Advice for returning cyclist

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
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CyclingJack
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Joined: 1 Nov 2016, 1:05pm

Advice for returning cyclist

Post by CyclingJack »

I am a 'lapsed' cyclist, and have decided that it's time to get back in to the hobby that i used to love so much 20+yrs ago.

I could do with some advice on three fronts:
1. Which bike to choose? - I have a budget of around £700-£900 and I'm looking for something that I can ride off-road on simple trails, bridleways, towpaths etc, but will also be able to get me around on the roads a little bit as well.

2. I have a couple of old bikes that I want to sell that will hopefully fund the new bike, one is a 1993 Marin Rocky Ridge Aluminium frame MTB in pretty good condition, and one is a good condition Dino recumbent built by the now defunct Radius company - I'm wondering how much I could expect to get for these machines as I would like to use the sale to fund the new bike(s)

3. IF the sale of the above gets enough I fancy a road bike as well, any suggestions for this?

Thanks in advance for the advice and looking forward to getting back in the saddle again!
whoof
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Joined: 29 Apr 2014, 2:13pm

Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by whoof »

If you loose the knobblies, put 26" touring tyres and mudguards on your Marin and you will have a bike that will do all the riding you have listed very capably.
hamster
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Joined: 2 Feb 2007, 12:42pm

Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by hamster »

I absolutely agree. Tidy up and ride the Marin, then start to think about what sort of riding you enjoy best. Your Rocky Ridge is one of the last of the completely 'do it all' sort of mountain bikes. Tyres like Schwalbe Marathons will make it fully capable of brisk progress on tarmac while still completely usable on towpaths and gravel.
rmurphy195
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Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by rmurphy195 »

whoof wrote:If you loose the knobblies, put 26" touring tyres and mudguards on your Marin and you will have a bike that will do all the riding you have listed very capably.


This is the best way forward to get you going. When I was a "returning" cyclist I bought one of the (then!) new-fangled mountain bikes (a Saracen) - I had to fit mudguards and a rack to it, and it was fun! Nice low gears, handy gearchangers, very powerful brakes, it got me back into cycling. This was about 25 years ago when I was in my early 40's.

I later bought a Peugeot tourer, then upgraded to a Dawes Galaxy when someone broke into the garage and nicked the bikes - so the insurance paid for the upgrade!

Now have a modern tourer, a Brompton, and another mountain bike I bought a little over 30 years ago to go out in the forest with my son/nephews and friends.

So put on the tyres (marathons or somesuch), mudguards and maybe a rack and you are all set - a home-built "hybrid"!
Brompton, Condor Heritage, creaky joints and thinning white (formerly grey) hair
""You know you're getting old when it's easier to ride a bike than to get on and off it" - quote from observant jogger !
niggle
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Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by niggle »

+1 to all the above and don't go selling the Dino yet either, it might be your final choice of steed (must be a good reason you bought it in the first place) and will be hard to replace later.

So the basic advice is: use what you have, with minor alterations as required such as tyres, and get out riding. Later you may have a clearer idea of what bike you now want, but OTOH you may just fall back in love with one or two old friends.
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NATURAL ANKLING
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Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by NATURAL ANKLING »

Hi,
Yes the old MTB is always overlooked, it has every thing that tourers want and then they resort to a CX with titanium bottle holders bike for loadsamoney :mrgreen:
NA Thinks Just End 2 End Return + Bivvy - Some day Soon I hope
You'll Still Find Me At The Top Of A Hill
Please forgive the poor Grammar I blame it on my mobile and phat thinkers.
CyclingJack
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Joined: 1 Nov 2016, 1:05pm

Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by CyclingJack »

Wow!

Thanks for all the advice guys and girls, I think I detect a bit of a theme there.

Think I might give your suggestions a go with a little help from my local bike shop as I need a little help to get it going, mainly because the Marin has some old elastomer forks on which I guess are rock solid now. I still have the original Marin forks so maybe I will get them to refit and do a little service while they're at it. (I could NEVER get the hang of setting up centre pull brakes or breaking and connecting chains without stiff links)

It already has a flat rack on the back, and an old 'crud catcher' on the front so no need for mudguards.

If all goes well I may well post some pics here when it's done.
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freiston
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Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by freiston »

My personal opinion/what I would do - definitely put the rigid forks back on - Schwalbe Marathons, a rear rack and some proper mudguards like SKS 26" mudguards.
Disclaimer: Treat what I say with caution and if possible, wait for someone with more knowledge and experience to contribute. ;)
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pjclinch
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Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by pjclinch »

CyclingJack wrote:Think I might give your suggestions a go with a little help from my local bike shop as I need a little help to get it going, mainly because the Marin has some old elastomer forks on which I guess are rock solid now. I still have the original Marin forks so maybe I will get them to refit and do a little service while they're at it.


If they're solid it would save you refitting the originals... but one way or another a rigid fork is probably better. Suspension is nice on properly rough stuff but unless it's particularly designed for roads (like a Moulton's), suspension will generally just add weight for little gain in most places. All you need for simple off-road is non-skinny, non-slick tyres.

CyclingJack wrote:It already has a flat rack on the back, and an old 'crud catcher' on the front so no need for mudguards.


Actual mudguards are much more effective if you're not in a swamp, and add a mudflap at the front and you'll keep a lot of crud off the transmission too, which given the amount of salt the council had on the road this morning is starting to be a consideration.

Pete.
Often seen riding a bike around Dundee...
andrich
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Joined: 1 Nov 2014, 9:10pm

Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by andrich »

I returned a couple of years ago, and bought a Ridgeback Voyage touring bike, as my old bike was really past it. However, now I'm not so sure whether it is right for what I am doing. If your existing steed is still suitable, then stick with it until you know what you really, really want
hercule
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Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by hercule »

The Marin is probably worth more to you than anyone else, I suspect selling it will raise only a fraction of your budget. You'd do far better to repair/replace as necessary and when/if you do buy a "good" bike you've got a hack to fall back on when the weather is awful.

eBay prices can be unpredictable, your Radius Dino could easily meet your budget target depending on the condition and how it's sold. BUT I'd agree with Niggle, hang on to it. It's not going to depreciate and you'll never be able to replace it. They don't make them like that any more, and Radius had a reputation for high quality machines. Even if you don't use it much, it's as close to an investment as you can get in cycling. Trading it in for a modern bike in the £700 range is a bit like trading in a classic Rolls Royce for a new Hyundai... well perhaps I exaggerate, but not that much!

Disclosure: I was seriously smitten with the Dino's bigger brother the Peer Gynt and only something stupid called common sense stopped me buying one. It took nearly 15 years before I saw the good sense of getting a recumbent and I wouldn't give them up now, though I still ride uprights a fair part of the time.

PS if you do want to sell the Dino, you know where I am.... :D :D :D
andrewk
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Re: Advice for returning cyclist

Post by andrewk »

I second the advice given. Fix and keep the Marin, use it to get you back into cycling, it'll take some time to figure out what kind of bike you really want. Better to wait and buy the right bike than to go through a progression of machines that don't really do it for you.
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