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Euro_Trash
05-28-2009, 02:00 PM
What would you guys recommend for someone looking to get into trail riding in the mountains as a beginner? Would be looking to buy a used bike, so what kind of price range should I be expecting?
Any other tips?

flipstah
05-28-2009, 02:46 PM
For me, a good hardtail bike (shocks on the front only) would suffice for a beginner. Get a used one that you're comfortable with and just maintain it yourself so that it's hella cheap. Inspect it like a car and test-drive it around.

You don't really know if you're gonna like it or not yet so why waste $500 on a new bike?

Kennyredline
05-28-2009, 08:53 PM
As a "beginner", you should look at what kind of trial riding you want to do. If you you're just starting out, you'll need at least a front suspension, and I recommend going with clipless pedals, and I also recommend riding in a deserted, safe area while you're learning to ride with them, they'll take some getting used to.
For a first bike, you want good quality, because if you buy crap, the fun of riding will be very much diminished by having to fix your bike on the trial, or not being able to fix it at all yourself, thus ruining a ride.
$500 is a good starting point for a used bike, and Nose Hill Park is a good place to learn trial riding.

Adrenaline101
05-28-2009, 09:51 PM
I would check out the 2 forum post below this labelled : "help with hardtail decision" and "getting back into biking".

theres alot of discussion about used/vs new, where to find them for the best deals.

But to save you some time, if your not looking for a Can Tire/Sport Mart special type of bike your going to be looking at $400+ with taxes.

I know you mentioned going used, but you also said beginner so I figured Id mention the following.
If your not going to be going crazy hardcore, and disc brakes isnt a big deal to you, then you can get an entry level hardtail for a bit less than 400 brand new. Bowcycle.com has 3 under 425, a few between 425 and 500. And I think cyclepath has a few that barely scrape across the 500 mark with taxes, but you'd have to go in to check them out. These are all reliable, entry level good component bikes, and they wont kill your bank account.

Main thing to take into account is whether or not your going to use it enough to justify the costs.