I have 2 bikes, both are hybrids. One is a REI brand called a Novara Safari, and the other is a K2 brand called a Rosario. Neither was terribly expensive and both have been 100% reliable.

An interesting thing I found out about bikes is that they don’t depreciate much. I looked for a used bike for about a year ebay and craigslist and found that they depreciate about 20% max, providing they are not damaged, of course. After doing the research I decided to buy new as the cost difference was marginal.

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...Tracy

'00 ML320 "Casper"
'92 400E "Stella"

Get a non-suspendo bike, or if you really want suspension, get a hardtail, ie, front but no rear suspension. You don't really need the suspension unless you're jumping two foot curbs. The difference can be put into better parts, lock, helmet, a good backpack, swap out the seat for a nice gel seat, slicks, commuter headlight and tail light, rack, panniers.

I ride a Marin hardtail setup as a commuter/kid hauler. A MTB is nice because it comes with a triple chainring and if you're climbing lots of hills you might like this feature. I also got myself a nice little handlebar mounted light so I can see where I'm going at night.

Anyway you can get a pretty good REI brand bike for under $500. They'll be knocking 20% off those prices come fall if you can wait long enough. Please be safe though, wear a helmet.

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You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows - Robert A. Zimmerman

Twice, in the same thread, you hit your own butt while shooting from the lip . . . it must be a new record.

I didn't do any such thing......

you tell me how many people in college didn't think they should buy something that was overpriced just becasue it had a prestige to it................when something cheaper worked just as well............and that was money that should have been spent on more important things.....

Nearly every single one....

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Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
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Section 609 MVAC Certified
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"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

Any person who thinks a $200 bike "just as good" as a $1000 bike knows nothing about bicycles!

Oh, it's much more than bicycles . . .

a college student mooching off his parents doesn't NEED a $1,000 bike till he can earn enough to pay for his living expenses and all his education costs first.

A $200 bike gets you from point "A" to point "B" just as well as a $1,000 bike....only that $200 bike will be there when you get out of a late night class unlike the $1,000 bike.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

Bhd, just come out and say what you think . . bikes are too good for those students, make them walk barefoot thru the snow, uphill (I still have to figure it out how it was uphill both ways . . .) and against the wind. Why should you care what they spend on bikes, blue jean, copies of exams, kegs of beer or other college necessities?

My point is there actually are college students who honestly believe they have a right to live it up and waste their parents money on stupid things like a $1,000 bike when a $200 bike is reasonible...I have a $150 18 speed bike from Costco that is 12 years old ( I bought it new) and is functioning perfectly well....and you know I don't worry when I chain it to a bike rail either and it looks less than a year old still.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

How long have you held this resentment against your parents for not spending more, in both money and concern over your well being, on you during your teen years? I'm sure that if they had more to give, they would have.

I have no resentment against my parents.....and I never grew up thinking I was owed everything on a silver platter either....

I have little tollerance for the wealthy spoiled brats who think they are owed the best of everything......as long as someone else pays for it.....

but hey if you are fully self supporting and not living off mommy and daddy....then by all means get what you can afford, becasue then its YOUR money.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

In all seriousness, if you think a $1000 bike is living life on a silver platter you're clueless. Who cares what you think college kids should spend there money on...blah blah blah. It's there money. Who says it has to come from their parents anyway? 1000 bucks is not that hard to come by, even working part time.

If College students have no problem getting a $1,000 dollars then they shouldn't be mooching off their parents retirement fund wasting it on a $1,000 bicycle.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

bhd.. 1) Most students have loans, so its not a direct mooch off of their parents. They repay the gov't or bank wherever the loan came from. 2) A $200 bike is not as good as a $1000 bike. Quality, material and craftsmanship all play a key role in price.

I've seen those made-in-taiwan, heavy steel bikes that rust and look like crap within a year. My bike was about $600 back in 1996 and thats for a 20" dirt bike. Still to this day it looks like new.. performs great and nothing on the bike broke in the nearly 10 years of ownership.

I'd recommend a GT Speed series(thats if you're still looking for a smaller cruising bike, and not a larger multi-speed mountain bike many are talking about). I did a search on ebay and there's one bike that you can get thats very good for a very affordable price, granted that its used. Item # 7161071602.

bhd.. your advice sometimes makes me wonder if you're serious. I still don't know how serious you were when you were comparing your tuned Honda to a Ferrari.

Anyone who has loans out to the tune of 5 or 6 digits doesn't need the best of everything till their debts are paid...

There are billions of Bicycles in use in the world that are used daily, many of these will last a decade or more...and none of those are $1,000 range bicycles...

A toyota tercell makes an affordible reliable commuter car...you don't NEED a Ferrari testarosa...becasue it cost X times more and therefore must be X times better.

My $150 18 speed mountain bike I bought at Costco has given me 12 years of service without any problems....no $1,000 bike is going to beat that...and to top that off I am $850 ahead of the SOB who bought that $1,000 bike....not to mention the fact I am not worrying about someone stealing it.

And I am dead serious about my tuned Honda compared to a 308GTS....My car will run rings around that car and its total cost was less than the Major service for the ferrari will cost..

But hey if showing off is paramont and you are trying to find golddigging women then the Ferrari is better....but that Ferrari is not the top of the pile in performance....

The Ford GT they are building.......an American car that for $153K list will beat every single car built in the world with the exception of the Far , far more expensive Ferrari Enzo....

Just becasue something is more expensive doesn't make it better.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche