Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler More Non-aidio advice question -- bikes.

I'm not a biker. I do however like my Trek 4900. It's aluminum, light and gets me where I want to go. I did put some smaller tires on it (1.75" wide) and got rid of those stupid tiny valve stem tubes.... I like the front shocks. I hate rear suspensions when powering up hills. I hate the seat, but I have yet to find one that doesn't make my ass and crotch ache for days. I think it was about $500 new.

A buddy of mine has a $4000 mountain bike. I hate it.

I think I just like my KX 250 too much to get into peddle bikes.

Some rear suspensions(on high end Mtn bikes) are quite sophisticated(and $$). The biggest problem with rear suspensions when climbing is the "bobbing" effect when hard pedalling uphill, this can cause the rear wheel to lose contact with the ground and make more work for the rider.

There are bikes for everything these days, even within the Mountain bike range there are trail, cross country, downhill, freestyle...ect...ect...

I've tried a couple of seats on my Coda. The one it came with was uncomfortable so I swapped it out after getting my sit bones measured. I can't remember who makes the device, but they had one at a bike shop I went in. Basically, it is a padded(gel?) cushion that you sit on, and it has a digital readout on it that tells you the spacing of your sit bones. You can then determine the size of bicycle seat you would find most comfortable. Finding a decent seat is very important esp. if you do a lot of longer distance riding. A badly fit or designed seat can restrict blood flow to your doodad and cause some serious problems and also note that handgrips(on the bike, not on your doodad) should also be comfortable too. If your hands feel numb after riding your bike or have pain in your arms, you are likely pinching your ulnar nerve. Padded gloves, handlebars or some decent comfort grips can help alleviate the problem.

Update:
Still was in work clothes so no driving but stopped in to a few places on the way home.

Revisited the mall sports store just to see if I missed any options that might make me consider enduring the young idiot whose total bike knowledge gets summed up in "But this one here is a real sweet ride..." Couldn't hack it. Service is and would continue to be crappy. Thankfully, no models caught my eye anyways.

Revisited the only two reputable bike shops on the island. Honestly, it comes down to these options and only these unless I want to spend another $140 dollars to drive to Halifax for a day.

Shop #1
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- Various new "Rocky Mountains" that don't fit my desired price range as a casual biker. They do "call" to me though, admittedly mostly for aesthetic reasons. The used RM's are plentiful but they are all models too far on the MTB side of the fence. Defeats my purpose in changing styles.

- Various new "Specialized" that also don't fit my budget. There is one heavily used one that fits the bill nicely but at $600 for a $700 dollar when new unit that shows signs of a pretty hard rental life, I'm just not sure. The shop does include a limited "new bike" warranty that is basically 1 year on components and five on the frame. I forget the exact model but it is one I test rode previously and it suited me nicely. Fast, felt good, no suspension but rode nicely. It didn't shift as smooth as the Rocky Mountain I drove that day but I think it just needed a tuning. Prolly should have checked the cogs for ware.

Other brands but not in in a sports style hybrid.


Shop #2
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- Various new "Giant" bikes of which the "Cypress" is the most suitably featured in my price range. Can't say more than I did in previous posts as I have yet to ride it. The seat would definitely have to go though unless they make a helmet in the shape of a 'cranky old man hat.'

- Various new "Opus" bikes of which the "Mondano" is the most suitably featured in my price range. Again, I can't say more than I did in previous posts as I have yet to ride it. They have a "Adagio" coming back on a return that will warrant a look Saturday.

Other brands as well, but not in in a sports style hybrid. They also sell off their rental stocks. $200 off but they never offer them until the end of the season and they admit they are used pretty hard.

So, you see, these really are my only choices. I live in a beautiful but very tiny province surrounded by water. Many 'less typical' purchases involve limited choices or travel as a fact of life here. Anything else requires 6-8 hours of windshield time and a loss from my budget big enough to destroy all hope for a decent bike.

So, Saturday, if I'm not too busy, as I am 'on call' for my work, I will spend some time test driving them all to see what fits me best and asking some much better questions now that you have all helped educate me. I'm positive but if I'm still not convinced, I'll wait.

Worst case scenario, staying put and peddling my MTB like mad to keep up with my wife is going to accelerate any fitness gains.

Thanks all!!

Ah, mountain bikes!! Before my accident (which was on a bike, trials riding) I was a very avid mountain biker, just starting to look into going competitive. Back in the day I had a front suspension Kona AA, which cost me $1500, and was a sweet bike.

Giant, Trek, Specialized, and Norco are all great bikes, but I would also look for Rocky Mountain, as they have some of the nicest frames in the business.

The only other suggestion I can give, is to avoid riding any bike off a 3 foot platform, it was the last time I ever did .

All suspension, front or back, can be locked out if need be.

I had my eye on the ETSX 70 a couple of years ago. Awesome suspension configuration on the back end, apparently designed with much Formula 1 suspension influence with the multi-link swing arm. Alas, I bought myself the performance hybrid which better suited my riding....but....if I end up moving to BC, the RM goes back on the wishlist! (I don't think they make the ETSX anymore though).

I'm not a big downhiller. I do have a full suspension frame that I haven't built yet. It's a used Ibis Szazbo from back in the day. Bright yellow in great condition. Probably more of a XC ride for me.

I was in Deer Valley, UT last year and road the trails for 5 days. I did XC but tried a few of the downhill near the lifts. Yeah, that's not for me. I don't like even a 1' drop.

Going to Whistler to ride in August. Fortunately, we leave the day before Crankwerx starts so we don't have to deal w/ the massive crowds of grommets.

I just came back from a couple of laps around the neighbourhood here....and uhhh...no, that wasn't me riding by the digital speed sign set up by the construction crew near Hwy 10 to see how high I could make it go.

Update: Took it home Saturday!!!! Again, long, so no insult if your not interested but hey, I'm exited.

I was on call but only had to deal with one issues while I took the afternoon zooming around on test rides. I went back to shop A again. Along with the expensive used options, They had just gotten in a beautiful new Rocky Mountain that was more in the sport side vs. the mountain or comfort side of hybrids. They took me out back to see it being assembled for the showroom. Although I never stuck around to ride it, it was probably the nicest looking and best equipped bike, (in my desired class,) anywhere around here but it was way, wayyyy out of my price range. I almost took them up on an offer to try it out for a couple of days, no obligation, but I resisted knowing I'd probably never give it up. I took the other used "Specialized" out again. Still liked it, but they were pretty firm on their pricing and it was going to be more than a brand new Opus or Giant at the other store.

I left Shop A, sadly, as it had the nicest bikes and TOP NOTCH, friendly service. I'll be back here if this ever becomes more than a casual hobby.

Went back to shop B.
I got off to a bad start when I took the Giant Cypress out the door, put my foot on the peddle to swing aboard and almost fell to the ground when the peddle fell off. I suspect it had never been tightened in at all during assembly. They were very concerned an apologetic and hey, stuff happens, so I dismissed it for a laugh as these guys normally have a very solid rep.

Took out the Opus while they reattached the peddle and double checked the rest of the Giant. I had it on the streets, I purposefully went into some light potholes and I did a quick section of the nearby gravel bike and walking trail. Very nice bike. Shifted as smooth as the Specialized in the other shop. Gearing felt about right for me. Posture felt good after playing with the seat height and horizontal position. (They didn't even blink when I asked if I could borrow a multi-tool to take along for the ride.) I wasn't used to front suspension but I must say that I did like it. (ya I'm getting old.)

Before the ride, I was concerned over bob from the seat post suspension but it was very stiff, it was only noticeable when I purposefully bounced off a curb. There is no way I'll be peddling hard enough anymore these days to have it be a problem.

Overall, a very nice looking and great riding bike. I could find no fault except that it was a bit more expensive than the Giant.

Went beck and took the Giant out over the same route. I almost turned back 1/4 of the way in. As soon as I sat on it, I knew it was not the bike for me, just purely from it's feel. The seat was big, wide and plushy. Some may find it more comfortable but it felt like on a long ride, the plushy part extruding just a bit from my butt to the edge of my upper thigh would begin to become uncomfortable, pressing in where it shouldn't. The posture was also way to high. I could have tweaked it a bit but it was obviously designed for the comfort of being straight up and a providing a good view. Even the grips were over sized and shaped funny, wider and flatter vs. round. Probably more ergonomically correct than round but it felt like just my fingertips had a light hold and it was oddly disconcerting.

Ride wise, it was smooth, shifted nice but I felt like a senior citizen on a retro bike that should come equipped with a wicker basket. Finally, the jump from second lowest to lowest gear on the rear cog was not even. It was a much bigger change in ratio. The concept, I guess, is having one really low range for that last battle on a hill but I found the gap to be too much. First hill that I challenged each gear change got me a little lower and lower as it should, maintaining my comfortable rpm on my feet, until BOOM, my feet were spinning way too fast. OK, it might not have been that dramatic, but I still didn't like it.

So I returned to the store very sure of which one I liked better and started talking pricing. Lifetime Warranty on frame. Shop offers three years on components vs. manufactures one (no additional cost,) and three years of free tuneups. They took my old mountain bike on a trade. They were honest enough to tell me up front that I could get more for it in a private sale but I was happy with the offer and because I live outside of town, it's just worth it for me to be rid of it faster. Finally, I took advantage of their 20% off accessories when you buy a bike deal to get myself a new helmet. Perhaps I should have taken more advantage but there just wasn't much else I needed. My old helmet was, well old. Early generation of the newer shaped helmet so the foam was pretty thick and I looked like The Great Gazoo compared to modern helmets.

I got home a very happy consumer. Now I just have to get through this week of being on call so I can take it for a real spin. In the mean time, I'm circling around close to home and continueing strength exercises on my bad knee so it doesn't turn to jello if I go to far.

So, though you never stated it, I assume it was the Opus?