A fixed gear for someone who doesn’t have the knowledge to choose a bike for himself? That is the dumbest idea ever.[/quote]
fixed gear is the simplest form of bike. no shifting, no maintenance. if he uses foot retention and 2 brakes, I don’t see where there any problems.
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There’s no reason for a fixie for a beginner in his situation. And no reason for brakes on one either, regardless of what hipsters think.
I would agree with you otherwise and say SS would be good, but he does hope to get into MBing so he does need to learn to shift now.
You might want to consider getting a 29er. A 29 has the same diameter wheel as a road bike (700c) and can be fitted with road tires if you really want. At the same time the larger diameter rolls over things much more smoothly than a 26in wheel does, and it has the larger circumference like a road bike. At the same time, its a full on mountain bike so its not going to be fragile like a road bike will be. You won’t have to worry about nearly as many flats due to poor road conditions. It might cost a few bucks more to begin with; however, once you ride one I highly doubt you’ll ever want to ride anything else. There’s a number of companies who make them, you should be able to find an '09 on sale.
For instance a Raleigh Mojave 29er if you can find one should be about 750 right now, maybe even cheaper.
Also as far as lights look into the Blackburn Fleas - they weigh practically nothing and are rechargable using the usb port on your pc - and theyre super bright
A cherrybomb is a great rear light as well
For a main commuter I would check out http://bikesdirect.com/
That’s where I plan on getting my bike for college from, not that it matters but right now I have a,
2009 Cervelo P3C Full Dura-Ace
2009 Cervelo S1 Full Ultegra
I would just get a single speed for reliability and ease of maintenance, you also don’t have to maintain alignment of deraileurs which can add up eventually if you’re on a budget.
If you go for a drivetrain I would recommend Shimano 105 or SRAM Force since those are the two main workhourses of there companys
As far as Mountain Bikes I would go with XT components.
Also look into chain replacements once a year (1000-3000miles) since chains “stretch” and a bad chain causes uncessary wear to the chainrings and cassette.
Any bike will do. If you go single speed get a flip flop hub. Puncture resistant tires are a must for newbie commuters. Once you get better at changing flats that won’t matter quite as much. Many of my teammates and I train/race with continental 4000s and hardly ever get flats.
Do you drink PBR and wear ridiculous non perscription glasses have tattos of jack from nightmare before christmas and a handlebar mustache sharpied on your finger?
Just playin dude, fixed gear aint so bad, matter of fact…
My friends have specialized, cannondale, and treks. I have a gary fisher tassajara. They are all nice bikes. The reality is it comes down to what fits you best. I would recommend you find a couple bike shops and go ride some different bikes. Most shops will let you run then around the lot. I thought I knew what I wanted and then after I rode several different bikes I found one that just fit and felt right. By the way it wasnt what I thought I was gong to buy. For no further than you are going to ride I would think a MTB would be fine. Then again i dont ride rode bikes. I would also say a good bike shop is worth paying a little extra for. My friend with the cannondale had a lot of problems at first and they were all because of a bad shop.
I would echo the bikes direct thing. Essentially you are getting a bike that is a year or two old that has never been ridden. They are good bikes for a good price. A straight up commuter or something comfortable would probably be good because it isn’t going to be exceedingly uncomfortable or scary, both of which a true road bike can be for a new rider in traffic, until you get used to riding every day.
The other good thing about a commuter over a mountain bike is that the gear ratios are set up for the road. If you’re riding pretty flat roads you’ll be spinning out (cranking the pedals wildly) with the ratios on a mountain bike.
The OP said he eventually wants a road bike and a MTB. Why by a hybrid that you are going to end up eventually replacing with two more bikes? He just needs to choose which style he wants first IMHO.
[quote]Miss Parker wrote:
He says he wouldn’t get the road bike, because of traveling on rough patches, road holes, etc., the bike would take a bit of a beating. He said he’d get the Rockhopper (which was his first “real” bike, incidentally) and put on low rolling resistance tires (“small knobbies”).
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Exactly what I was going to say. My primary form of transportation until I got out of college was a mountain bike.
A mountain bike will be much more flexible and for $650 you should be able to get a good, fairly lightweight one. Put some street friendly tires on it you’ll be fine. A mountain bike will be better able to handle gravel, potholes, bad sidewalks, dodging pedestrians, etc.[/quote]
I did exactly this with my Specialized HardRock Pro and love it… I ended up getting a second set of rims and keep the mountain tires on it for when I go riding on the weekend so its a quicker switch…
I have this, not as good as the Nightsun as close as I could find…
Last thing:
Gear is GREAT![/quote]
When I lived in Albaney Oregan people road their bikes everywhere, was crazy… I just wish I could afford a nice recumbant bike, those things rock… Ive been tempted to build one…
[quote]Miss Parker wrote:
I asked my husband, who is a competitive mountain biker who also trains on road bikes, for his opinion. We’re in Austin, btw, & he’s in Dallas quite a bit. Sooo…
He says he wouldn’t get the road bike, because of traveling on rough patches, road holes, etc., the bike would take a bit of a beating. He said he’d get the Rockhopper (which was his first “real” bike, incidentally) and put on low rolling resistance tires (“small knobbies”).
He also said never put anything but water in a camelbak, the added sugars will quickly turn rancid in the tubes, etc.[/quote]
I agree. Although I don’t commute on my mountain bike, I have slick tires on it and it is so much sturdier on the beat up roads around here. Having a shock on the front and straight bar along with disk brakes makes for a tough on road rig.
Well, I went through the thread again, had my friend look at it and we went to a few different bike shops and I rode around on some bikes.
-The Trek 1.1 wasn’t bad, but there was something about it that I couldn’t put my finger on, but I didn’t like it too much.
-The Rockhopper was cool, but it didn’t ‘speak’ to me. I figured it will be a few years before I start trail riding, so I decided against the Rockhopper.
-I also got on a Specialized Allez Double Steel. It was pretty sweet, but it was heavy.
I picked it up for $500. Riding it was a blast. It was smooth and it looks pretty dope (Except for the cup holder. I took that off). I’ll put up some pics later if y’all want.
It is a beautiful bike,and I like the 700c wheels, but I would be concerned about the single chainring for distances. Great for cruising but it will suck on a long hill.