What bike?

il gatto

Hi all. Looking to buy a new bike and am looking for some advice. I'm looking for a mountain bike, around €300-€400ish. Trying to get fit again. Various sports have not worked out in the last few years and at least cycling I can do alone.:)

I was an avid cyclist up to about 14-15 years ago, and I had a Diamondback Topanga and associated bolt ons and kit. The bike is long knackered so I'm looking at buying a shiny new one.

My criteria are the price above, hardtail (oldschool), pref front suspension, pref disk brakes.

Back in the day, there was certain brands I lusted after, some of which seem to have gone by the wayside. Now I'm looking bikes up again, I keep coming across brands I never heard of and presuming they're cheap, am shocked to see the prices. Bianchi, Commencal etc. The bikes I always loved were Orange, Specialized, Kona, GT, Muddy Fox and Marin.

A spotted a Specialized Hardrock Sport Disk that I like the look of. The price is in my range(ish) and it looks nice. A few questions. It's referred to as a "jump" bike in some sites. I presume this means a more BMX geometry or somesuch (as in top tupe dipping to rear) and I suppose heavier frame gussets. I prefer the look of the dropped top tube and at 5'9" a 17" frame might be spot on with loads of dangly clearance:D Would it still be a good XC bike? What does it feel like weight wise and what is lighter for the same money? What standard is the equipment as I'm out of touch with the new kit? Are there any other bikes you would say are better for the money?

Sorry for all the questions, but things have moved on since Jon Tomac and Juli Furtado were world champions:D

Morgan

The Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc is not a jump bike - it's a cross country bike. Pretty much all mtbs these days have sloping top tubes.

http://www.specialized.com/gb/en/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=38436&eid=107

The Specialized would be a good bet for your money. In terms of components - they won't be particularly lightweight but they'll be solid and grand for getting you going. You probably wouldn't get better for the cash. Any bike around the same price from Giant, Trek, Lapierre, Kona, Scott etc. would be pretty comparable.

You'd be well advised to visit plenty of shops and try as many bikes as you can to see which you like the feel of. If you're in Dublin then Cycle Superstore, Cycle Inn, Cycleways, Cycleogical, Hollingsworth and Cycle Surgery would be worth dropping in to.

il gatto

That's the one, and if I'm not very much mistaken, it looks the absolute business in that colour:cool:

il gatto

Has anyone here ever dealt with Kearney's in Galway? They have the 2009 range of Specialized on their site.