birdmove

I recently found this forum and find a lot of good information here. I will soon be 59 years old and retired and moved to the Big Island of Hawaii just over a year ago. We bought a house about 12 miles south of Hilo. We inherited an inexpensive mountain bike from the sellers of the house. It is Chinese built and is made by "Next". It has front and rear suspension. I'm just riding in on the streets, but many roads where I live are gravel. For a cheap bike it seems to work pretty well. It's a 21 speed, but I mostly just leave the front on the lowest geared of the three gears and just shift the rears using all seven speeds there. It shifts well and the brakes work well and don't screech or anything.
Due to the oval cross section of the frame tubes I can't really mount a water bottle on the frame, so I have a bar mounted water bottle cage coming for the 7/8" bars. I ordered a helmet, multi tool kit, patch kit, mini pump for the bike. I haven't fixed a bicycle flat for a very long time, but I'm also a motorcyclist and have owned many dual sport motorcycles over the 51 years of riding them. I recently replaced both tires on a Kawasaki KLR650 dual sport on the garage floor using 3 tire irons, some glass cleaner (you need this for lube on the beads for a motorcycle tire), and talcum powder (for the tube to allow it to position itself inside the tire without leaving a twist). I've done a few tires and flat repirs on tubed motorcycle tires and never pinched a tube yet.
Anyway, I'll see how this bike does over time and miles, and if I stay with it and eventually want a better bike then I'll reevaluate at that time. Yea, it's a cheapie, but the price was right (free!). I'm riding it regularly to get my bike legs. I've worked out in a gym since I was 49 and do cardio and weights, and now bicycling. I'm planning a day ride from my house into Hilo and back (plus maybe tooling around Hilo for a while). That's a round trip of at least 25 miles. I'll wait to get my multi tool and patch kit first. I chose the SKS CT-Worx multi tool as it has good reviews and I have used SK tools before and found them pretty decent. Here's the tool https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...ls_o01_s00_i01
I found that riding gloves are a must because it has twist grip shifters and these and sweaty hands don't work well.
Anyway, I'm having fun riding again.

Jon near Keaau Hawaii,

Daspydyr 

Hey Jon-welcome aboard and congrats on the NEXT bike in Hawaii. Cool! I am 58 and been riding since getting both hips replace in 2008. It has been a great way to stay in shape and enjoy the outdoors. I think you can wear that thing out in the next year and plan on getting something a tad more substantial. The sport is a blast. I wouldn't go trying any MotoX jumps with the NEXT. But you can sure get your bike legs tuned up.

Check out some of the "Sticky" Threads. There is a ton of good info.

speedy25

I fit that rider description too.

Sell the Next bike to someone and get something that didnt come from a discount store. You will be AMAZED at how much better it does everything.

Dont use water based anything for a tire lube. It corrodes the rim. I use spray on vegetable oil. Doesnt harm either tire of rim. Subsequent changes, the tires slide off instead of fighting them.

Glad you are enjoying some pedaling.

-SP

kenhill3

Wetting agents or oils are unecessary for mounting/dismounting mtb tires.

Daspydyr, didn't know you were such a hipster. Brakeless fixie next?

corvuscorvax

Riding gloves are also a must for mountain biking because most people tend to put their hands out in front of them when they fall. After the first time you spend an afternoon picking gravel out of your palms with a pair of tweezers, you'll make sure you wear gloves from then on.

Enjoy your riding!

dminor 

No, no, no! This has to take the "Bizarre Advice of the Week Award" - - and there have been some doozies this week

Gloves are for riding. Putting your hands out in front of you in a mountain bike fall is a surefire prescription for a broken collarbone.

corvuscorvax

I didn't say putting your hands out in front of you is a good idea. I said most people tend to do it. Big difference.

birdmove

I started riding motorcycles off road 51 years ago and pretty much wiped out in every describable way. Raced "scrambles" on a track in high school. Enjoyed riding some beautiful off road areas on dual sport motorcycles. I can see a big attraction to riding a mountain bike in areas like these.

dminor 

^^ You got started about the same time I did. Raced my first indoor short track when I was 12. Raced short track, flat track, scrambles, desert hare-and-hound then motocross too. I miss those days; but downhill racing on an MTB is the next-best thing .

speedy25

....or more commonly broken wrists. Try to remember as you unexpectedly dismount, that you CANNOT control the fall, so dont try and cushion it with outstretched body parts.

-SP

Daspydyr 

I am all about the cool and hip. I saw a couple of those HIP Brakeless Fixies at Bootleg this morning. I was climbing, they were trying to come down the trail. The fear in their eyes was hilarious. Who came up with that idea?

kenhill3

^^Yeah, and you had the right of way.