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| *Vultures Knob>>>Street Bike |
Looking for an affordable, but good quality bike for a college student? |
Hi, i am a new college student who is going to be going to a big campus and am looking for a good bike. i would like one that is comfortable for riding around on streets and slightly rough terrain that you would expect around a school that will hopefully last me a few years. Understandably i am on a tight budget and around 200 to 300 dollars is my limit, if it would be worth it i might be able to stretch a little further, but not much. Any ideas on brands or specific models would be great. thanks I would take a look at some "hybrid" type bikes. These bikes are a hybrid between road and mountain bike. As such, they usually have a somewhat upright stance of a mountain bike that is more comfortable for commuting. At your price point, they probably will not have a suspension fork, but that isn't too necessary unless you are riding on horrible roads. A hybrid will usually have wider tires than a road bike, but won't usually have the knobbies of a mountain bike. This gives them good traction, but fairly low rolling resistance. Right now is a good time to be looking for a bicycle. The 2008 models are coming out and most bicycle shops are hoping to clear out their 2007 and even 2006 inventories. So, you may be able to get a good deal. I would take a look at the following: Trek: http://www2.trekbikes.com/bikes/subcateg... Specialized: http://www.specialized.com/bc/sbcbkmodel... Cannondale: http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/07/cusa/... You may also like the look and feel of Townie type bikes. http://www.electrabike.com/06_new/flash_... Good luck. If it was me, I'd garbage pick something that didn't look in bad shape and put it in good working order. You're using it for basic transportation, but probably not for any distances longer than a couple miles at a time, so you don't need anything fancy or fast. At the same time, you don't want to catch the eye of people with sticky fingers. "works good, looks terrible" is what you want. I did something similar for my niece a few years ago. Garbage picked an old Scwinn, redid all the bearings and running gear, so it ran great, then painted it camouflage with Rustoleum brown and 70's Refrigerator green. Painted the spokes, tires, everything but the seat and handlebars. Looked like a wreck. She had it for four years, never locked it, it was never stolen. That's great Silverbullet. Here's a thumbs up for ya. Dcm - Silverbullet's answer is a good one, but if you do want to by something new, don't go with something too expensive or expensive looking for a campus cruiser. Go to Target or Walmart and spend like $100 - $150. The have some decent bikes there that will get you were you need to go. Stay away from a full suspension mt. bike from these stores though, they are extremely heavy, not efficient while riding on flat, hard pavement and just a waste of money. If you think you will need some kind of suspension, go with one that has a front suspension only. They have some decent Mongoose bikes at those stores. I would not buy one of the bikes from Target or Walmart, they are made VERY cheaply and do not last. You would be much better off following Silverbullet's advice or looking through the newspaper or garage sales or even free-give away sites. Where I live (Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN) there is a website where people can post all sorts of thing they want to give away (http://www.twincitiesfreemarke... Bikes are often on that list. If you are having to ride over anything rougher than regular road or bike path, look for a hybrid bike or even a mountain bike. For commuting I like to ride my mountain bike with skinnier (for a mountain bike) tires on it. I don't have to worry as much about potholes or loose gravel or rocks like I do with my road bike so I can just plow straight ahead along the side of the road. Good Luck! Oh, one more thing, in college, my bike lived in my room. I didn't let it sit outside at the bike rack. You can find a way to make that happen. My bikes still live in my house. They are just too precious to me. |
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