Which type of bike for lots of road use, and occassional off-road

[MighyG]

Hi all,

Just getting back into biking (went for a 20 miler on my rusted old bike yesterday). It was about 19 and a half miles of riding along the old bristol railway line which I liked, and in the middle of it went down a bridal path which was great fun too.



So now I want a new bike to suit the same sort of riding (mainly roads but a bit of off-road to mix it up), seems the choices are :

• Mountain bike - no suspension (not much choice for these)
• Mountain bike - front suspension (loads of choice, but won't that sap energy more on the road?)
• Hybrid - loads of choice, but don't think I can take this off-road ?

So am I restricted to the limited choice of mountain bikes with no suspension ?

Got a budget of around £200 but would spend a bit more if there is some real benefit

Any advice greatfully received !


Paul

 

[Sittingduck]

You can take hybrids on light off road stuff no problem and no sus MTB with slicks or semi slicks will also fit the bill. Might struggle slightly to find something for 200 quid. How about a Carerra Subway 1? £220 or so, as I recall and 26" wheels so might be a bit stronger on the bumpy stuff than the typical 700's on most hybrids...

 

[MighyG]

Just been looking at the subway 1 :
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/..._productId_551273_langId_-1_categoryId_165534

looks like a really nice bike and I have read other good reviews on here so perhaps thats a winner, only concern is how much off-roading it can cope with ? but like i said not much choice in the pure mountain bike range

 

[Sittingduck]

You could look at the 2nd hand route of course.

 

[MighyG]

You could look at the 2nd hand route of course.

is e-bay the best place for 2nd hand bikes ? seems like its best for almost everything these days

 

[Sittingduck]

I belive you can still find bargains on there but the delivery charges - travel to collect is something I personally find offputting. Tried local papers or websites?

 

[stoofer]

Perhaps gumtree or graigslist for secondhand?

 

[MighyG]

thanks both, still looking at new too, typical thing is happening, I like the look of the subway 1, then seen the more expensive subway 2 and am starting to talk myself into all the reasons why I should spend the extra money ! Probably head to halfords this afternoon to have a look

any other bike recommendations ?

 

[MajorMantra]

What about a CX (cyclocross) bike? Suitable for light off-roading and on road you can fit slicks and have something very nearly as quick as a proper road bike.

Regarding suspension, I would avoid it unless you plan on doing serious off-roading. You can lock out most suspension forks so they don't bounce on the road, but in your price range anything with suspension is going to have crap forks.

Gumtree is a good place to buy bikes (if you live in or near a decent sized town) just be aware that some of the stuff you find is stolen. You should ask searching questions before going to see a bike to try and confirm that it is legitimate.

I understand the feeling that you should spend a bit more for something better and in general I do. That said, there's an argument to be made for not worrying too much at this stage about exactly what you get. If you get really hooked by cycling you'll doubtless upgrade and/or acquire numerous other bikes.

Oh and btw, another budget range you might look at is EBC's Revolution bikes.

Matthew

 

[MighyG]

thanks matthew, you've made a good point about not worrying too much about the first bike. Probably going to go for a raleigh from a local bike shop or the carrera 1 from halfords for now, preference being the carrera simply because the raleigh looks dated

cheers

paul

 

[NormanD]

I've just bought the Carrera subway and its a great bike for the price and an excellent first time new bike. could do with a higher gear ratio, but climbs hills without much effort, it can cope with some off road abuse too

Norm

 

[MighyG]

thanks norm, thats made me feel a bit more confident about buying one

 

[scaryant]

A bike can and should last years, IMO go with a bike decent bike that fits the purpose first up.

I've got a GT mountain bike with semi-slick tyres (Specialized Armadillo) and front suspension - I live and commute in London by bike and 95% of my riding is by road.

If you want to stick with a MTB, just get a bike which is fitted with front suspension that comes with "lock out". This prevents the forms from bouncing when you don't want or need to. When you want them to bounce, you just reach forward and enable them and vice versa when you don't.

IMO for a good quality entry level bike you want to spend around £300-500, no less.