Hello all,

I am new to the biking world and live in Portland, OR, so I need to get with the picture and get a bike, haha.

So I am commuting roughly 10 miles about 3 times a week. There are moderate up and down hills.

I am thinking about purchasing a road bike or a single gear bike. I am looking at spending no more that $500.00. I know that is not too much money to spend on a bike (if I am wrong please let me know). I just want to know what bike to get and where the best place for getting on is (local bike shop, online, craigslist, etc.)

www.bikesdirect.com

For a 10 mile commute you may want to consider a geared bike for any hills and etc. that make having gears a nice luxery. However if you think you can work with the fixed gear then I would suggest a Kilo TT or Kilo stripper. Great bike for the price (see the almost 400 page thread of TT pics), I haven't ridden any other BD.com bikes so I can't really give you anymore guidance.

Clearly, this is what you want. A singlespeed Surly Pugsley - nicest bike money can buy.

Hmm, a singlespeed with an internally-geared hub?

That's not the point of the whole picture... dude!

If it's 10 miles one way, that is a reasonably long commute, likely to take an hour each way, including loading/unloading, locking/unlocking etc. The most appropriate bikes would be a road bike variant like a cyclocross or tour bike, or a rigid (no suspension) mountain bike with street tires, or a bike specifically designed to be a commuter. You should avoid comfort bikes, beach cruisers, bikes with suspension, and fat knobby tires, as they will slow you down. If an otherwise suitable bike has fat or knobby tires it should be possible to replace them with thinner or slicker ones. The bike should have eyelets to mount fenders and a rear rack. You can commute with a back pack but it makes your back sweaty, and putting your stuff in a pannier or otherwise attached to the rear rack is preferrable.

See if you can find something suitable used at a bike store. You should be able to get a good starter bike for $200-$300 and then you can upgrade in a year with all the money you saved.