Real Newbie (16 years old) Have questions
 

I started exercising on one of those cheap bikes you can find in department stores. I wanted to buy a new bike but was faced with the argument that it actually makes cycling easy therefore is less efficent in exercise/losing weight. What do you guys think? Get a new bike? If so I have a $500 budget maybe 600 but I don't want to spend too much.

A bike that works better will allow you to ride faster and you will likely want to ride more. If you look around, you'll notice that the fitter cyclists tend to have the nicer bikes.

I'm more motivated to ride when I know that my bike is in top shape and performing well. You can still expend the same effort but you'll be able to ride farther, faster and more enjoyably.

I put out the same effort if I'm on a cheap bike or a nice bike. If I'm on the nice bike, I just go faster and can last longer. In terms of losing weight, it really shouldn't matter.

I don't think that is causal. That is good bikes do not necessarily encourage people to ride more. What I think happens is as people get more involved in cycling, they are willing to spend more on their bikes because the bike is more important to them. Of course, there are other people who have plenty of money and ride high priced bikes but are not particularly fit riders.

If you have $600 don't spend it all on a bike. You might just want to save your bucks and buy a really cool ride next year and two Kryptonite U-locks to go with that.

At 16 you may still have some growing to do...I rode a Montgomery Ward's Free Spirit boat anchor until I was out of high school, then spent $600 on a shiny new Nishiki race bike, two sizes bigger.

But the bike is less important than the fit anyway, so you might spend some time riding different bikes and see what works for you, and you definitely get the best "bang for your buck" shopping used - craig's list and so forth. On the one hand, its not really so much about the bike, but on the other hand there is a lot to learn about the hardware that you'll take for granted later.

the "bigger" girls are "friendlier"
don't be shy cuz you don't get what you don't ask for

When I was 12 I had a Schwinn Varsity [still have it]. After mowing several yards on week ends I was able to update the bike and eventually bought a custom frame from some young kid starting to make bike frames. The year was 1977 and the frame maker was Tom Ritchey. I still have that one too. I never lost my desire to ride and only a better bike allowed me to ride further and faster than my first Varsity boat anchor. Save your money and get something you will be proud about. Just remember, cars are just around the corner, and soon you will find that cars are faster then bikes.

Thanks Casey Kasem!

I was in a similar situation as you. I'm 15 and I am already a bit over 6'2" (my father is 6'6" and brother who is 20 is 6'7") and I wanted a nice road bike. I originally intended to go with a cheaper bike around $400 but quickly set my mind on getting a nice brand name bike and found the Trek 1.2 for ~$750. I got a magazine from the local bike shop and after reading it I found the 2.1 was indeed more expensive but had a very nice frame and components (I had done plenty of research previously) and decided I could splurge and get it. I did and I haven't regretted it yet (despite owning it a whole 2 days).

The point is, find something nice, and then go up a model. You won't be disappointed! Also, the bike shop was very helpful and fitted me and took my relatives height and my age into consideration and I waled away with a 60cm frame. It is a little bit big now, but I'll certainly grow into it and I should have no problems with it for years to come.

Just save up and get a real road bike. Ordering online is the best way to get turned off from biking. You save a few bucks but you have to assemble it ($100 worth of tools and a $100+ repair stand) and you need the experience and often the parts get a bit beat up when the bike comes 90% assembled.

Cannondale, Trek, Specialized, Giant, and many others make great bikes starting at about $700 for a nice bike and working up to over $10,000.