Advice please on new bike for a long absent rider.
Bennyboyyorks
Posts: 4
Hi everyone I would appreciate a bit of advice please on choosing a new bike.
I am in my 30's and in my youth I was an avid rider from the age of 12 to 22 I was never off my bike and spent more time in the woods than I did anywhere else. I am by no means a beginner rider and took part in the odd xc race in my youth, but have not done any serious riding for the last 8-10 yrs (kids marriage and running a small business means that time has passed me by)
As my kids are getting a little older I have found over the past 6 months I have had a little more opportunity to get out and ride. I have had the same bike for the last 10 yrs a hard tail custom rock lobster. I have been out a few times and have really got the bug back.
I have always rode h/t as when I was a lad f/s were alway way out of my reach financially plus they always seemed really heavy and cumbersome, the ones in my price range. F/S were reserved for d/h only.
I paid a visit to my local bike shop the other month and I was blown away with how much technology has come along in the last ten years. I was told by the shop assistant that anything but 29ers are a waste of time and no one rides h/t s anymore (I had to search on tinternet to see what a 29er was). I must add that the shop assistant did look about 15 and had his cap on sideways.
So basically I am in a position where I want to upgrade my bike to something more modern which will suit my riding. I have a maximum (very max) of £2k to spend ( I am having to buy the wife a bike as well as she is keen to start as well)
I live on the edge of the Lake District so plan to take advantage of my surroundings and head out to do some good trails and xc riding on my own and feel my way back into it and build my confidence up again.
One thing to mention is that I am a bit of a short arse 5"6-5"7 but am quite heavily set. I have always been a heavy rider lets say and not the most delicate on a bike (I went through a lot of wheels in my youth) Generally I have always struggled getting sized on a bike due to my short legs.
I will also be planning to get the family involved. My wife is very keen to get involved riding, so we will be also doing a nice bit of steady flat xc/scenery riding. I am also really looking forward to getting a kids bike trailer and taking the kids out for some nice day long summer rides in the country side.
So with all the above in mind and the massive amount of options which are now available I have a number of questions which I would really appreciate as much opinion and advice on as possible.
1) Hardtail or full suspension. As I said earlier I'm quite a heavy rider but not sure what the best options is as only ever had h/t
2) wheel size. 26/650b/29 Only every rode 26 and with me been a short arse I was wondering if 29 would be too big and was thinking 650b would be a happy medium, but have no experience so not sure.
3) what manufacture should I be looking at. When I was a lad all I rode were GT's but I understand that they are not what they used to be. I have been told that Scotts are worth a look at and I love the look of Santa Cruz but think the wife would divorce me if I spent over 2k
4) can anyone recommend a particular bike I should look at. I don't want to upgrade again in another year once I am up to speed again I would hope to start doing more technical and faster trails. I would hope this bike would last me a good few years.
5) finally can anyone recommend a good entry level ladies bike for around 500.
Any help, comment or opinion would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your time.
I am in my 30's and in my youth I was an avid rider from the age of 12 to 22 I was never off my bike and spent more time in the woods than I did anywhere else. I am by no means a beginner rider and took part in the odd xc race in my youth, but have not done any serious riding for the last 8-10 yrs (kids marriage and running a small business means that time has passed me by)
As my kids are getting a little older I have found over the past 6 months I have had a little more opportunity to get out and ride. I have had the same bike for the last 10 yrs a hard tail custom rock lobster. I have been out a few times and have really got the bug back.
I have always rode h/t as when I was a lad f/s were alway way out of my reach financially plus they always seemed really heavy and cumbersome, the ones in my price range. F/S were reserved for d/h only.
I paid a visit to my local bike shop the other month and I was blown away with how much technology has come along in the last ten years. I was told by the shop assistant that anything but 29ers are a waste of time and no one rides h/t s anymore (I had to search on tinternet to see what a 29er was). I must add that the shop assistant did look about 15 and had his cap on sideways.
So basically I am in a position where I want to upgrade my bike to something more modern which will suit my riding. I have a maximum (very max) of £2k to spend ( I am having to buy the wife a bike as well as she is keen to start as well)
I live on the edge of the Lake District so plan to take advantage of my surroundings and head out to do some good trails and xc riding on my own and feel my way back into it and build my confidence up again.
One thing to mention is that I am a bit of a short arse 5"6-5"7 but am quite heavily set. I have always been a heavy rider lets say and not the most delicate on a bike (I went through a lot of wheels in my youth) Generally I have always struggled getting sized on a bike due to my short legs.
I will also be planning to get the family involved. My wife is very keen to get involved riding, so we will be also doing a nice bit of steady flat xc/scenery riding. I am also really looking forward to getting a kids bike trailer and taking the kids out for some nice day long summer rides in the country side.
So with all the above in mind and the massive amount of options which are now available I have a number of questions which I would really appreciate as much opinion and advice on as possible.
1) Hardtail or full suspension. As I said earlier I'm quite a heavy rider but not sure what the best options is as only ever had h/t
2) wheel size. 26/650b/29 Only every rode 26 and with me been a short arse I was wondering if 29 would be too big and was thinking 650b would be a happy medium, but have no experience so not sure.
3) what manufacture should I be looking at. When I was a lad all I rode were GT's but I understand that they are not what they used to be. I have been told that Scotts are worth a look at and I love the look of Santa Cruz but think the wife would divorce me if I spent over 2k
4) can anyone recommend a particular bike I should look at. I don't want to upgrade again in another year once I am up to speed again I would hope to start doing more technical and faster trails. I would hope this bike would last me a good few years.
5) finally can anyone recommend a good entry level ladies bike for around 500.
Any help, comment or opinion would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your time.
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Comments
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First up, ignore the 15 year old in the shop!
Second, don't get hung up on wheel size - it doesn't define the bike. There are good and bad bikes with all wheel sizes. I'm a little taller than you (5'8") and wouldn't go for a 29" myself. Difference between 26" & 27.5" is pretty marginal. And there are good deals available on 'last year's ' 26" bikes
FS or HT - well that's a choice to make. Both will be fine - sounds like you won't be doing any silly downhill stuff. But don't forget FS isn't just for dealing with difficult terrain - it also provides improved traction and don't under estimate the benefit of comfort.
Suggestions?
Well I'd be tempted by a new steel hardtail - but then I'm biased as I have one! Are you capable and happy to buy a frame and parts and build it yourself? If so I'd be mighty tempted by a Cotic Soul (£500 for frame only). Stick some 120mm Rockshox Rebas and an SLX groupset on it and you have the makings if a very tidy bike for around £2k or less.
Of course there's plenty of ready built options too. Others on here have a better knowledge of the market than me and I'm sure will post soon enough.
One last thing - if you can, try to test ride a few different bikes to see what suits you0 -
Thanks BIgAl by chance just found out my local bike shop is having a demo weekend so am going to pop down today.0
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Find a better bike shop :P
Loads of threads on here regarding 26/650b/29 wheel sizes. Most sensible comments boil down to swing your leg over a bike and see what feels comfortable.
i ride a 29er as i love it on xc ploughs through most conditions with ease, my local trails are variable so it suits down to the ground. However, i find them clumsy going through switchbacks etc so not much cop at many trail centres, so im thinking about building a second 26 bike for days out. Dont let height put you off 29ers, know loads of peeps around your height that ride them.
Need to look at what you will be riding for the majority of the time and see what feels right for you.
For £2k you are going to have some nice options, either a kick ass hard tail, BigAls suggestion looks tasty
but also getting into decent full sus territory.
HT or FS again I would say personal preferance. Im getting on and always look at peeps comments about the comfort of FS, but im a *cough* larger gentleman too and tried a few different bikes with full sus from cheap to unaffrodable and it just didnt feel right for me, hardtail just feels right. Best bet is too look out for a demo day in your area try a few different set ups and get an idea of what feels right for you, then start to fine tune your fit with manufactuer/frame etc0 -
Thanks mak3m.
I went into my local bike shop this afternoon (a different shop to the one i mentioned in my earlier post) and just by chance they had a few demo Scott bikes in for the weekend! Unbelievably they have leant me a Scott spark 710 full suspension for the weekend! I know its probably way out of my price range but I hope it will give me a good idea on h/t vs f/s plus the 650b vs 29ers question. I had a quick blast earlier and was way impressed, have to be honest could not initially tell much difference between 26 and 650b but i am getting up at 6 am in the morning before the kids get up and am going to take it for a good run out.! I can't wait to be honest, I haven't been this excited about getting up early since i was a whippersnapper.
Would still appreciate other comments and ideas please.
Thank you0 -
Bennyboyyorks wrote:Thanks mak3m.
I went into my local bike shop this afternoon (a different shop to the one i mentioned in my earlier post) and just by chance they had a few demo Scott bikes in for the weekend! Unbelievably they have leant me a Scott spark 710 full suspension for the weekend! I know its probably way out of my price range but I hope it will give me a good idea on h/t vs f/s plus the 650b vs 29ers question. I had a quick blast earlier and was way impressed, have to be honest could not initially tell much difference between 26 and 650b but i am getting up at 6 am in the morning before the kids get up and am going to take it for a good run out.! I can't wait to be honest, I haven't been this excited about getting up early since i was a whippersnapper.
Would still appreciate other comments and ideas please.
Thank you
What did you think of the spark 710? That's one of the many bikes I'm interested in0
