I usually snowboard ALOT every year, but with the move to Oklahoma, there will be very little boarding. I am thinking of taking up mountain biking to fill the gap, but I dont know anything about bikes. Anyone here ride and could give me some advice about what is a good bike/setup? Thanks much!!

I found this one at mtbr.com and it looks like it would be good for a noob. Decent features and decent price.

Maybe this one??

 

Link just puts you to trek homepage.

Anyway...Oklahoma...hmm...not that far away from southern colorado...you should have an opportunity to get some boarding in next year!

Mountain bikes.....I like stuff that is light but sturdy...stuff that does not take too much time to maintain. Seems that all the rage is now fully suspended, with disk breaks. I ride an older Trek OCLV hardtail (can't go as fast as some of my friends with dual suspensions on the downhills) with shimano xtr components. I like this bike a lot. I have had a few problems with the bottom bracket...seems to get out of adjustment easily...other than that think that it is great.

I'd get the most bike you can afford to start with. Look for a used bike, that's what I did...got a sweet deal. There are always guys out there looking to upgrade to the latests and greatest....so you can pick up some deals on stuff that is at most one generation behind.

 

Must be light, so best only look at aluminum frame. I have a "Diamond Back" mountain bike and it has lasted for years. "Giant" make good bikes and you can choose tons of extras, all for a price though.

 

The link was SUPPOSED to go to the 4300 (guess I screwed that up). It got good reviews on mtbr and is only about $490. Just looking for something to get me started.

CO is not that far away, but further than I do on a two day weekend driving. But on the 4 days, I will be there!

 

i have several bikes both dual suspension and hardtail, and i love em all. but i rarely ride the hardtails anymore, so i would recomend full suspension with disk brakes and like abacab said get the most bike you can afford.

Trek, Specialized, Titus, SantaCruz, they all make very nice bikes really depends on how much you can spend. one of the most important things is that the bike fits you properly. look around for a local bike shop, they can provide you with plenty of info. and will offer you to test ride all sorts of bikes.

 

I was looking at one of those Trek Fuel EX bikes, but haven't decided which one yet. I've never had a full suspension bike before and they ride great. The EX has an additional inch of travel in the rear suspension. I haven't pulled the trigger because I've been too busy to ride and it is lots of pesos.

 

Excellent advice!!! Bike fit is extremely important. A good local shop is really a key deal. Especially one that wants you as a customer, not just a sale.

 

OK, so, I'm not an expert, but I've been an advocate for Mountain biking for more than 20 years. As I share what I know, and MY understanding, I'll try to draw some parallels to automotive technology, where appropriate, or other common-knowledge things. But, seriously, it's not Rocket-Surgery...

Some basics:
Mountain bikes come in 3 fundamental flavors:
No suspension
Front suspension
FULL suspension.

Each has it's uses, depending on teh kind of riding you'll mostly be doing.

FULL Suspension bikes as BEST for BLASTING downhill. Once you get the hang of it, and crash a few times, you'll start grabbing some SERIOUS air, if you're so inclined. F/S bikes also work well for inner-city riding, when set up properly. Curb-hopping can be HARD on your sitz-bones. But, know that, with a F/S, when you pedal, a portion of your forward motion WILL be wasted going up and down. The newer bikes address this failing much better than my old Exotec (I don't even think they make Exotecs anymore), but, it is STILL a "feature" of F/S bikes. Just to a lesser degree. BUT, being able to bounce the WHOLE bike up a curb, just using your body weight is COOL!!!

Front suspension bikes, IMHO are good for fire roads, dirt roads, and, if you don't wanna pedal against the rear-suspension, good in the city, too. Get a suspension seat-post (about $20-$30 at www.performancebike.com, but I wudnt buy a bike from them, too expensive, you can do MUCH better, price-wise, at the X) if you go hard-tail (which is what we call bikes with ONLY a front suspension). They're also a semi-decent trade off for climbing vs. downhill, assuming your downhill's gonna be ALL dirtroad/firetrail.

Bikes w/o any sort of suspension are really only good for climbing, or driving over with a nice F-250 with a 10" lift and Jim-Bob sized tires. Oh, and kids. Kids riding, not being run over by trucks (Nimrod)... Sheeesh

In general:
GEARS - More gears means more versatility. Would you rather have a A4 w/4-speed, or w/6-speed? USE your gears, mostly since yu ain't no kid no more, and prolly NEED the torque multipication that comes with GEARS. But, also, because they come in handy on teh uphill parts, even the gentle uphill parts...

BRAKES - two basic types, with two sub categories each -
Rim brakes - these are the kind most of us are used to on our 10-speeds. Also called caliper brakes because they work on teh same principle. a cable pulls one side against the braking surface (in this case, the wheel rim), which forces the other side against the other side of the rim. VERY FEW manufacturers even sell these, any more.

There are also "center-pull" calipers, which pull each side equally against the wheel rim to apply braking force.

Then there are "Disc" brakes. Look and work very much like the brakes on your car... Only smaller! They come either cable operated (you generally need, or will develop Popeye-sized forearms to use them with any regularity), or hydraulic. The hydraulic ones come with ALL the hassels of regular hydraulic brakes... only smaller

Tires:
Depending on how/where you plan on riding. Knobbies, just like off-road car tires, work WONDERS off road. Not so great when it comes to city riding, tho. 15% (approx) of your effort, ON road, will be pedaling against the *****. They do have hybrid tires, designed to give you the WORST of both worlds.
Want some advce? If you're not prepared to have 2 biikes, one for city and one for off-road, at the very least, get a second set of wheels (just about ALL decent Mountain bikes come with quick-release cams, nowadays) and put knobbies on one set, road tires on teh other. Cheaper than a second bike.

The rest, in a nutshell:
-Spend GOOD money for a helmet that FITS. Obviously. If you don't... Ummm... Can I have your truck?
-Research and invest in a lighting system (not just the cheapo that screws onto your hand;le-bars, but that'd be $15.00 well spent, as a back-up/emergency solution). Also, get a rear light. NOt only does it let traffis SEE you, when you ride at night, but, allows your buds to follow while they eat your dust on those long downhill blasts. AND, for those rare occasions when you MISS the turn, can be used to signal rescue helicopters when your busted up at the bottom of some ravine, provided it survives teh impact, too!!!
-Clipless pedals and matching riding shoes/boots (I have boots, FWIW) GET SOME! And check/tighten the cleats BEFORE EVERY RIDE!!! If you do this every time it will not occur to you to thank me. If you forget, and it becomes an issue, you WILL a)kick yourself for not remembering to do so, and b)thank me
-Wet weather gear - I have Gore-Tex Jackets and pants, socks, and boots. I also have an assortment of riding gear specifically designed to wick moisture AWAY from my body.
-Hydration - One word - CAMELBAK
-1st Aid - You WILL fall, or you're not trying hard enough!!! Piece together a 1st-Aid kit. Band-Aids, Gauze, 1st-Aid tape, Bactine or other antiseptic, liquid-skin and some super-glue (actually works phenominally at closing open cuts and wounds, and, it's non-toxic. Plus whatever else you you feel you may need...
-What to carry all the excess crap in? - I use a medium ruck-sized backpack. Experience has taught me that, it's better to have and not use, than need and not have; ESPECIALLY when I'm going up in the hills (I don't ride hills much, here in DC, but, I still bring a 1st-Aid kit on EVERY ride), or out for an extended ride. Same with my CamelBak. And, spare batteries for the lights. Also, a brief check of teh weather the day before I ride lets me know if I should pack my wet-weather gear, just in case, too...

There's more, of course, but that's the basics. The rest you'll learn as you go.

 

Don't spend too much on your first decent bike. You can get a good F/S cross-country or trail bike for around $1000 nowadays from a decent mainstream brand - Trek, Specialized, Giant, Gary Fisher etc etc.

A decent Cannondale will set you back about $2000.

And a Custom frame will set you back about $4000 with XT. Titus, Ellsworth, Maverick, Ventana, Moots etc etc.

Stick with XT. It is plenty reliable and precise, and is not as costly to replace as XTR.

I have ridden a Trek Fuel and even though I am not a fan of mainstream brands the Fuel was an excellent bike. An entry level Specialized StumpJumper is also a great bike.

 

I think I am gonna go with the Trek 4300 w/ disc. It seems to be pretty good, especially for the 1st bike, it will probably be awhile before I can outride it, and it is only $490. So far that is what I'm leaning towards.