Bow Cycle Blue Light Sale

[XylathaneGTR]

GQBalla: A nice simple hard-tail.
Hydraulic disk brakes, front air-shock is nice (but not necessary, coil shock will do) with 100mm min travel, 2 or 3 chain rings up front, aluminum frame. You're looking somewhere in the $1,000 - 1,400 range to find something very well equipped. The market is extremely saturated at this price point.

Wheel size depends on your preference and may take some riding to figure it out. If you're going to be riding any twistier trails a 27.5 may be a good starting point as it 'combines the best of both worlds.' I prefer 29's, but they can be a bit stubborn on tight tracks.

examples include:
https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/b.../2040600-2017/

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-ca.../29186/100802/

http://www.bikes.com/en/bikes/fusion-29/2017?tid=76

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/me...comp-29/115498

http://www.norco.com/bikes/mountain/...untry/storm-9/

http://www.konaworld.com/fire_mountain.cfm

[GQBalla]

I did an online chat, and the guy recommends the Norco Sight.

Is that overkill for a newbie?

or might as well buy the best kind of thing right away?

[D'z Nutz]

Damn, that's a lot for a first bike. I guess you gotta ask yourself how committed you are to it.

And you really should be going down there and doing test rides on a few of the options in your price range. Some might ride better than others to you.

Personally if it were me, I'd go with something cheaper until you figure out what you want in a bike. I started off with a Kona Blast mountain bike for a couple years before I ended up going with a cyclocross. It was a great bike though, sometimes I wish I still had it.

[GQBalla]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz
Damn, that's a lot for a first bike. I guess you gotta ask yourself how committed you are to it.

And you really should be going down there and doing test rides on a few of the options in your price range. Some might ride better than others to you.

Personally if it were me, I'd go with something cheaper until you figure out what you want in a bike. I started off with a Kona Blast mountain bike for a couple years before I ended up going with a cyclocross. It was a great bike though, sometimes I wish I still had it.

That was what i was thinking.
I'm going to go down there today to talk to the guys.

maybe i can get a sweet deal for saturday/sunday

[GreyFox]

^^ Might be overkill, might not be, depends what you end up doing with it over the next few years.

There's 3 things I would consider, most have been covered already:

Budget - If you're under 2k, limit your options to a hardtail, regardless of the answers to the other questions. 2500 and up, you can start to look at full suspension.

What are you using it for? - If you're looking for something to perhaps commute every now and then or go for a nice pathway ride in the city and something you can take out to the mountains for some nice single track, you're better served by a hardtail. If you want something exclusively for the mountains only, perhaps it might be better to spring for a full suspension.

How committed are you to the sport? - If you've never done it before and this is a total test run, maybe stick with a hardtail in case you don't like it, might be a bit easier on the wallet or you can at least use it for other purposes. If you're fully committed, then maybe you look at spending more.

I spent a few k 4 years ago at the blue light sale and ended up with a full suspension for my very first bike and I haven't regretted it for a single moment. But I knew I was committed to the sport already. Had I bought the bike that I did and dropped it after a season, I probably would've been pretty choked.

[Mitsu3000gt]

^^ Lots of awesome full suspension bikes for ~$2K, especially last years models. My dad picked up a $3200 Rocky Mountain full suspension 5" XC bike with XT drivetrain for $1999 brand new.

$2300-2500 is the entry level for anything new and good though. That being said I wouldn't buy a hard tail for the $300-500 difference but YMMV. Certain types of riding just require different things as well. I will never buy a hard-tail again after seeing how good the new all mountains are.

For a newbie I would recommend any kind of last-year or end-of-season deal on a good quality full suspension (5-6" travel) All-mountain type bike. Something like a Giant Trance, Norco Fluid, or anything similar. Staying out of the boutique brands will also probably save you some more money.

[GQBalla]

How about Ghost brands at MEC?
https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5044-705/AMR-2-Bicycle

[Mitsu3000gt]

^^ Those are pretty good bikes, and they have some great sales sometimes. That one looks great for $1500.

[GQBalla]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
^^ Those are pretty good bikes, and they have some great sales sometimes. That one looks great for $1500.

would 5'8 be okay for a small?

[blitz]

Originally posted by GQBalla


would 5'8 be okay for a small?

I'm 5'9" and I ride a hartail version of that Ghost in small. It's an awesome bike

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by GQBalla


would 5'8 be okay for a small?

I'd say yes, that should be just fine. A lot of people like slightly smaller bikes regardless. I'm 5'10" and used to buy S or XS for my downhill bikes. My XC bike is a M but I've ridden an S before and honestly I can't even tell the difference most of the time. The MEC bike guys are prety good, they should be able to give you a decent fitting.

[GQBalla]

Went by bow cycle and they fitted me and said a medium is good. Small supposedly is to small. Maybe they were calling me fat in a nice way.

Have my eye on the 16 Norco Charger 7.2 Charcoal or 16 Norco Charger 7.0 Black/Orange/Charcoal

Any upgrades off the bat anyone recommends? The salesman recommended pedals. Water holder and a bell.

[XylathaneGTR]

Originally posted by GQBalla
Any upgrades off the bat anyone recommends? The salesman recommended pedals. Water holder and a bell.

Make sure the saddle fits your butt. You can have the width of the sit bones measured.

[Penguin_Racecar]

Originally posted by GQBalla
Went by bow cycle and they fitted me and said a medium is good. Small supposedly is to small. Maybe they were calling me fat in a nice way.

Have my eye on the 16 Norco Charger 7.2 Charcoal or 16 Norco Charger 7.0 Black/Orange/Charcoal

Any upgrades off the bat anyone recommends? The salesman recommended pedals. Water holder and a bell.

Frame sizing has to do with height (more specifically inseam and arm reach), nothing to do with weight.

Pedals would be a good upgrade - bikes come with test-ride pedals that aren't trail worthy. A bottle cage would be good for hitting trails. If you're not planning on riding pathways I wouldn't put a bell on it

Bow cycle has a new digital "assometer" (sitbone measurement device). They will be able to tell you what width saddle you should have. I had a bike fit done in summer and the saddle change made a massive difference in comfort.

[GQBalla]

going to stop by mec this week to see what they have as well

[msommers]

I'm also looking at getting a new saddle and it's not just that a size will fit you perfect, it's the shape too. I'm trialing 4 seats right now from MEC lol.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by GQBalla
Any upgrades off the bat anyone recommends? The salesman recommended pedals. Water holder and a bell.

I wouldn't upgrade anything until you've used it and discover something is lacking. The only extras I would buy right away would be anything required for proper fit/comfort, and obviously stuff like a helmet or clipless pedal shoes (if applicable) if you don't already own them.

[bigboom]

First thing I would buy is proper cycling shoes. If you're riding around in running shoes I will argue that nothing else fit wise on a bike will actually matter since runners are so soft and have so much cushion they deform anyways. When I say cycling shoes they don't have to be clipless pedal specific they can be bmx type shoes, trail shoes but they have to be for some sort of bike. These shoes have a thin sole and don't contain any cushioning.

After you get shoes, then get pedals.

Fit is important for sure but if you're starting out get the free fit that comes with a bike and don't worry about a proper fit until you've developed some fitness on the bike.

Saddles are important but here's the thing, if you've never spent much time on a bike any saddle is going to be uncomfortable until you again develop some cycling fitness. The position of your sitbones will change as you start riding anyways so start with the stock saddle and go from there. You won't actually know what you like in a saddle until you spend some time on the bike.

[D88]

Originally posted by GQBalla
going to stop by mec this week to see what they have as well

If you know someone who's already knowledgeable about mountain bikes, you may want to consider looking at used bikes as well. For the same price of a new hardtail, you can buy a really good used full suspension bike (people trade up to new models all the time and used bikes aren't worth a whole lot compared to what they were when new). You just need someone who knows what to look for as you don't want to be stuck with a bike that's going to give you more trouble than it's worth.

[jampack]

Anyone has gone to today's sales? How was the line up? Did they do the same system giving you a tag for what you want?