I'm completely new to mountain bikes. I want to get some sort of decent mountain bike because I am moving up to an area with lots of trails and stuff for college and stuff, and I want to try it. I'm not going to do anything hardcore, no jumps or steep downhill stuff, just regular trails. The thing is,, I don't know the difference between any of the types of bikes available. I don't know what downhill, cross-country or free ride bikes are, and I don't know the terminology like hard tail, soft tail etc... So I want to ask you guys two things:
1. Can someone point me to some site that has a FAQ for mountain bikes in general? Just something that explains the different types of bikes and such.
2. Can someone recommend a decent bike for me? I don't want to spend more than $1500 US (at the absolute most). It should have a small frame and should be pretty light since I am a small guy (5'4'' ~ 120 lbs.). I'd like dual suspension, but I don't know if its necessary. I want a beginner bike, but I want something that wont obsolete either (meaning that I can do some advanced stuff on it later on). I've looked on some bikes sites, but again, since I don't know the terminology and stuff, I don't know what to look for.
Thanks in advance, sorry if I am asking a bit much here.
1. Can someone point me to some site that has a FAQ for mountain bikes in general? Just something that explains the different types of bikes and such.
2. Can someone recommend a decent bike for me? I don't want to spend more than $1500 US (at the absolute most). It should have a small frame and should be pretty light since I am a small guy (5'4'' ~ 120 lbs.). I'd like dual suspension, but I don't know if its necessary. I want a beginner bike, but I want something that wont obsolete either (meaning that I can do some advanced stuff on it later on). I've looked on some bikes sites, but again, since I don't know the terminology and stuff, I don't know what to look for.
Thanks in advance, sorry if I am asking a bit much here.