terrapin44

I went to the LBS to ask about fixing up my old Cannondale Mountain Bike for riding in the snow and afer talking about options for a while he showed me a brand-new looking used Mongoose 29" mountain bike (no suspension, disk brakes) that he went over and adjusted everything. They were selling it for $200. I'd rather have my old Cannondale fixed up, but the Mongoose was, surprisingly, a great fit -- at least in the store. Besides, I could fix up th old Cannondale in other ways instead. Because the roads are covered with snow I couldn't test drive it. $200 isn't much of a discount over list for a used bike but just knowing they went over it and it is in perfect working order makes the price not a big issue.

What do people think, would the Mongoose be worth picking up and beating on during the winter months when it is snowing? Typically I would only use it for riding a couple miles each way to the supermarket. If I did get it, once spring comes around, I might chain it up outside at work with all of the student bikes to be used for "lunch commutes."

windhchaser

make sure it aint walmart moongoose

terrapin44

I'm pretty sure it did originally come from walmart -- which is/was my hesitation. The guy at the LBS did say that some of the components were the same as the low end bikes they sell (They mostly sell Trek, but I didn't think to ask him what components or what bikes he was comparing at the time). I'd love to get a brand new LBS bike to turn into a winter bike, but not enough to pay for one. The local craigslist market is horrible so not many used options.