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Oh, I forgot to add about the recumbents: out of my price range and I'd be concerned with that low profile riding in traffic with all those giant SUVs.
Thanks for the good advice and tips so far! The Electra Townie is definitely on my list to check out when we go to Tacoma next week and can stop by the R.E.I. store there. (I understand you can only purchase them through R.E.I., whatever...)
How about the Kona Africabike 3? Anyone heard of this? Check out this excerpt from a British review site:
"So what's it like? well, as you might expect for a bike designed to handle the unmade roads of sub-Saharan Africa, it's sturdy. The frame is a step-through design in plain gauge Cromoly, the fork Kona's excellent and dependable P2. Bolted (literally) to that are hardy 26" wheels sporting excellent Conti 1.75" rubber and a Nexus three speed transmission – the bike is also available as a singlespeed."
(Some nice pictures on that site, too.)
Best price I found for the Kona around here is $399.
The kona bike is a good simple bike that , with it's steel frame, will serve very well for both causal riding as well as cow trail riding. If you find the gears to be a bit to high have a bike shop change out the front chainring for a smaller one which will lower all 3 speeds.
FWIW, I've cycled all my life (55+ of 64 yrs) so I have a strong preference for both a steel frame ( I won't own/ride an aluminum frame bike of any kind) and an internal hub with the good ol' 3 speed being on many of my bikes.
So for a recreational rider, a $250.00 schwinn from target with a good tuneup is that much worse than a $600.00 schwinn from a bike store? I have had box store bikes that held up to me as a teenager, it was my high end BMX bike that didnt....
Thanks for the good advice and tips so far! The Electra Townie is definitely on my list to check out when we go to Tacoma next week and can stop by the R.E.I. store there. (I understand you can only purchase them through R.E.I., whatever...)
After reading this I went to the Electra website and looked for dealers in Tacoma. There are two (not R.E.I.) in Tacoma and several other bike shops, but I'm not sure if they're close to you.
e l e c t r a (http://www.electrabike.com/home.php - broken link)
1. Old Town Bicycle, 3009 McCarver St., Tacoma, 253-573-9400
2. Bike Tech, 5408 S. Tacoma Way, Tacoma, 253-472-2453
that was less than 10 years ago, bikes have changed that much?
There have been tremendous changes in bike technology in the last ten years. Too numerous to enumerate. But one of the most significant is the PRICE of various components - and assembled bikes in general. I pay as much for a new bike seat now as I did for an entire bicycle in my younger years.
Titanium and carbon fiber components account for many advances, along with disc brakes, shock absorbers and articulated suspensions, wheel & spoke designs, etc.
My bmx bikes were pretty simple, but tough. Although I did trash my racing bike on a downhill accident (you can read about that in the "most memorable ride" thread). My GT flatland bike with gyros and pegs and high-spoke wheels, forged aluminum crankset, etc was still in tip top shape when i sold it, and that thing had been through hell... my new cheapo mountain bike from wally world can't even handle me riding a wheelie without the rear wheel moving in the frame and the tire rubbing...
So for a recreational rider, a $250.00 schwinn from target with a good tuneup is that much worse than a $600.00 schwinn from a bike store? I have had box store bikes that held up to me as a teenager, it was my high end BMX bike that didnt....
If it was a very high-end (read: light weight) BMX bike then it was probably intended for racing on a dirt track. It wouldn't be expected to hold up to daily teenage-abuse (bashing the rims into curbs, being left outside in the rain etc).
Also, decent bike-shop bicycles start at ~$300, not $600. It's misinformation such as yours that leads people to make costly mistakes (i.e. buying THREE throw-away department store bicycles instead of ONE good quality bike in the first place).
Anyone who drops $250 at Target or Walmart for a bicycle is a fool well-parted with his money. The most one should ever spend there is $89, and only then if the plan is to ride the bike once or twice and then let it rust in the rain.
Another reason to check out the bike shops: used bikes. A used bicycle that is selling for $100-300 will usually have started life in the $300-600 range and will give the rider more bang for the buck.
It sounds like the OP is on the right track. The Electra brand is good, but you may also want to check out Novarra (REI's house brand) and the other big players: Trek, Specialized, Giant.
Good luck and happy riding!
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