Badgersfan222

What's up everyone, I'm an avid runner who at 37 has stared to have some hip issues and decided to get into biking to balance running. So my past bikes have just been Mongooses from Walmart.

With said, I've been reading posts the last few weeks about disc brakes (bad vs good of hydro vs mech), forks, wheel size etc. I visited our two LBS and one sells Giant and the other Specialized. Looking at the Giant Talon 3 or the Specilaized Rockhopper 29 or 29 Sport.

which one do you all recommend?

hig4s

I generally prefer Giant, but both are good bikes. Best thing is to demo ride them both and see which one feels best to you. None of those bikes have a very good fork, they are spring forks. If you end up riding more technical/rough trails you will probably end up wanting to upgrade to an air fork.

The Rockhopper comp 29 is the lowest level that comes with an air fork.

In Giant's line you need to move up to the Fathom 29 2 to get an air fork, and that is a Suntour Raidon, one of Suntour's better forks.

prj71

How much you want to spend?

As noted by the previous poster the forks on what you are looking at aren't that great. You would need to jump up to the Rockhopper Expert or Rockhopper Pro to get a decent suspension fork.


And if your OK buying without trying, Jenson is having a blow out bike sale right now.

grubetown

Those are all good entry level bikes. Being your first bike, I would buy local so that you can get it set up/fit/maintained appropriately. Don't worry too much about specs at that price. I assume you are in Wisconsin which has a great range of trails. I would also recommend, in addition to a helmet, a good pair of riding shorts. If you ass is comfortable, you will want to ride more. Good luck!