part.

GT Tachyon 3.0 2010 comfort bike was mine, people generally seem to agree it's a good bike here, it's a hybrid commuter sort. However, I got mine for $450 on good clearance; the good deals on it are fading out, and you can find some nicer bikes for the $600 normal street price. Performance and Nashbar still have it for $450; BikesDirect has it for $400 but with an aluminum fork (the Performance one is carbon), which is probably not important.

There are a LOT of good deals in early spring, when the weather's still cold, when people are buying bikes, and the shops are full of last year's models and want to get rid of them. You're late, but it's not the end of the world.

You'll eventually want a saddle upgrade, whatever you get, because usually the stock saddle sucks. Read Sheldon Brown's page on saddles and leather saddles; decide if a leather saddle is right for you; if not, go hunting for non-leather saddles, you'll find some good ones. Ride your bike a while before deciding you hate the saddle; adjust the saddle properly too.

You can get in for less than $1000; you can't get through for less than $1000. Find a friend with clipless pedals and a similar shoe size and give 'em a try, you'll probably like 'em (I love mine, way better than platforms). You'll want a CamelBak or such to carry more water; a small one is around $40, some nicer ones are around $100 (I got the MULE NV for $103 shipped; I carry tools in it, patches, a pair of pants...). Depending on weather, you'll want clothes: serious base layers like Under Armour HeatGear or Zensah compression shirts and shorts, wind/rain jackets if the wind and/or rain is giving you issues, the like.

So yeah, you should be able to get in pretty cheap. A lot of the expenses you'll throw will be transferable if you get a new bike--seat, seatpost suspensions (if you buy these), clothes, pedals, etc. Keep the originals for parts you upgrade, because if you buy a new bike you can probably yank them and throw them on that one, sell your old bike with OEM equipment back on.

Of course, to a point, buy a nicer bike, upgrade less stuff. Mine doesn't need new gears, deraileurs, crank, fork, brakes, etc etc etc, all good parts; I would have upgraded the seat on anything, gone to clipless pedals on anything, and had to add lights and a rack and such--none of that is standard on anything. But you still do get nicer equipment to start with (maybe nicer gears or derailers, maybe nicer wheels or a better frame, the bike is lighter, better bearings..) as you go up into better bikes. I'm not riding a "top-of-the-line" bike either, but I can stick to "Customization" because my parts are pretty decent.

Definitely go to bike shops. Even if you see the bike you want online for cheap, go to bike shops, test ride, get sized, etc. These things are important.

get yourself one of these:
http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/...01&scname=Road

Get a named brand bike (Specialized, Giant, Trek, Cannondale, etc.) that fits and you enjoy riding. It doesn't have to be new or spec'd with fancy equipment. Don't worry to much about type either (road, mountain, hybrid, etc.). Just get something that you think you will ride and fits.

After you get a some miles under your belt will you realize if a different type of bike will work better for the riding you do.

Bike shopping can be a lot of fun. Don't rush it. Try test-riding lots of different bikes, including those you can't imagine yourself actually buying. You'll learn a lot, and discover your own personal preferences wrt to body position, bike handling, and other features. Focus on name brand bikes at bike shops for the best quality and service (including proper fitting).

I just walked into the LBS, said I was going to be commuting and didn't know what I really wanted. He put me into a $300 hybrid that fit me well (he didn't fit me, he just looked at me and said 'you need a 19" frame' and was right.

So I spent probably 5 minutes shopping, and 24,000 miles later I'm still happy with the bike.

A $300 bike will NOT last you 24,000 miles without maintenance. I've replaced the front wheel once and the rear twice (broke an axle once), the crank once and the bottom bracket once, plus several sets of tires and brake pads, not to mention adding fenders, replacing broken fenders twice, adding a rack, many different lights, etc.

Doesn't really matter. Anything (except an X-Mart bike) is going to be pretty reliable. What's important is how it fits you, how comfortable you feel on it, etc. All of this stuff depends mostly on you, and very little on the brand. :D