[piggy4]

Hi,

I would like to take up mountain biking because I am moving to Banff. I have never done it before.
I am a petit girl, 5'4", 105 lbs...
I need advice on what kind of bike I should buy etc...
I can only afford a bike around the $600 range...any ideas?

Thank you

 

[WSU DH'er]

It really depends what type of riding you plan on doing, but in either case you'll be able to get something with a better parts spec if you go with a hardtail vs. a full suspension in your price range.

 

[McGRP01]

Hi,

I would like to take up mountain biking because I am moving to Banff. I have never done it before.
I am a petit girl, 5'4", 105 lbs...
I need advice on what kind of bike I should buy etc...
I can only afford a bike around the $600 range...any ideas?

Thank you

Try posting this over in the Mud Hunnies forum as well. The girls on this board know their sh*t and are always happy to help out a fellow "hunnie". Good luck!

 

[Kornphlake]

In that price range there's really very little differance between one bike and another. Unless you can find a higher end model on clearance just get whatever color you like best. For a beginner I'd say get a bike with only front suspension. Anything that has front and rear suspension will be un-reliable at this price point and you'll most certainly be sacrificing quality on a few components that really can make a huge differance. A couple of things to look out for are disc brakes, some work well and others don't. If you can find something with Avid or Shimano vee brakes and levers they'll be just as good as any of the disc brakes in that price range, avid disc brakes are the best of the cheap disc brakes but I doubt you'll find them installed on any of the bikes in your price range. The other thing to watch out for is the fork, some bikes in that price range will actually have forks with hydraulic damping, this is good, you want it, ask the sales person if the bike you're considering has hydraulic damping, if so ask him to show you where the adjusters are, there should be at least a preload and a rebound adjuster and maybe a compression damping adjuster. Hydraulic damping controlls how fast the fork will compress and rebound, without it the fork will compress as fast as friction in the fork and the force of the spring will let it, and will rebound equally, hydraulic damping limits the speed the fork can compress and rebound. This is an advantage because it will make the fork feel like it bounces around less when you are pedaling, it will bottom out less and won't bounce around as much when you ride over rough sections in the trail. You should turn the knobs all the way one direction and bounce around on the fork, then turn the knobs all the way the other direction and bounce around, you should be able to feel a differance. If you can't feel any differance the sales person is probabally trying to sell you a fork that doesn't have hydraulic damping and doesn't really know what it means. If this is the unlikely case you should probabally look for another shop.

Like I mentioned first though, at this price point the real differance between one brand and another is the color, unless you really hunt around alot you'll probabally have a hard time finding a bike at that price that has the higher quality brakes and fork that I mention. You should take any bike you are considering out for a test ride in the parking lot, if possible ride at least three bikes, one you're seriously looking at, one slightly more expensive and one slightly cheaper. See if you can tell a differance between them and judge the actual value of the differances you can actually feel. When you are riding the bike shift through all the gears and make sure the gears all work quietly. Pedal hard and feel how well the bike accelerates, ride over a parking block or off a curb to see how the suspension feels, sit on the seat and imagine how it will feel after 2 hours of sitting on it, brake hard and skid with the rear wheel (weak brakes will require a lot of squeezing on the lever to accomplish this,) Try to bunny hop over a crack in the asphalt. Different bikes will all feel a little different, the most expensive bikes will feel much different than the cheaper ones but get what you can afford and what feels best.

At this point you should be able to haggle the shop out of something for free when you buy the bike, a water bottle would be customary, see if they'll throw in a water bottle cage as well. Other things you'll need are a helmet and gloves, now would also be a good time to buy a patch kit and tire pump as well as a tire lever set. You might be able to get a little bit of a discount on these items if you buy them all at once along with the bike.

 

[Mad Dog]

You should be able to get a decent beginner bike in that price range. Fisher/Trek and Cannondale target that price point. You should be able to get a decent frame-with parts that can be upgraded as needed. Make sure you get a helmet and gloves. TScary as it may seem, get into some clip-in pedals as soon as possible. You will not regret it.

 

[TreeSaw]

Welcome to our fun world of biking! Definately post this in the Mud Hunnies forum as we're always glad to help out someone new! I would go to your local bike shops (LBS) and ride a number of bikes. We all have opinions on which bikes are better and on the hardtail vs. full-suspension argument. You may even be able to get a quality used bike for that price...I have been quite lucky in that respect and have gotten some really nice rides for about $600. We're the same height so you will want to look at Small frames from most manufactures (although they do vary so definately ride as many different ones as you can). I personally love my Cannondale Jekyll...very easy to maintain and has a great warranty. I also have a K2 Disco Monkey (freeride) and a Trek Hardtail (soon to be a singlespeed) that I started out on. Right now, you should be able to get a good deal on some left-over Jekylls as they are phasing out that model and replacing it with the Prophets. As a beginner, you won't need as much travel as the bike offers, but it's quite a fun ride, comes with decent components and is a comfortable ride.

In addition to the helmet and gloves, go out and get yourself a good pair of bike shorts (trust me, they really are a necessity) and never ever ride with panties under your bike shorts (ouchie) You should definately get a waterbottle & cage with your bike or look at other hydration options (hydrapaks, camelbacks, etc.) as you will need plenty of water when you are out riding. Again, try them on!!! They all fit differently and many manufactures make women's specific models that really do fit well. I personally run Hydrapaks because they fit my torso better and I like their bite valve better than the others.

If you have any other specific questions, please feel free to PM me or as the other Mud Hunnies. Welcome and good luck riding

 

[squirrelonabike]

TREk 4500 wsd. You should be able to find it for about 400. Then get a good helmet, clipless pedals (yes jump right to it!) and shoes. Gloves, and shorts. That will keep you in your 600 target and get you a great bike. I teach a begginers course, and thats the bike a recomend to most of my women riders. (in your height range). If you feel like getting fancy check out the Kona Caldera, list for 999, but tons of bike, that you won't out grow. Kona is very west coast shiek.

 

[dogdude]

if you know what to look for, you can get great deals on ebay ( i know this is like heresy as far as LBS are concerned) on mtbikes. just stick to sellers with a lot of positive feedback. i bought a like new $1450 bike for $620.