Mountain Biking

[joytron]

Is anyone into it? Tried it for the first time a couple weeks ago and fell in love, just know next to nothing about bikes. Any advice?

[IainUM]

im really into it. what do you need advice on?

[joytron]

ah,.. what do you think about picking something up off of craigslist? I want to get a bike but really want to spend under $200. Any way of sorting through all the garbage and finding something as a starting point?


oh and hardtail vs full suspension?

[IainUM]

craigslist is hit or miss. you could get crap, or you could get gold. i ended up buying a full suspension trek aluminum y-frame off of craigslist for like 300 bucks. i have been riding it for a couple years and i have loved it. if i ever get a new bike, it'll be either a trek or a specialized. try looking around bike shops. they may be more expensive, but you can get something perfect for you. my dad's bike is too long for him, but fit perfect for me (i am a bit taller and have longer arms, versus he is shorter with shorter arms). since he is too small for his bike he has a lot of trouble bringing the front tire up, which is a problem while mountain biking.
it is a fun, but very intense and dangerous sport. a good lesson i learned at the beginning is don't do anything you are uncomfortable with, know your skill level, and don't try and push past your stamina too much, cause when you are exhausted/tired you get careless without even noticing. that last part is how i nearly broke my arm.
also, for beginners, make sure you don't have pedals that clip on to your shoes. the most essential part to a beginners mountain biking experience is being able to put their leg off the bike easily to stop themselves/stable themselves. i have been riding for 2 years and am now just looking into getting some clip pedals for my trek.

hard tail bikes are great for beginners in mountain biking. it is a lot easier to know your placement as far as where your back tire is, like when avoiding rocks and such. hard tails are also MUCH cheaper than full suspensions.
full suspensions are great when you know what you are doing. i had to mess with my spring on it for a while so it wasn't too hard, but not too soft. i had times where i would be pedaling so hard i would lose traction because the spring took too much weight off the back when i stood up. it just can get messy.

there are some great brands out there, but you can spend anywhere on 200-4,000$ on a brand new bike. brands that are reliable as far as i know are Specialized, Trek, and Giant. there are more, but those are the main ones i can think of right now.

please, dear god, wear a helmet. i see kids riding around without helmets and one fall and you're done. i pretty much tell anyone new to the sport that, nothing personal.

hope this all helps! im always glad to answer more questions!

[joytron]

hey thank you so much for the help, and of course I am too old to ride without a helmet. I found a trek 8000 in great condition for 350 but its sized at 21.5 is that doable at 6'1"?

[Josh Hamilton]

youll have to demo it...if its comfortable...trek is a good brand...check for rust (chain)
hardtail should be fine...they are more durable than full suspension...I forgot why though

[IainUM]

[quote name='Josh Hamilton' timestamp='1283907076' post='481558']
youll have to demo it...if its comfortable...trek is a good brand...check for rust (chain)
hardtail should be fine...they are more durable than full suspension...I forgot why though
[/quote]

they are more durable cause there are less moving parts which equals less parts to break

yeah, trek is a solid bike, check for chain rust and that the gears are in good working order. i cant remember if i told you in the PM or not, but you'll probably want to take the bike to a shop to get it looked at, so they can adjust the breaks, shocks, and gears. if you're going to be riding a bike down steep hills and rocks and shit, you might as well have it in as best condition as possible.