What's a good bicycle to buy for my first bike? For Urban mostly and some trails?

Question

I am wanting to buy a bicycle to use to ride around campus, which is about a 5 miles a day, but i was also wanting to use it to take it in the trails in the state forest's in the area. Its in the Southern Tennessee area near Chattanooga. I wont be an extreme biker but occasionally would like to take it on some trails!

Answer 1

go to a local tri-athlete shop. they usually carry new or used bikes. if you are not really sure what you want they can help you. you can save allot of money if you buy a used one, if you find that you do not like it the shop may be able to sell it for you. most bike tires have a 700cm radius, but if you are a short person or would like a bike with more agility then you might want to look at a bike with 650cm tires. also look into proper frame size, a person that is about 5'9" would need a bike frame of 50-52cm.

most road bikes have the capability to go off road, but if you plan on doing allot of off roading then you need an off road bike. for securing your bike i would recommend cable & lock, that way you can secure the frame and the tires from being stolen. if the state where you purchase the bike requires a licence tag/sticker, then it would be a good idea to do so, the licence tag/sticker helps to identify the bike should it be stolen.-blurey

Answer 2

A hardtail mountain bike will fit the bill in your case since you wanna ride some off-road (its a blast!).  Maybe invest in a 2nd set of tires for the urban jungle so you dont wear out your knobbies on pavement.    Changing tires only takes about 10 minutes anyway..    Or, you could do like I did a few years ago:  I bought a complete second set of wheels for my MTB;  1.5" slicks for pavement, and my WTB Velociraptors 2.1" for the fun stuff.   Switching wheels takes 3 minutes or less.

Answer 3

depends on the trails... rail trails, commuter bike?  get a hybrid.

gravel trails, commuter bike?  get a Gary Fisher urban or city bike

single track?  get a hard tail like a stumpjumper with some clay track tires.

hard single track?  get a dual suspension rock jumper.