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Choosing type of mtn bike for beginner rider

kimmyt

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My kid is getting his first pedal bike for Christmas and I want to get a mountain bike so we can ride together as he gets older. I'm a bit overwhelmed at all the choices, and don't really have too much time to demo with two small children constantly running around. I can get a pretty sweet deal on a certain bike but it would be a mid-higher end hardtail. I feel like this might be a good option because some of my time on the bike will be spent on normal rails to trails and pulling our bike trailer, while other times will mostly be on easy-moderate singletrack with friends. Does a hardtail sound like a good fit or should I only be looking at full suspension?

Sorry if this is a dumb question, I have little experience with mountain biking (moderate experience with road bikes etc) and am also being a bit price conscious because I am not sure how into it I will get. I am thinking that for the price I can get this bike, I might be able to upgrade in a few years to something with full suspension...

K.
 

luliski

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My kid is getting his first pedal bike for Christmas and I want to get a mountain bike so we can ride together as he gets older. I'm a bit overwhelmed at all the choices, and don't really have too much time to demo with two small children constantly running around. I can get a pretty sweet deal on a certain bike but it would be a mid-higher end hardtail. I feel like this might be a good option because some of my time on the bike will be spent on normal rails to trails and pulling our bike trailer, while other times will mostly be on easy-moderate singletrack with friends. Does a hardtail sound like a good fit or should I only be looking at full suspension?

Sorry if this is a dumb question, I have little experience with mountain biking (moderate experience with road bikes etc) and am also being a bit price conscious because I am not sure how into it I will get. I am thinking that for the price I can get this bike, I might be able to upgrade in a few years to something with full suspension...

K.
I'm not an experienced mountain biker, but last summer I bought my first full-suspension mountain bike. I had borrowed or rented full-sus bikes a few times before, but did not demo before buying.
The bike I got received good reviews , but is very entry level. The gearing is pretty tough for the climbing at the places I ride, and the bike is heavy. I think the weight of the bike makes it harder to handle. If I had to do it over again I would go with a higher-end and lighter hardtail.
 

DoryBreaux

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A friend of mine who used to own a shop often tells me he would sell people on higher end bikes by telling them "if you buy the cheaper one, you're just going to be back in here in a few months either upgrading broken parts or buying the nicer bike after all!" I think this is true, to a point. Once you've decided on what type of bike, get the best you can in your budget.

As for what type of bike, we need some more info. Where do you live and where do you intend to do most of your riding? How often will you get out? What type of singletrack might you find yourself on?
 

Plai

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Get a quality hardtail for the use cases you describe. You'll be more efficient and therefore more comfortable. There's also the less maintenance with the hard tail.

Full suspension is for when things get bumpy and you need to keep the wheels on the ground. Things like bumps, ruts, steeper (read switch backs) climbs.

That said, if you want the FSR, go for it.

Maybe think of getting a used hardtail and save the money for the full suspension later.
 

DoryBreaux

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Get a quality hardtail for the use cases you describe. You'll be more efficient and therefore more comfortable. There's also the less maintenance with the hard tail.

Full suspension is for when things get bumpy and you need to keep the wheels on the ground. Things like bumps, ruts, steeper (read switch backs) climbs.

That said, if you want the FSR, go for it.

Maybe think of getting a used hardtail and save the money for the full suspension later.

Depending on the terrain you will be riding I second this. Get a high(er) end hard tail and you'll be stoked. Terrain depending of course (hardtail in Tahoe=masochist)
 

Crank

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I know a lot of people who ride hard tails. I like full suspension because it saves my lower back. A lighter, better bike will handle better and be more fun. Your idea of buying a decent hard tail sounds like the right way to go for you.
 

AmyPJ

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I'm a big proponent of getting the best bike you can afford, with full suspension being a must, unless you never think you'll ride anything but smooth singletrack (which is hard to come by in most mountain regions.) If you get out there and find that you LOVE mtb, you'll quickly wish you had a FS bike.
 

Monique

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@kimmyt A mutual friend of ours who is a much stronger rider than me got a 29er fat tire hard tail. The theory is that the fatter tires make up some for the lack of rear suspension.

Her bike was still not terribly cheap, but there are a lot more options these days than just hard tail vs full suspension. (It's overwhelming!)
 

trailtrimmer

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Will you always be riding with the kids, or will you be tearing it up solo and with other adults?

A hardtail will teach you to be a smoother rider and to pick your lines a little more selectively. No shock rebuilds or bushing replacements needed as well, but if all you have are rocky trails, then you may not like the experience. You can easily add a Thudbuster ST to take a lot of the edge off small bumps and still maintain simplicity and efficiency. In Michigan, there are less than a handful of trails where a full suspension bike makes any improvement, but half the trails I rode on in NC would be better suited to a fully.

What is your terrain like?
 

Crank

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Fat tires more than make up for lack of suspension. They are more suspenseful than any xc bike. I think there are full suspension fat tires bikes ( I haven't seen any) and those must be one plush and heavy ride. I did a group ride last year and one of the guys was on a fat tire bike; I could not follow his lines without getting completely rattled and thrown about. I think you add lot of rolling resistance with the fat tires though. I also think they re kind of silly for regular trail and road riding and would save it for snow or beaches. A lot of the riders in my local NEMBA group have fat tire bikes but only use them for winter riding. These guys are like us with skis - they have quivers... FSR, hard tail, single speeds, etc.
 

Tom K.

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I can get a pretty sweet deal on a certain bike but it would be a mid-higher end hardtail. I feel like this might be a good option because some of my time on the bike will be spent on normal rails to trails and pulling our bike trailer, while other times will mostly be on easy-moderate singletrack with friends. Does a hardtail sound like a good fit or should I only be looking at full suspension?

I'm a full suspension guy in almost every way, but for the use and circumstances you're describing, I think you're on the exact right track.

If the mtb bug really "bites" get an FS bike in a few years. Keep the hardtail. Every serious cyclist should have one, and IMO, they are better gravel bikes than the actual "gravel bikes" everybody is pushing these days.

Although the gravel bikes everybody is pushing these days are also better road bikes for most people than actual "road bikes"!
 
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kimmyt

kimmyt

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A friend of mine who used to own a shop often tells me he would sell people on higher end bikes by telling them "if you buy the cheaper one, you're just going to be back in here in a few months either upgrading broken parts or buying the nicer bike after all!" I think this is true, to a point. Once you've decided on what type of bike, get the best you can in your budget.

As for what type of bike, we need some more info. Where do you live and where do you intend to do most of your riding? How often will you get out? What type of singletrack might you find yourself on?

So, I live in the Front Range of Colorado. I am not super familiar with what the trails would be like, but I would do most of my riding with @Monique (if she took it easy on me) or @RachelV so maybe they can weigh in. I'm envisioning local trails with some rocks and stuff but don't foresee really pushing things technically for a few years anyway as I don't have all that much free time. Maybe a trip once a year or something to Moab, but I would be riding with kids there so it would definitely be nontechnical trails. Not rails to trails, but still.

The bike I am looking at is this REI co-op one and I can get it for 50% off so its a really good deal. I think I am going to go ahead with it because I really feel that this is the way to go. I'm sure maybe in a few years I might want to upgrade but I am ok with it at that point in time. In the meanwhile I think it will be good to learn to ride and learn what I like and don't like in bikes before I go full hog.
 

scott43

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I'm not sure you mentioned age. But first pedal bike to me means five or six? If so consider that any fs nine you get will be a very large percentage of his body weight. I personally would get a lighter bike. Hard tail with suspension fork. Remember he's very light and strong compared to us. He probably won't really use fs until he's older..
 

Monique

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Fat tires more than make up for lack of suspension. They are more suspenseful than any xc bike. I think there are full suspension fat tires bikes ( I haven't seen any) and those must be one plush and heavy ride. I did a group ride last year and one of the guys was on a fat tire bike; I could not follow his lines without getting completely rattled and thrown about. I think you add lot of rolling resistance with the fat tires though. I also think they re kind of silly for regular trail and road riding and would save it for snow or beaches. A lot of the riders in my local NEMBA group have fat tire bikes but only use them for winter riding. These guys are like us with skis - they have quivers... FSR, hard tail, single speeds, etc.

I may also have the details wrong - she might be on a 27.5+ hard tail.

So, I live in the Front Range of Colorado. I am not super familiar with what the trails would be like, but I would do most of my riding with @Monique (if she took it easy on me) or @RachelV so maybe they can weigh in. I'm envisioning local trails with some rocks and stuff but don't foresee really pushing things technically for a few years anyway as I don't have all that much free time. Maybe a trip once a year or something to Moab, but I would be riding with kids there so it would definitely be nontechnical trails. Not rails to trails, but still.

Well, it kinda depends what you want. Until I rode with the above-mentioned rider, I would have sworn that you really want to have a full suspension bike for the rock on trails around here, just from a comfort level. But now seeing that friend tear it up, I'm no longer sure. I'm also not sure how much of that is just that she's a better rider.

There are some mellow trails around here - most of Marshall Mesa and Doughty Draw, for example, and Table Mountain (is that the name?) just before Golden. There are also a lot of much rockier trails. But I see plenty of people on hardtails. You are absolutely right that you can get higher end components if you go for a hardtail. Also, maintenance wise, air fork rebuilds run a couple of hundred dollars IIRC. Not that you need those frequently, but suspension forks add to maintenance costs.

I'm not sure you mentioned age. But first pedal bike to me means five or six? If so consider that any fs nine you get will be a very large percentage of his body weight. I personally would get a lighter bike. Hard tail with suspension fork. Remember he's very light and strong compared to us. He probably won't really use fs until he's older..

The child in question is younger than that, but she's not asking about a bike for the kiddo - she's asking about a bike for herself. (I also was a bit confused at first.)
 

apache

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My vote would be the HT. I've been MTBing since the beginning of the sport. I've gone from HT to FS back to a HT. Hardtails will make you a more thoughtful rider. Smooth is fast on a HT. So, you'll learn to pick better lines. I demoed a fat tire bike in Breck once. I hated the marked increase in q-factor. Plus, I think one wheel weighed more than my entire Niner HT. :eek:
 

Lauren

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The bike I am looking at is this REI co-op one and I can get it for 50% off so its a really good deal. I think I am going to go ahead with it because I really feel that this is the way to go. I'm sure maybe in a few years I might want to upgrade but I am ok with it at that point in time. In the meanwhile I think it will be good to learn to ride and learn what I like and don't like in bikes before I go full hog.

I think you're on the right track with this pup. Solid build of components, not the bottom of the line, but not top end either. For 50% off you've got yourself a solid bike that will do everything from easier trails, or just putzing around the neighborhood with the kiddos. You can always upgrade components, and the front shock if you really take to biking. Or as others have said, upgrade the whole thing if it comes down to you really enjoying yourself on the trails. If you take trips out to Moab, like you mentioned, there's tons of bike shops that you could rent from for a day.

I think of hardtails kind of like the "skinny" skis of biking. They're better to learn technique on. If you learn on fat skis (full suspension bike), you're going to find chopped up snow and powder pretty easy to learn, yet when you get to a groomer the tail pushing, sliding and overall lack of technique will show. You come across a few really good riders that can ride a hardtail on anything, then you have the rest of us that will break out the fat skis.
 
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kimmyt

kimmyt

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I'm not sure you mentioned age. But first pedal bike to me means five or six? If so consider that any fs nine you get will be a very large percentage of his body weight. I personally would get a lighter bike. Hard tail with suspension fork. Remember he's very light and strong compared to us. He probably won't really use fs until he's older..

Oh, my son is almost four and we just spent entirely too much money on his first pedal bike. I'm justifying it because he really really tears it up on his strider bike at the bike park despite having basically worn through the wheels, so I think he'll get some good use out of it. The bike I speak of in this thread would be for me to use so I could ride with him since all I have is a road bike. Also, my husband is only a smidge taller than me so while it won't fit him perfectly, he could potentially use a mountain bike I buy if he needs to (whereas its unlikely that I could ride a bike of his).
 

newfydog

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If budget is on any concern, my vote is hard tail for the use you describe, A higher end HT would be far better than a FS of lower quality. We have them both, and have fun on both.

Biking is very fashion oriented. There must be some killer deals out there on bikes with old features like 26" wheels, 3X9 shifting. etc. If you go out on the trails here there is nothing but the latest and greatest and people would rather be seen in lime green rear entry boots than anything less, but many of those "obsolete" bikes are still darn good. (unlike the old boots)
 

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