Hi,
Just erring back into cycling and need some buying help. 50 years old and in decent shape, lots of riding opportunity around both on pavement and trail.

I'm interested in a hybrid in spite of knowing there are some drawbacks to a 'all-in-one' solution and I have a nearly new but 15 year old Kona Caldera for the trails if I know that's where I'm heading in advance.

I've looked hard at the Specialized Crosstrail and really like the sport disc version....the sales guy has all but convinced me that wet brakes are the way to go! Have looked at Giant Roam and Raleigh Misceo lines as well....going to look at Jamis and the Trek DS 8.3 Gary Fisher this week sometime. Just found the Scott Aspect 940 this morning and for the price, it seems like an amazing deal.....like $100 cheaper or so than the crosstrail......thoughts about the 940 in relation to the others? I'm always keen to find a deal, I have to admit. The Scott info says its ok on pavement and I need it to be! Not much info on the web from users.

Thanks, John

If you hunt around the 50+ posts of the last week or so, you'll find one titled "That's why you buy the bike shop."

Read that.

Hello John, welcome to the 50+ asylum. All of the brands you mentioned are fairly well built bikes, I imagine you'll find that most of us will say to find the right LBS (Local Bike Shop) for you, one that will listen to your needs and concerns and not try and sell you the model they need to move. Test ride as many bikes as you can for as long a ride as the dealer will allow. Best of luck on the bike search, N+1 is always fun for all of us.

Bill

With a 15y.o. bike you might want to check out the C&V thread. That's not an old bike by their standards, but you could get some very good technical advice and support. And don't listen to everything your LBS says. They don't know you or your riding style and road preferences. (You need "wet" brakes? You plan to compete in cyclocross? Or commute along river beds? Chase tornadoes? Ride down Mont Ventoux every other week?) Just saying'.

Welcome to BF!

Hey, John. Welcome.
Some good advice so far. I tend to agree that the bike shop is the thing to look for. As Bill pointed out all of the models you're looking at are pretty solid. I will say, the disc brakes are much more powerful under a variety of conditions than most other brakes. You may not ever need that additional stopping power. Keep in mind that many who work in bike shops ride and ride hard. Their sense of what is needed may not be based on your actual needs. With that said, having disc brakes can't hurt. Oh, one other thing. A deal is not a deal if the bike doesn't fit you properly, is a mismatch for your needs, or isn't supported by the shop from which you purchased it. There are many threads on Bike Forums where folks regret going for price over other considerations. Good luck with you choice.

Another cheaper option, buy a set of slicks for the Kona. Ride that on the road for a while. It will get you back in traffic, and comfortable in traffic, on a familiar bike. You'll know where the shift and brake levers are, and how they work, so if you get into a spot of bother, you'll be better prepared. And if you suddenly realize that you hate riding a bike(if that's possible), you’re not out a lot of money.
Where do you ride?

Not a bad idea re the tire change....might consider that as I need to take it to a bike shop anyway for a tune. It's such a good bike.

What is 'N+1'?

My initial question is intended to narrow things down as there are so many bike shops around, I don't have a lot of time to find the right vibe in one of them; am trying to narrow it down to 3-4 bikes and go try them. To make matters more complicated, I hate buying the same thing everyone else has !

N+1 - The number of bikes you need, where N is the number of bikes you own. It's a common feature of ownership, especially in the C&V thread.

It can also be expressed as D-1 where D is the number of bike which will trigger a divorce.

Forgot to add.....I'm in the Cleveland area. Great metroparks and I want to ride the towpath trail.

Welcome aboard. I hope you find the bike you like. Any start is a good start but I can't really say anything about hybrid bikes. I don't see them on the road when I am road riding and I don't see them on the trails when I am mountain biking. So, unless they have a secret set of bike routes for hybrids only, I assume most of them stay safely in the garages of their owners.

Maybe that's different in more urban areas.

My wife and I have a 'my turn, your turn' system of who get a new bike. Helps avoid the D-1 issue.

The Caldera was not a bad bike- but as you said- just a bit heavy. But many of us have done century rides on similar bikes with just a change of tyres to slicks. They don't work as effectively on the road as a proper road bike but the MTB gearing does work well on the hills.

Others have mentioned it--First find your LBS. You will then buy a bike from one of the Marques they carry- so make of bike is immaterial at this stage. What is important though is to test ride as many bikes as you can. That will give you an indication of what you ought to be getting- Road- Hybrid-CX or that nice shiny one on display with a price tag that makes you wince.

Lots of clubs in this area. A simple Google search turns up many.

Oh, and welcome to the addiction/affliction!!!