[cowboy]

i know yall get alot of this but ive been tryin to figure out what bike to get. atm i dont have a lot of money but im lookin for an all mountain bike that can handle free ride also. im lookin for one at a beginner level but that can be upgraded when my skill level goes up. money wise i dont have a exact amount but something not too expensive but i understand that a bit may be required.

 

[cowboy]

any help is appreciated

 

[r464]

How big are you?
Where do you plan to ride?
Realistically, what is your budget? For some folks, "not too expensive" can mean $200. For others, it can mean $2000. These days, that can either limit your options or open up lots of possibilities.

What brands of bikes are carried at your local shops?

 

[TrailMonkey]

any help is appreciated

Right back at ya.....

 

[cowboy]

im 6'1 270 workin on loosin a good bit of weight, currently im in monessen, pa dont really know of any bike shops. and dont really know of many trails xcept 7 springs and a couple of smaller ones by the canal. ill be movin back to delaware in feb. they got white clay. ive been trailing on single trails and canal roads, but my bike aint made for it. im lookin to do trails and some tech riding. my budget depending on how much im willing to use could be about 1000. at the most, but prefer about 500 or a bit over.

 

[TrailMonkey]

We could give you a list of bikes a mile long that price between $500 and $1000.
But the best thing for you to do is find a bike shop and test ride a few bikes first.
But for now do some research on the subject.

 

[cowboy]

a couple bikes i have found that im curious about are the
marin alpine
gary fisher opie
and the trek jack 1

 

[yamaguy01]

In my opinion the Marin is the better bike. I've always liked the line of their frames, it just looks good. If I were you though I would take a look at Giant bicycles. You may be able to get more bang for your buck with them since they are the largest bicycle manufacturer and get all their components in bulk. I know here in Japan Giants are fairly reasonably priced, I imagine the same in the states. Or you could look into a used bike maybe. Just my $.02...

 

[TrailMonkey]

I currently ride a Giant Trance X2 and love it, but it's a $1800 bike.

 

[stinkyboy]

Ya might wanna start here.