What type of bicycle to buy? Any suggestions

[dsm]

Look at Craigslist, you will be buying locally and can look at the bike and try it before you buy it. I have been using a hybrid for 10 years and love it. There are many good moderate priced brands...Trek...Giant..are two popular ones. They are the Chevy and Ford of the bike line.

They are the 1st two brands that came to mind & they are as popular here in Aust. My own Mountain bike is a HASA. Which is copy of a Giant Yukon. HASA being Taiwan's biggest bike factory & I think does a lot of sub-contracting for the popular brands. Someone was importing them into Australia & being new I was willing to buy it off eBay.

This is a pic of the HASA Team 6.0 (for comparison purposes). It cost $A700 which was about $A500 under the Giant Yukon equivalent price...
http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/jw!mBqjn4STQ ... id=19&sc=1

Here is a Giant Yukon Mountain Bike (looks pretty close ) ...
http://bikereviews.com/mountain-bikes/g ... tain-bike/

I like it having disc brakes as I can really stop on a dime. The HASA Team 6.0 bike is at the low end of the market as any serious buyer here would pay in the vicinity of $A2000 for a better equipt model (better derailleurs, better wheels, better gears, better type of disc brakes, better cranks & chainrings & better shifters). But thus far it is doing an ok job. But, next time I would go for a better more expensive model. I just wasn't sure how much use it would get so went for a cheap unit. I also own a couple of Road Bikes with tough frames (needed here in Aust).

DSM

[t-bone]

I'm a bike shop guy, and often ride my own bike to work. I'm also a League Cycling Instructor, active in my local bicycle club, and have an assortment of other relevant credentials, the nature of which would bore you even more than you already are...

All that said, I'm not a big fan of mountain bikes for commuting--although they will work. Hybrids are better--the higher-pressure tires make for a more energy-efficient ride, among other things. Suspension forks are almost pointless if your commute never leaves hard surfaces, but many hybrids have them.

The so-called "Fitness bikes" (essentially a better-grade hybrid with a rigid fork) do well as commuters, and I see a few folks who use them for century rides.

My own primary commuter?



Since I work until well after dark this time of year, I also have to be able to see to get home (not to mention be seen by other road users), so...





Of course, being a utility bike kind of dude, I also have a way to haul groceries:



...and yes, it also has enough lights that if someone claims he can't see me, I am assured that he is vision-impaired enough that he should not be driving.

[Mikosiko]

I'm a bike shop guy, .....

and in your opinion which type ob bike offers more benefits (exercise goals)... a recumbent or a regular one?

thank you
Miko

[t-bone]

I'm a bike shop guy, .....

and in your opinion which type ob bike offers more benefits (exercise goals)... a recumbent or a regular one?

thank you
Miko

Without meaning to be snarky about it, the greater benefit comes from the one you will ride longer and more often. For many, the recumbent offers enough greater comfort that it's the hands-down (pardon the pun) winner.

As always, though, "Your Mileage May Vary" applies.

The Raleigh is my first "upright" bike in over a decade. I've had it a bit over a year--bought it for use on days when "multi-modal" commuting would be of value (all our buses have bike racks). The commute is different than it was when I bought the bike, so I don't use it for getting to work as much now. It works very well for pulling the grocery trailer (that was a cheap kid trailer, found on Craig's List for $50).

[roster]

That's cool t-bone. I'm happy to see people voluntarily biking for transportation to work.

[BlackSpinner]

I'm a bike shop guy, and often ride my own bike to work.
My own primary commuter?
.

I don't think I would feel secure in traffic on that recumbent. I like being up high and sitting up straight so I can see over many of the smaller cars. I used to have a Raleigh racer style but an empty bucket of tar fell off 3 story high the roof that was being fixed kind of mangled it (I wasn't on it and I would have moved it if I had known they were going to work on it that day- they burnt the place down 6 months later) .

I liked the mountain bike since I rode on a combination of city streets with amazing pot holes in the spring and bike paths.

[Arizona-Willie]

Get an electric bike.

No need for all that huffing and puffing

[reitzell]

I do have an electric bike. Actually, I have two of them. I did an electric conversion to a Giant Hybrid bike and then made a list of all the things that I would do to improve it. I was going to do an electric bike version 1.2 bike project. I was looking around on the internet and I found a guy out of Texas that made electric bikes and his bikes had all the things that I wanted to improve about my bike.

Here's a pic:





And Hi I'm Rob. New to the board. Pic of me on vacation last year..

[bwhiting]

wow - this isn't the type of thread I expected on a sleep apnea board! (sorry to generalize). I'm an avid cyclist and commute to work by cycle as soon as the snow is off the pathways in the spring and until the pathways are covered in the fall. Cycling is one of those bugs that can really become addictive - which is great as it's a bonus for your health and the environment. I first tried using my cross country mtb for the commute (too slow), swapped on slicks (still too slow and puncture prone) before swapping to a road bike. I've never looked back and do longer training rides on w/e's, the odd triathlon, and pull my kids in the chariot behind me. My tips to you pretty much echo what's been said:
A) buy local. go to a bike shop and figure out with them what kind of bike is best for you and get fitted. If you're not sure about making a $$ commitment then look locally on craigslist, kijiji, etc. Then get the bike checked professionally at a bike shop.
B) Commit to riding the bike - let it become part of your daily routine in going to work. Get the right riding gear so you're visible, well protected, and warm/day. This will get rid of the excuses to not cycle that come fairly easily at the start (ask me how I know! lol)

I've had doctors in the past say to me that I can't have sleep apnea - I'm 6' and 180 lbs and very active. One sleep study and that theory goes out the window.

good luck!

[BlackSpinner]

wow - this isn't the type of thread I expected on a sleep apnea board! (sorry to generalize). I'm an avid cyclist and commute to work by cycle as soon as the snow is off the pathways in the spring and until the pathways are covered in the fall.
I've had doctors in the past say to me that I can't have sleep apnea - I'm 6' and 180 lbs and very active. One sleep study and that theory goes out the window.

good luck!

But that is just why it is on this board! Because we all want to do this again and because we aren't stereotype old fat guys.

Ottawa is a great place to cycle, I am always Jealous of all your bike paths. My friends and I used to go to Ottawa for the Victoria day weekend for the cycling and the tulips.

I haven't used my bike much in the last 2 years, Just the effort to carry it down the flight of stairs was too much. I am looking forward to spring.

[carbonman]

B) Commit to riding the bike -Get the right riding gear so you're visible, well protected, and warm/day. This will get rid of the excuses to not cycle that come fairly easily at the start

There is no bad weather.....only inadequate gear.

See you on the road.

[BlackSpinner]

There is no bad weather.....only inadequate gear.

There is currently over 20cm of snow on the roads over a nice bed of ice and my road is down to one lane (They hope to have the roads cleared by Friday) Yesterday morning the wind chill was -21C. The snow is still falling lightly, walking is difficult.

[carbonman]

There is currently over 20cm of snow on the roads over a nice bed of ice and my road is down to one lane (They hope to have the roads cleared by Friday) Yesterday morning the wind chill was -21C. The snow is still falling lightly, walking is difficult.

... excuses .... excuses ... excuses .....

...yea, I hear you on the ice.
We have been frozen for 3 weeks now.
More on the way.

I ride down to 20F.....provided there is no ice.
I am not an ice biker.

[Snorkler]

...yea, I hear you on the ice.
We have been frozen for 3 weeks now.
More on the way.

I ride down to 20F.....provided there is no ice.
I am not an ice biker.

Like you said, you just need the right equipment. Just get some studded snow tires for your bike and you can ride on the ice

[Guest]

When the ice and snow comes, I switch to the mountain bike with carbide steel studded tires.. Makes all the difference, just slows you down a bit. My commute is only 13 miles though and I only ride down to zero. Average about 7000 miles a year. Sooo.... like you said; there is no bad weather, only inadequate equipment.