Almost unanimously, to my great surprise, the seasoned bikers told people to avoid suspensions in our price range.

This is completely correct. Suspension engineering is complex and expensive - and utterly senseless for bikes with narrow tyres (unless you have a super expensive set up like on $3000 Moultons.) It's a Marketing Victim thing to sell bikes to the clueless. Simply buy a decent bike that can take 40mm or wider tyres - good ones are actually faster than 25mm tyres (rolling resistance is a complex subject and not intuitive) and the suspension works a lot better than a toy suspension fork.

In your shoes I'd shop for a decent used bike with an alu fork and steel frame. A 90s all-rigid mountain bike with slicks - say a Kona Lava Dome or GT Zaskar - can be a good buy. The Konas and GTs and Specializeds for this period last forever and have excellent all round handling, which is why they're favourite messenger bikes.

Thanks for the endorsement!

That's very reasonable of you - but I can't help wondering what width and pressure tyre on the non-suspended bike you were comparing it to. The point about cheap suspension is that it can't function as well as correctly used tyre, not an incorrectly used one.

Thanks for the endorsement!

Cheers, mate.

2kg for a fork does sound like a lot. Good to hear that you were pleased with the outcome of discarding it. I believe that the Escape 3 has an alum. frame but a steel fork, so there's that. Strangely, they swap the steel fork for alum. on the mid-grade models, before switching to composite on the upper tier.

It's possible that I'll want to do more off-roading later on, but right now I'm more concerned with getting back in shape on the asphalt. If I decide to off-road in years to come, I think I'd be well justified to switch to a different bike. Maybe I can trade up to a cyclocross.


Thanks for corroborating. But, I've never even heard of 40mm tires. During my information collection stage here, I've been gathering that even 3.5s are very wide. I would not be surprised at all if 40mm would not fit in the Escape 3's fork, and I'm don't feel assured that I need or want anything that big. In fact, I was considering going with 700x27s for road efficiency if I end up unhappy with the 700x32s that come stock.

I suspect I'd need a lot of hand-holding for buying a used bike, especially an older one. I can't differentiate between different components at all, and I won't be able to make a good call on how much care went in to the bike over the years, either.

If they are, that's an indication of the very bad marketing-led design in this sector. (Or of the cluelessness of people who use this subforum.) Drophandle Audax and Rando bikes - which will be ridden much harder than most hybrids - are moving towards being able to run 40mm tyres now, and a lot of cross racing bikes have forever. The reason is that wider tyres have lower rolling resistance, so they make for a faster bike unless you're moving VERY fast, at which point aerodynamics push you to a narrow tyre. Certainly the engineering-led boutique companies that make super-hybrids, like Thorn and Cotic, produce bikes that can take 60mm tyres. (60mm Big Apples are super fast: In praise of riding low pressure tyres fast)

Bike companies treat the hybrid market very cynically: they know that the customers don't know much about the engineering of the bikes and sell them completely senseless designs that look like TDF racers with flat bars. Which is sort of like a submarine with sails, but it appeals to the customer's fear of dropbars and his desire to look sporty.

There's a reasonable guide to tyre width physics here:

Bicycle Quarterly: Performance of Tires | Off The Beaten Path

(Heine was awarded a NASA fellowship btw: the guy knows his engineering.)

Otoh, the manufacturing technology used in modern hybrids is excellent - they have very efficient transmissions and great brakes, and reasonably priced alu frames are often of excellent quality. It's just a shame that they're often compromised by marketing - weirder looking bikes with 26" wheels, fatter slick tyres and the sort of bars you see on 50s club racers would be faster on roads and off, a bit safer, and more comfortable.

When you've got a sec, could you link a product or two at one or two online bike part stores so I can get an idea what you're referring to?

I recently purchased a Jamis Coda Sport and I'm very happy with it. The dealer had Jamis and Giant but I chose the Jamis because it just felt more lively to me. I may not have bought it if I had to purchase it online as I like to support local businesses and I appreciate my lbs being to help me if things go wrong.

Many hybrid bikes come with 42 or even 45 mm tires. More air volume gives you smoother and more comfortable ride, but speed suffer on a smooth surfaces, and it's adding weight. I changed my original 45 mm tires to 28 mm, added suspension post (Thudbuster), and it works perfect for my needs.
You said you want to get in shape...my advice is to get the lightest bike you can get, that fits your needs.

I'd REALLY like to try a Coda Sport, but that seems like it isn't going to happen. The ONLY Jamis dealers in Ontario, apparently, are SportCheks, a rather bland and generic sports store that we have in our malls and such. As you can imagine from a general store, their selection isn't great and the service is not on a professional level. The kids seem to know the right words to say, but snap under a little pressure. The only Jamis I was able to see at a SportChek that I was remotely happy with was a Trail X650, but I don't think it's the right bike for me. They also lacked different frame sizes to try, and the kid couldn't or wouldn't check availability for ordering more.

Although I have nothing to compare it to, the Giant Roam and Giant Escape have both been very good weights for me. Compared to old deptstore bikes I used to own in days of olde, they were really great. I think the Escape weighs in at high 20s or maybe 31 tops, so I guess that's alright.

I have a Crosstrail with disc brakes and a Sountour Nexi suspension fork. So far, I have had no problem with it. The bike can take the poundings that the broken pavement, potholes, and mottled bike lanes in my area are always dishing out. I would like to get a road bike next year, for the nicer and smoother areas that I would have to drive to. But I am not going to subject a delicate bike with a stiff frame to the same punishment that my Crosstrail will happily take in stride on its daily work load.

I was running Michelin City tires in 26x1.85 @50-55psi. I would put the comfort of that bike between the escape and others like it and the roam 1 I am riding now.

Somebody mentioned good discounts this time of year. They are correct. I just today bought a Giant Roam2 that was about 21% off of MSRP so you might find a Roam 1 or similar model for around $400 US if you ask around at your LBS. BTW, so far I'm loving the Roam2.

Keith

2015 models?

2014 model year

In the US you will find a Roam 0, 2 or 3 for 2014 models. They didn't make a Roam 1 in 2014.

I totally misspoke, I meant a Roam 3 for $400...I WISH you could get a 1 or 0 for that price... LOL

you and me both.

If you've read up my other posts, you'll know a bit of the woes of buying local in Southeastern Ontario. There's only two shops in my city (of 160,000 people) that are of worth any note, and one deals in Giants and the other deals in very expensive Norco bikes.

Nearby cities are no better, unfortunately. Maybe Toronto, but I'm not driving 3 hrs + traffic to get a bike. Ottawa seems to have jack ****.

Since there's so little selection, and EVERY 2014 model is sold out already, there are no deals to be had, and my buying power is zero. Most stores outright laughed at the suggestion of discounts.

How far are you from Upstate NY?

About 50 mins to the border, but add another 50 mins to any sort of civilization that doesn't involve cow-tipping.

I checked for Giant dealerships, since I already know that I'm happy with the Escape, and didn't really find anything nearby. I think Pulaski has one, but that's getting to the outer reaches of where I'm willing to travel, and I doubt it'd be much of a shop - Pulaski is tiny.

https://goo.gl/maps/HlCEm

Ok - you are over on the Kingston side? I was going to see if you could visit Buffalo or Rochester. Both have decent shops.

That's correct, and they're both quite a hike, as you can see. Toronto is much more accessible (in fact, I'd probably want to go through Toronto to reach those American cities), but even that's 2.5/3 hrs away with absolutely nasty commuter traffic.

Maybe someone could recommend a fitting bike from bikesdirect that the OP could order?

Here, and elsewhere, people have been mostly telling me to avoid the online dealerships because I'll spend my savings on paying a local shop to assist with assembly, and there'll be lost savings in package deal with accessories, and I won't get the free year of service.

How about the 'cuse as in Syracuse? You could "showroom" out your way or in TO and buy from a US shop online, pickup when it is convenient. Bikes cannot be shipped due to manufacturers rules but many major shops allow online purchases, in-store p/u.