2007 Giant Cypress W. I have fun and I get exercise while I'm doing it. That's all that counts.

+1 to this comment:

Well hybrids are compromises. They are not good off road and they are not good road bikes.


While I do own two Giant Cypresses (one for me, one for my wife), it is the last bike I choose to ride by myself. It does not have the performance on the road that my road bike has, and it doesn't have the performance off road that my mountain bike has. I think hybrids exist in no mans land, a compromise bike, not really good at anything.

I really like the brifters on my road bike, and I like the trigger shifters on my mountain bike. I do not like the twist grip shifters on the hybrid.

All of that said, ride whatever you have, get exercise, and enjoy. Whether it is a cruiser, hybrid, mountain bike, whatever, it really does not matter.

My wife finds the hybrid less threatening than a road bike with drop bars and brifters. So it fits her well.

The only thing bad about a hybrid, is some hybrid owners think it is the ultimate bike because road bikes are either too confusing or intimidating and mountain bikes are too expensive. Most hybrid owners are looking for more a toy than an exercise machine and like to use the bike for bumming around the city/burbs.

They are just a part of a biking fad that has peaked and is declining slowly as people get to understand cycling better.
As long as you don't get a wally world bike, you'll be fine. Just test ride and test ride some more so you really know what you're getting.

There is a place for Hybrids- And I don't mean in a skip. They will do a bit of trail work and they will work better than mountain bikes on the road. On top of that- there are the higher quality hybrids that are road bikes with straight bars. For a lot of town work- I.E riding or commuting in cities- These straight bar road bikes are probably the best you can get for the use. And I did get annoyed last year on a 40 miler when I could not lose about 6 of the top end Marins- that were having their own race to see who could get in the way of the Tandem that was doing 35mph at the time.

Wow. What an old thread! Great to see so many of you were active in the forum last year.

My husband and I bought hybrids last year. Although I recently bought my first road bike, I use the hybrid for bopping around town. I've got panniers on it and the seat is comfortable, and I wouldn't be devastated if someone stole it because it would be relatively easy and inexpensive to replace.