Capture...and anyone... re: bikes..... HELP!
Capture, I love your new bike. I am in the market for a new bike this week as I have met a new friend that wants to bike ride after we walk the dogs for an hour. Her husband works many nights as does my sweetie. Another friend/neighbour is excited because she hates riding her bike alone and wants to ride with us. My bike is about 34 years old, got it when I was 16. It is a ten speed guys racing bike. It will cost more to fix than buying a new one.
Another neighbour said I should get a mountain bike although all or mostly all my riding will be on bike paths or roads. My sister loves her racing bike which she got when I got mine 34 years ago. She maintained hers and it is still in great shape. She hates riding her husband's mountain bike. So my sister and her husband recommend I get hybrid. In between a mountain bike and a racing bike.
Yikes..what did you get? My sister think's riding her husbands bike is like riding mud on a road. She likes the speed of her racing bike. I haven't been on a bike (except an exercise bike) for over 20 years. I used to love riding it.
On a funny note, the squirrels ate the seat off my bike this winter. I had it on the balcony. This is a perfect opportunity for me to exercise because I have found two bike riding exercise buddies. The dogs will still get their long walks which we will also benefit from but then the humans will benefit from the bikes.
Opinions please. I want to make some sense to the people in the stores when I go looking this week.
Thanks all.
Veg On!
Di
P.S. Brands etc. would be appreciated.
yeah, if you havent really been into bikes for a while, a hybrid is the easiest and most versatile bike you can get.. they dont have all the crazy springs and suspensions of some of the newer mountain bikes, they are lighter than a mountain bike (but heavier than a road bike usually) and they come with smaller (thinner) tires.. one reason mountain bikes feel sort of weird and slow on the road is because of the tires.. the more knobbies it has, and the wider they are, the more they stick to the ground and slow you down.. that is why road bikes have those skinny smooth tires.. there is less rolling resistance, so you can go faster, easier..
i dont know much about hybrid bikes cuz i ride track bikes.. but whatever you do DONT get a a huffy hehe.. they are not good.. also, try to stay away from department store bikes.. they are usually really low quality and heavy.. some good brands are trek, specialized, cannondale, schwinn, bianchi, fuji etc.. but new bikes of those brands can get to be pretty expensive.. there are actually alot of really nice old bikes around that you could get for pretty cheap and with the addition of a few new parts (chain, saddle, brake cables etc..) would make a pretty good ride..
i dont know where you are, but in LA and NYC there are really cool little non profits that help you fix up an old bike (you do the work yourself with their tools and equipment) but they are right there helping you out with whatever you need.. and it really helps you understand your bike better.. also it makes you pretty proud of yourself to be able to fix up and maintain your own bike instead of paying lots of money at a bike shop and not knowing how to do it yourself.. they usually have old bikes there that you can rebuild/fix up yourself and they usually just charge you for any new parts you get for it and the work stand time.. also check out craiglist.. amid all the bullshit there are some really good deals sometimes.. that about all i can think of for now :)
Hey Di!
I got my bike at Target for like $50--I really like it alot--it's a Magna Ice Glacier womens mountain bike--I was going to go with a road bike too--but i feel more stable on the wider wheels and they can ride on both pavement and paths easily. What ever you go with try it out first to see if you're comfortable with the seat position--if you have a bad back you might to look at the bikes where you sit more upright.
here is the link to targets bikes-I actualy don't see the one I got listed but I know it's by Magna!
http://www.target.com/b/ref=sc_iw_r_2_0/602-1520744-8310245?node=16259321
You can get any of them shipped to you--but if you go in the store they will assemble it for you for free--and they have a 90 day warrenty.
Hope that helps sweetie!
Thanks so much guys!
We don't have Target in Canada but I have been looking at a Raleigh and a Schwinn, but all on line. Have no idea what a Huffy is! :-) By on line, I mean googling the stores around here that sell bikes.
The Schwinn I think is a hybrid. One of the Raleigh's is on sale for $249 from $399. Another is on sale for $199. They may be hybrids. Will have to go and ask.
The Schwinn is on sale for $349 and I think a hybrid.
The bike my sister is still using is a no name brand and has lasted her for 34 years. Had I not let my rust and fall apart, I wouldn't even been posting this as I would be using it. I think the brand was Royale. Total no name. Gift from my dad when I was 16 and my sister was 19.
Never even heard of Schwinn until today when I started googling.
All I know is I want a bike because I have found bike buddies! In a perfect world, I would be able to train Cali to trot beside my on a bike. In a realistic world, if she saw a squirrel, I would be toast. Helmet of not.
Capture, good advice about the back. I think that is one of my few areas that doesn't have issues! ;D I am more worried about the comfort of my ass! :-)
OKTOKREWL...I can't even find a bike repair shop although I am sure we have many. I live in Ontario Canada.
Thank you both so much for your advice. I will let you know what I end up with. If I had a digital camera I would post pictures but I don't. I have tried to post pictures of Cali but it always says the file is too big. That is from negative shots put on a disk.
Thanks again,
Di
are you sure it is cheaper to not fix your old bike?
sometimes frames can be versatile and will work for road or hybrid tires, you might want to see if your would convert if you have your heart set on a hybrid (which was what i was thinking you should get, actually, then i read that your friend suggested it, too...). If you have local bike shops or kitchens (i feel that a lot of places have kitchens, actually, and you will find some really helpful people at them) talk to the people there... let them know what you are looking for. they are all super happy to answer questions. people who like bikes LIKE bikes and love sharing their knowledge and just talking about bike stuff.
i would at least hit up a kitchen or bike shop and bring your old bike, let them know what you would like to use it for, and ask what kinds of stuff you would need to fix. new bikes are really expensive, and generally it is cheap to fix bikes up.
those are really good deals, actually.
are you sure it is cheaper to not fix your old bike?
sometimes frames can be versatile and will work for road or hybrid tires, you might want to see if your would convert if you have your heart set on a hybrid (which was what i was thinking you should get, actually, then i read that your friend suggested it, too...). If you have local bike shops or kitchens (i feel that a lot of places have kitchens, actually, and you will find some really helpful people at them) talk to the people there... let them know what you are looking for. they are all super happy to answer questions. people who like bikes LIKE bikes and love sharing their knowledge and just talking about bike stuff.
i would at least hit up a kitchen or bike shop and bring your old bike, let them know what you would like to use it for, and ask what kinds of stuff you would need to fix. new bikes are really expensive, and generally it is cheap to fix bikes up.
Thanks for the suggestions! :-)
My bike needs new tires, new chain, new brakes and a new seat. Years ago I took it to a bike shop and it just didn't seem worth the price as I wasn't commited. It was going to be expensive then and that was over 20 years ago.
Gears are f*cked too.
Not sure if a new bike is not the route to go although I will put my old bike somewhere where it can be 'taken' in case someone else can use it.
Not sure what to do. All I know is I want to ride a bike again and now have 2 buddies to do it with. I will explore all possibilities this week.
Thanks Hespedal!
Dive for a new bike :P I've found all mine from someones driveway on junk day. Cheap and easy way..
I second Craigslist--I got my road bike there. It was pretty new--had ~100 miles on it (came w/ a little speedometer/odometer), but was $450. But, yeah, I looove it. Oh, and it's a Trek bike. I'm jealous of your biking buddies, have fun!
raleighs and schwinns are both good bike brands too.. raleighs are originally from england (not sure if they still are, but i think so..) and schwinns are american.. when people think of schwinns they usually think of the old school cruiser bikes from the 50's or the super OG stingrays that are like the lowrider bikes today.. but you would have a nice bike with either of those options.. the only thing you may have to switch out is the seat, cuz i dont think ive ever found a bike that comes stock with a nice comfortable saddle.. also the price for those are real good.. my fuji was $350 stock on sale.. and i have changed alot of the parts out for better ones, but i wanted some pretty specific things, and im pretty short so i had to modify some stuff.. but its hard to find a decent bike for under $300, so what you are looking at sounds like a good deal, though i would definitely look into trying to fix up your old bike.. tires/saddle/chain/brakes will be way less than $300.. i will look into bike kitchens in ontario for you :) anyways good luck and thats awesome you are gunna start riding :w00t!:
the only thing you may have to switch out is the seat, cuz i dont think ive ever found a bike that comes stock with a nice comfortable saddle..
A comfortable road bike saddle? Such a thing exists?
ok, so im not really sure where you are in ontario, so i just looked in toronto, cuz i know there is grips of bike stuffs going on there ;)b
there is a bike kitchen in toronto that has a bunch of really awesome stuff going on like repair workshops, fixing your bike up with their tools and experience, and workshops specifically for women, taught by women.. they also have old fixed up bikes for sale etc.. check it out.. http://www.communitybicyclenetwork.org/
i just googled "bicycle" in location "toronto, canada" in maps.google.com and got this..
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=l&hl=en&geocode=&q=bicycle&near=toronto,+canada&ie=UTF8&ll=43.703126,-79.385147&spn=0.235787,0.466919&z=11&iwloc=D
just change it to your city and im sure you can find something close by..
here is a list of a bunch of bike shops in canada [url=http:http://www.bikesutra.com/shops_canada.html
also, to fix up your old bike.. check out some online stores like nashbar.com or performancebike.com.. they always have discounts and specials and have alot of what you will need to fix up your bike, like tires, tubes, brakes, saddles etc.. another really good site that i get lots from is http://www.benscycle.net/.. they are really nice, have some pretty good deals and milwuakee is pretty close to ontario i think ;).. but i would really check out that bike kitchen if you can make your way over there..
good luck!
Thank you all so very much for your wonderful suggestions. I have decided to tread lightly on this earth first and hopefully get my bike fixed up. I loved it 34 years ago. I loved it the last time I rode it about 20 some odd years ago. I will try to make it 'healthy' and love it again. Just with some new parts. If it really is going to cost a fortune, I will opt for a new one.
Thanks mostly for making me not think of new but to making old new again.
Truly appreciative of all your comments and suggestions.
Veg On!
Di