Bicycle advice

I used to ride quite a bit. Mountain bikes mainly. I'm wanting to get back into it, but haven't been in a bike shop in years.

I'm thinking I'll use it for some light commuting. Maybe over to the grocery store. Mainly streets, but I'd like some flexibility for off-road use.

So before I turn on the Batlight for Idaho, anybody bought a bike recently?

 

Inky, having worked at a bike shop and still being pretty attentive to the industry, you can PM me any time. But please don't buy a Huffy if you're going to ride quite a bit (sorry, Buck!).

I'll add that there are bikes specifically geared for commuting, and they vary quite a bit in price range. There's a happy middle ground between skinny-tired speed freak bikes and knobby-tired mountain goats; that's probably what you'd want to look at.
There, still, there are a lot of options in price, frame material, etc. For instance, if you don't want a lot of fuss, a singlespeed or three-speed could be the thing. If you want to go to some longer rides on occasion, and throw in hills, a more extensive gear set might be needed.
But here's a definite piece of advice: find a good, local bike shop, because that will be your best asset.

 

That is true. For 10 bucks, I'd buy a Huffy just to ghost ride it into a brick wall.

 

Thanks Martin. I'm going to hit a couple local shops on Monday to see what they've got on the used racks.

I may just stick with my old Stumpjumper hardtail. Thing is ancient and weighs a ton. But it's serviceable, I guess.

 

I bought a Fuji a few years back. It's mainly for road use, but I got it used ($600) and in still very good condition. Still have it and still love it. I'm thinking about buying one of the new Treks soon, though.

 

Still have and use an older Cannondale. No suspension, but very light, dependable and well worth the reasonable price.

 

I own two Trek's. I love them both.