do you bike?

[nageov3t]

if so, what type of bicycle do you own?

I think I'm finally going to make the plunge and by a bike this week... my needs are pretty simple, I just need to ride a mile back/forth to the train station every day (mostly flat). I'm thinking like a simple single-speed bike with a lightweight frame so I don't break my back carrying it in and out of my apartment every day?

 

[CurseTheSky]

Yep. I picked up a cheap (~$330) Raleigh Talus 3.0 from a local bike shop several months ago. I ride for fun and exercise, and I have to say that a decent aluminum frame makes a HUGE difference over your average Walmart steel bike.

I've put somewhere around 15-25 miles on it so far and I love it.

 

[ISAslot]

06 Jamis Coda Elite
over 6,000 miles on it

 

[JulesMaximus]

This is my bike. I used to ride quite a bit and even commuted on it but haven't been riding it much in the last couple years. Sucks because it's a really nice road bike and I love riding it. Just haven't been able to find the time lately...too many other hobbies/interests. I probably have close to 5,000 miles on it and 1,500 on my other road bike.

 

[torpid]

I own an entry level fuji hybrid. I am not sure you are going to get a quality, comfy bike that is super lightweight and also relatively cheap. That sounds like big bucks to me. People with more expertise can chime in and let me know if I'm wrong on that (in which case I'll be happy and might buy one myself!)

 

[Saint Nick]

I would recommend a hybrid, personally.

 

[Ns1]

my budget is $200 for a bike but all the good bikes are $300

I hesitate buying a more expensive bike because my last one got stolen (which makes 3 in 6 years)

 

[blackdogdeek]

if you're really only going to use it for the stated purposes you can get a cheap, used bike so that if it gets stolen you won't be too upset. my buddy started doing that after he had two nice mountain bikes stolen. he uses his to commute around the city.

 

[PottedMeat]

~10 year old giant boulder se with semi slick tires for pavement

it was their low end mtb. still works great, 40-60miles/wk

 

[allthatisman]

I have had a lot of bikes, but one of my favorites for everyday riding would be my Specialized Langster. Get one without a silly city theme on it used on Craig's for about $350-400. They are light, have great semi-upright geometry, and are easy to ride and move around. It will make you strong if you have a lot of hills in your area, but you can still get up and go on the flats. I love a geared road bike, but single speeds are so nice because they are so simple...

 

[Aharami]

i bought a motobecane 600ht from bikesdirect.com this year. At first I was a little apprehensive because I read mixed reviews about bikesdirect. But my purchase worked out for me. I love my mtb but I find that the tires that came with it are too specialized for mountain biking. I need tires that will give a good balance for pavement and dirt trails

 

[JulesMaximus]

i bought a motobecane 600ht from bikesdirect.com this year. At first I was a little apprehensive because I read mixed reviews about bikesdirect. But my purchase worked out for me. I love my mtb but I find that the tires that came with it are too specialized for mountain biking. I need tires that will give a good balance for pavement and dirt trails

Bikes Direct is fine. A friend of mine bought a road bike with Shimano Ultegra 10 speed for around $1000 (you can't even buy an Ultegra groupset by itself for that). He took the components off and put them on a carbon frame he bought and sold the bikesdirect frame for a couple hundred bucks.

If you know what you want and what size you need and don't mind a little final assembly bikesdirect is a bargain. That said, there is something to be gained from supporting your local bike shop and that is access to knowledgeable mechanics and parts/gear available locally.

 

[deadlyapp]

I took over riding my moms old Sekai 2000. It's from the late 70's early 80's and my mom over the years put apparently like 20-30k miles on it. It's still in great shape, I just put new tires and grip tape on and it's good to go.

I've probably only put a hundred or two miles on it so far, I don't ride it every day but almost every day.

 

[Platypus]

I used to a lot actually, but my bike was stolen years ago and I never got another one.

 

[Rhezuss]

I bought a Giant XTC2 last august. I mostly do XC and some city rolling/jumping and this bike does the job excellently!

I also have 2 sets of tires, the Kenda Small Block 8s for the road and the WTB Prowler 2.1 Race for the XC.

Like others said, aluminium frame make a huge difference. I'd look at 18/21 speeds though in case you enjoy it more than you thought and want to do longer rides. You won't regret it.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

I use some 21 speed releigh hybrid style bike (I think it's called Suntour or something). Bought it used a couple of years ago. I recommend hybrid or road. It seemed to make a big difference over a mountain bike as far as speed goes.

 

[Demo24]

I only have a mountain bike I use to commute short distances to school with, but I really want a road bike. I'll probably look into investing in one when I move down to Atlanta next year and riding around would be a bit easier than up here where everything is uphill.

 

[stargazr]

Yeah, I have a '98 Schwinn Moab 2.

 

[Bill Brasky]

I went biking on my vacation to Colorado 3 weeks ago and now I have a huge cyst on my ass. Great.

 

[thecoolnessrune]

I ride for exercise / commute and most recently have a 2011 Trek 7.6FX. Love it and ride pretty much every day.

 

[nageov3t]

I should ask if I can get a discount on Trek's, they're a client of mine. hah.

 

[God Mode]

I see how stressed drivers with blood pressure issued stare at bike riders with murderous eyes. Hell no.

 

[Fausto]

if so, what type of bicycle do you own?

I think I'm finally going to make the plunge and by a bike this week... my needs are pretty simple, I just need to ride a mile back/forth to the train station every day (mostly flat). I'm thinking like a simple single-speed bike with a lightweight frame so I don't break my back carrying it in and out of my apartment every day?

That would work. Check craigslist. You should be able to find something cheap that would fit your needs. I would recommend installing some Slime or similar innertubes just to avoid flats while commuting. Nothing is more annoying than dealing with a flat when you're trying to get to work.

My commuter is an old rigid Cannondale mountain bike I built up as a single speed. I tried to be cute and do it minus a chain tensioner but ended up bouncing my chest off the bars the first day when I lost the chain out of the saddle going up a hill. Unless that sounds like fun, I'd either find a bike with horizontal dropouts or pony up for the tensioner.

 

[JulesMaximus]

That would work. Check craigslist. You should be able to find something cheap that would fit your needs. I would recommend installing some Slime or similar innertubes just to avoid flats while commuting. Nothing is more annoying than dealing with a flat when you're trying to get to work.

My commuter is an old rigid Cannondale mountain bike I built up as a single speed. I tried to be cute and do it minus a chain tensioner but ended up bouncing my chest off the bars the first day when I lost the chain out of the saddle going up a hill. Unless that sounds like fun, I'd either find a bike with horizontal dropouts or pony up for the tensioner.

I found that just making sure your tires are inflated properly is enough to avoid most flats. I commuted 2-3 days a week 20 miles round trip for 2.5 years and I only had 2 flats the entire time. This was on a road bike with skinny, lightweight racing tires.

 

[Fausto]

I found that just making sure your tires are inflated properly is enough to avoid most flats. I commuted 2-3 days a week 20 miles round trip for 2.5 years and I only had 2 flats the entire time. This was on a road bike with skinny, lightweight racing tires.

Well yeah, the odds are low if you pay attention to PSI and don't run your tires to the cord. BUT that one time you pick up a little piece of wire/glass, you're going to kick yourself for not having the slime tubes. Naturally, that will be the day it is raining or something....it never fails.

I'm all about having a battleship for a commuter. It just needs to get me there and back.