Saddles are quite personal, and it sometimes takes a few to find the right one for you.

The bike shops treat you that way because you go in there not willing to spend any money. They're going to show you the door pretty fast. You have to know what you need to pay for a quality bicycle. You want quality too. The car comparison really doesn't work. However, it wouldn't be smart to buy a car that wasn't safe to ride. It wouildn't be smart to buy a new one that wasn't put together properly or would likely have big problems after just 100 miles and begin to need to replace parts on it. You'll end up spending a lot more on the car then it's worth.

Buy the quality bike and your bike shop will back it. If you only ride casually then you won't need to worry about much maintenance, just make sure you keep air in the tires.

The bike shop can't pull things out of your head and they can't sell you a bike for as cheap as Walmart. So if you go in not knowing anything and setting a price-point below what they sell for then there's nothing they can do for you. You can't get a bike there or at any other shop for that money. They're offering you good prices.

I would definitely shop around and find a good reputable bike shop though. You're going to need to spend the money if you want the bike, and it will be much better in the long run.

Before deciding whether you need another seat I would give it a week or two. It takes some time for your butt to adapt to any seat and most seats are uncomfortable at first.

If in a couple of weeks you are still having problems post about it and people can make some suggestions. Cushy gels and memory foams aren't necessarily the best for rides, especially if you are riding a fair number of miles.

Sounds like you made a good decision, my wife and I just started and we had similar budget constraints, we ended up spending $400 on each of our bikes, but then another several hundred on accessories and such. As far as the soreness it goes away after a few rides, I do suggest padded bike shorts, these are worth their weight ingold.

Jimbo

This really doesn't equate to what I ran into. Theres a big difference between what you are stating and my walking into a shop and an owner only pointing me to bikes in the 1k range stating I will hate the bike and hate riding unless I spend that kind of money. I understand the concept of "top-down selling" I guess you could call it, but in this case there was no moving down. It was that level of bikes or nothing. The shop I ended up at was much more laid back and willing to find a bike that would suit me at a decent price. As others had said and as I have found out, $400-$500 can buy a nice bike that does what I need it to do. While I was hopeful that I would have been able to get something sub $300, I never gave any of the LBS's the impression I wasn't willing to spend more.

For those that commented on the saddle, thanks for the feedback. I figured that it would be worthwhile giving it a good 2-4 weeks to settle in. I need to look into new shorts as well, as the ones I have only have a single, small back pocket with no zipper or other means to keep contents secure.

My wife and I went back to the local shop last night. She had rode our neighbors bike - one that was purchased from Target. I figured it would be a good comparison to see if she felt it was worthwhile to purchase something more robust. She said she was able to feel the difference immediately. While I was trying to get her to look at bikes that are more functional, she wanted something that looked "pretty" too. She settled on an Electra Townie. The owner of course didn't think it was as nice as the Trek's or Jamis that were available, but that it should suit her needs. Hopefully it will turn out to be a good choice.

Turn off the computer and walk into a real Bike Shop.



seeing things in front of you is very useful . take the bike on a test ride ,
discuss minor set up alterations..

parts swaps .. upgrades.. they don't bite...

This will be a classic case of buy cheap buy twice.

If you get a cheap bike, you may not enjoy the ride (especially if its 40+lb). It will then languish in the garage and never get used.

Spend a little more, enjoy riding, get the bike out more and it will end up costing you less overall / or you will get better value and enjoyment from your ride.

I was in the same boat as you.. I was not sure what i wanted and only had $500 max to spend but was looking in the $300-400 range... Look at Nashbar or bikesdirect... they have decent deals... if you are not a die hard then these probably will work for you... I bought the wrong bike right off the bat,,, i am trrading it tomorrow...the Hybrid is nice but i think i may end up with a road bike... will find out at 10 am tomorrow... If you want a nice hybrid for the money the Giant Cypress is $385.00... if you get any cheaper than that the key word may be "CHEAPER"... Again if you are not a die hard don't let people tell you you're a fool to get a $250.00 bike, you know what you are getting and after riding it a year or so you might want to upgrade to something better if you are serious about it... Don't worry about all the HIGH DOllar bull$hit....Get what you feel is right but also get the most that you can afford...I bought a $169.00 Schwinn Admiral for my wife at Wal-Mart because i knew she wouldn't get up every morning like me and do 10 miles before work...So $169 was justified and it's an OK bike, that is all i can say about it.... If i had all the money in the world i wouldn't give a flying rat's a$$....

Good luck and most important . ENJOY.

This is why I said it's important to find a good bike shop with a good reputation.

When I was looking to buy my bike I went to 2 stores that I found in the area. One of them it seemed like only one guy worked there and I believe he was the owner. I didn't think the prices were too great He was also showing me bikes in categories that I really wasn't looking in. He only had GT and Fuji mostly. Mostly it was the lack of help I was given that drove me away from there. The guy didn't seem too knowledgeable.

Next place seemed more knowledgeable. I was told that they'd give me a 2-year warranty which as a person who hadn't rode in a long time seemed like a good deal. The warranty was for basic things like seat adjustments though. Give me a break. About a month later, that shop was closed down. So much for that warranty. Good thing I didn't buy from them. They did have a nice Trek at a good price though.

I decided I needed a better bike shop before making a purchase. I found a shop nearby with great reviews. The shop has been there since 1912 and under the current owners for the past 25 years. This gave me confidence to buy from them.

When I came in I was helped by someone right away and they had a lot of people working there. They were stocked with tons of bikes. When I brought up the Cypress, I was told by the store owner that the bike was not the right choice for me. I listened to his friendly advice. He suggested a GT which was a good price and was a good bike. I thought he was trying to sell me something that he stood to profit more off of. Now that I have more experience, I believe he was only showing me a bike he thought I'd be happy with and for a price I was looking to spend.

They told me they could order any bike that I wanted and were really cool about the whole process. At first I was going to order a Giant Escape 2 which was a fair price for what I wanted to spend. I believe it was $420. The shop owner checked his computer and told me they had a Giant Escape 3 coming out for 2013 now and that he could order that. I was afraid the bike could be a bit cheaper in quality since I never heard of Escape 3. So I gave it some thought and about the next day (maybe same day), I went back to tell them I'd take the Escape 1 that they already had in stock (mainly so I wouldn't need to wait for the bike to arrive). They told me the bike was about $50 off since 2013 bikes were coming out and I was able to get the Escape 1 for $480 I believe it was. From checking around, I now realize what a great shop it really is.

It's all about finding a good bike shop.

^Sounds like you had an interesting experience as well.

I think what threw me off is that I found out the two shops I went to first have come under new ownership within the past 2 years. I should have paid closer attention to the dates on the reviews I found. One of the others I went to, however, had great recent reviews and was still pretty lousy.

The shop I inevitably bought from was great. No sales pressure, willing to let me bike around more than just the parking lot, multiple rides on multiple bikes, etc. My wife isn't the best at riding (not that I claim to be a pro by any means). They were incredibly patient with her when we went back.

Thanks for adding nothing useful or constructive to the conversation.

Thickly padded saddles are often less comfortable. Your weight settles on the saddle, pushing the padding against your soft tissues and restricting blood flow.

Since your body doesn't remember when it was last on a bicycle, it's expected your contact areas would be a bit tender after the first few rides. If the discomfort continues, then you might be in the market for a replacement saddle. It's a rare event when the stock saddle is a good match for the owner.