Choosing a moutain bike

[enfier]

My son started school recently (age 5) and it's about 9 miles each way, twice a day. I ran the numbers on driving my truck, which was intended to be long distance/towing trips mostly and it costs us about $0.45 per mile or $8 per day to make this commute. The plan was to walk/bike all the short trips but we didn't plan on my son going to a school 9 miles away when we rented our place. So my previous intention to buy a mountain bike when inventory and prices return to normal has become a lot more of a priority. I could be making 50% of those trips by bike with the right equipment.

The problem is my current bike is a road bike. It worked great in previous towns, but I live in a town that is heavily into mountain biking now and is tied together via bike trails. There isn't a safe road path to his school, but there are rather level mountain bike trails that can be used to get there. Well the last 1/3 of a mile is currently rather brushy so getting a trailer through would be impossible. Given that it's costing me $4 per weekday to not have a mountain bike, I'm now ready to spend some money on it.

The problem is my town is so heavily into mountain biking that prices are through the roof. Most bike shops have nothing in stock. I checked around at a few shops and found a Nakto entry level mountain bike for $650, Costco has a no name bike for $350 with cheap forks (no lock out, poor fork design) and another bike store had a Marin Bobcat Trail 3 https://www.marinbikes.com/bikes/2022-bobcat-trail-3 in stock for $700. At least that bike one is selling for MSRP and is exactly my size with the features I want.

The used market is cleared out too.. there are a few older bikes in the $300-$350 range but they are all dated entry model bikes. I'm pretty sure it's a location dependent problem... I can find much better deals used in other cities, but I'm about 100 miles away from a bigger city and that's a $90 road trip. To complicate things, mountain bikes have actually improved over the years and some of the newer features like a 29" tire would be rather useful since I care about cycling efficiency. I probably also want forks that lock out so it won't slow me down when I'm on pavement.

For my previous bike, I bought a new, entry level road bike. Given all the miles I put on it, I somewhat regret not spending a little more on it. Of course it would be impossible to know that at the time I bought it. So for this purchase I'm considering buying something that's better than entry level but not super expensive like a carbon frame. I also want something with a recognizable name brand like Giant, Marin, Diamondback, Specialized, Trek because then it's a lot easier to move used later on if I need to.

The problem is... if I get the $700 bike and then spend $340 to get the tandem bike attachment for my son's bike, that's a $1040 expense. Running some back of the napkin math... if there are 180 school days and weather doesn't prevent riding for 150, that's $600 saved over the first school year.

An alternative would be picking up a used Nissan Leaf, I found one for $5000 with a decent amount of battery life left and got the skinny on those from a shop that replaces Nissan Leaf batteries (a ~$10k expense). Getting an electric vehicle and powering it using solar is on our eventual list - my wife refuses to bike around so we'd need something for in town transportation. Also, just using my current vehicle isn't the worst in the short term and buying a used sedan that gets good gas mileage is also a possibility.

Moving closer may be an option, we are renting right now and looking to buy a house eventually but the house market has really low inventory right now so we are postponing. Switching schools isn't an option, he's in a really good charter school and we want to keep him there. It's also K-12 so we probably will be there for a long time. I'm a little hesitant to drop a bunch of money on it if our location might change to where walking would be an option. Although I will say that I'm going to need a mountain bike in this town eventually, it's just not well suited for road bikes and the bike is my preferred transportation method.

So I'm really open to suggestions. I'm having a hard time deciding between these options. The truck cost is definitely a drain on the budget right now and we should figure out something to solve it in the next few months I would expect.

[theanimal]

Have you looked at ebay? I've had good luck getting bikes from there. The most limiting factor for me is shipping since I'm much further than almost anyone else. But I don't imagine that'll be an issue for you.

[AxelHeyst]

If the trails are pretty mellow, almost any other kind of bike + as fat of tires as you can fit on it might work, have you considered that you don't need a legit mtb? Perhaps getting a wheelset with wider rims for your road bike that you can put gravel tires on?

[enfier]

I haven't tried Ebay yet, I've been looking at Facebook marketplace and Craigslist. It might make a lot of sense to get one shipped, I could get something better than entry level used. I've also been checking other areas where I could get a relative to do the buy and pick it up when we visit. Unfortunately you can't really sit on it to size it.

I'm also thinking of joining a mountain bike club, I figure there are lots of people in town that have an unused bike sitting in their garage.

The gravel tires on an existing bike isn't a bad idea... My wife's bike is collecting dust since she's pregnant and it's a commuter bike that would probably take a gravel tire. Right now I don't know how technical it's going to be... The last third of a mile is basically cross country and there's a shortcut that would shave off 2 miles but my map rates it as technical riding.

As for getting an actual mountain bike, I'm going to want one eventually as I live in a big mountain biking town, I can ride out my front door and it's a relatively cheap hobby. Maybe I can get to my kids school on a gravel tire without any suspension but it would be a temporary solution.

[enfier]

Also forgot to mention, I'm going to walk the route on Monday and possibly rent a bike to actually run through it once before I consider buying a bike. I need to make sure it's actually passable and get an idea of how challenging it's going to be, especially if I take the more challenging shortcut.

Right now I'm leaning towards continuing to just drive until winter. Hopefully demand for mountain bikes goes down and supply catches up a bit. Plus our lease is up in October, if they raise the rent we may move anyways which might change our situation.

We are going to probably buy a house once real estate inventory returns to normal, but who knows when that will be. Unfortunately the school is in an odd location away from the town center. Where we live, houses go for $200k to $300k but houses near the school run $450k+ There are some manufactured homes in the area that are cheaper but even those seem to be going for $300k. In any event I'm kinda scouting the neighborhood and watching the rental/house market to keep an eye out for deals. Moving close to the school would solve a lot of problems, but if it costs us $150k in house price then it probably makes more sense to just buy an EV and put up solar panels to charge it.

[vexed87]

Gravel tyres can most definitely handle technical terrain, the only question is what tyre clearance is supported by your frame? You would be surprised how well road bikes can cope with even 28mm tyres. Most modern road bikes would take at least 28mm tyres. My most recent purchase takes a 38mm tyre, but beware manufacturers whose size limits can be +/- 2mm stated size if you are pushing your frame limits. The rim size can change the actual size of tyre too, so do your research if you go that route

[unemployable]

Geez, where is this place? We have too many bikes where I live. AirBnBers just leave their bikes on the bike racks when they don't want to drive them home. Of the 26 bikes I've recently inventoried in my complex, I've taken one for myself, three or four are unsellable due to age/missing parts and the rest I'm monitoring for the next few weeks to see whether anyone uses them. If they don't I'll cut the locks off and try to sell them. And I have two more bikes from a house I'm helping someone clean out.

Let me know if you're in Colorado.

Where we live, houses go for $200k to $300k

Never mind then, in this state that's like maybe eastern plains, Craig and the sketchy parts of Grand Junction.

[enfier]

It's out in Arizona. The problem is most of those bikes are probably Walmart bikes. They use a bunch of really cheap components and you get a bike that's really heavy and not very durable. Most mountain bike manufacturers start at about $400 for their entry level bike. There really is a huge demand for used bikes out here, they just have to be quality bikes. If it's from Trek, Giant, Diamondback, Marin, etc then you can sell it. The cheap bikes though are worth maybe $50 max.

I've been rolling the situation around in my head and I've decided I'm not in a hurry. I also want an actual mountain bike, not a hybrid or a fitness bike because it's likely to be a hobby as well as transportation. I really don't want two bikes in my garage when I could easily use a mountain bike for around town.

I'd rather not upgrade my current bike (or my wife's bike) to gravel tires. It could be passable but it's still going to be $40 and I wouldn't have any shocks for 20 miles daily of dirt riding. It's just not a long term solution.

For my last bike, I went with an entry level road bike. Given all the miles I've put on it, I should have spent more on it honestly. I'm thinking that for this bike, I want to get one that's a step up from entry level since I'll be too cheap to ever upgrade it and I'll probably ride the ever-living shit out of it. Normally the mountain bike would go under my fun budget, but I'm starting to lean towards considering it flat out transportation.

At the same time, I'm going to just keep watching the used market for a deal and maybe wait until winter. People will stop buying bikes in my town and hopefully supply can catch up. Plus who knows where we'll be exactly after our lease is up. It may be costing us money now, but if our future situation changes then it might be a lot of money spent on a bike that wasn't really needed.

[unemployable]

The problem is most of those bikes are probably Walmart bikes.

Yes, about half of them are Schwinns and Walmart brands, but there are Treks, Specialized, Mongoose and the like. Entry-level decent brands. The one I took is a Trek. Also bike rental here is $40-50 a day, so selling a throwaway bike for $80 has a potential market. Then when they abandon it I can sell it again!

I biked to work in Chicago for seven or eight years before I moved close enough to walk. For a daily driver you don't want a high-end brand, especially in a big city where wear and tear and theft are concerns. I wouldn't go MTB if you're mostly on paved surfaces and your objective is transportation. Hybrid or road bike.

Isn't ERE about buying used cheap and fixing up yourself?

[enfier]

Followup: I rented a mountain bike and did the actual ride and it's really easy, just long. Maybe riding on dirt is just more tiring or I'm out of shape, but it felt a lot longer than 9 miles of road riding. It only took 45 minutes and I'm not worried about the effort, my body will adapt.

It occurred to me as I actually rode it that the last rough section is only 4/10 of a mile and we could just chain up the bike and walk it.

I went to the mountain bike store and had them explain to me the difference between a mountain bike and a gravel bike. And sure enough I sat there looking at a gravel bike that looked like a road bike and thought... what the hell it's just a road bike with knobby tires. My wife has a commuter bike she never uses and it has plenty of room to take a bigger tire so I'm going to get some gravel tires slapped on it and then I can pull the trailer 95% of the way there. I suppose if I rent/borrow some brush clearing equipment I can clear out the path to the school so I can ride to it.

> For a daily driver you don't want a high-end brand, especially in a big city where wear and tear and theft are concerns. I wouldn't go MTB if you're mostly on paved surfaces and your objective is transportation. Hybrid or road bike.

City advice... I'm not in a city. I used to be in a city and my low end road bike was perfect. Theft isn't a concern here and my whole city has a network of interconnecting mountain bike paths to get around. Even the paved surfaces here have me dealing with gravel and mud as there's no street sweeping and storms bring mud across the roads and paths. Plus there will be some snow to deal with in winter.

> Isn't ERE about buying used cheap and fixing up yourself?

Sure... but cheap now isn't always cheap in the long run. If I'm spending $160/mo not riding there, saving money costs me money. Ultimately this will likely need to be solved by moving closer, but the rental and house market is all screwed up now and it's may not be cost effective to move. Also, it doesn't make much sense to spend $100k more on a house to save money on commuting when a $5k Nissan Leaf and $5k worth of solar panels is $10k in and cuts the commute cost dramatically.

All those are problems to be solved another day. Right now it's time to call the local bike shop and see what can be done about gravel tires.

[enfier]

I'm the proud new owner of a carbon fiber mountain bike! Well a used carbon fiber from the 90s mountain bike anyways. I came down to price out / size gravel tires (~$50) and we talked about taking the local trails on a hybrid bike (possible but not fun until it rains then lol). I noticed he had some new used bikes in stock and decided to ride the cheap ones around the block. Long story short I got an old carbon fiber mountain bike for $250 that's barely been used. It's $50 more than I hoped to pay but it's really nice.

The older carbon fiber isn't even close to as light as the current ones but it's a lot more durable, which is good for my use. I really enjoyed the ride and it looks totally 90s which is a great bonus. Now to sell my road bike, here's hoping I can get $200 for it.

[Western Red Cedar]

I'm the proud new owner of a carbon fiber mountain bike!

Congratulations! FWIW, I'm still riding my entry level mountain bike after 15 years. I'm very happy with it and I like the fact that it isn't too expensive - so I won't have too much heartburn if it ever gets stolen.

Hoping you have a lot of great adventures on the bike!

[Ego]

Now to sell my road bike, here's hoping I can get $200 for it.

Get it listed asap. Right now students are going back to college and are searching for road bikes to take with them. Prices are extremely high. Last week I sold a 1980s Trek road bike for $500. The kid didn't even negotiate.

[enfier]

Get it listed asap. Right now students are going back to college and are searching for road bikes to take with them.

Great point! I've got it listed now and it's fairly close to a college.

Just did the first bike + trailer run to my son's school. Not going to lie, it's pretty hard. It's only 18 miles but you add the dirt, the trailer and the kid and it takes a while. First run took me 50 minutes on the way there, hopefully I can shave that down some. I do remember that the first time I biked to work it was hard as hell, so hopefully my body adapts. I'm not sure if it's going to be physically possible for me to do it 5X a week, much less 10X a week to do dropoff and pickup. Still, every ride saves me $8 and takes care of my cardio workout.

[Gilberto de Piento]

Riding 40 miles a day (is that the right number?) off road with a kid in a trailer behind you is crazy. Maybe in a good way, maybe in a bad way, maybe a little of both. I'm impressed. That's a huge task so don't be disappointed if it isn't possible to do every day. Watch you don't overdo it and get repetitive injuries by doing too much too soon. It's good to build up with this kind of thing even if you're already fit in some other way (like road riding or running, etc.).

[enfier]

Riding 40 miles a day (is that the right number?) off road with a kid in a trailer behind you is crazy. Maybe in a good way, maybe in a bad way, maybe a little of both. I'm impressed. That's a huge task so don't be disappointed if it isn't possible to do every day. Watch you don't overdo it and get repetitive injuries by doing too much too soon. It's good to build up with this kind of thing even if you're already fit in some other way (like road riding or running, etc.).

I'm just doing 18 miles twice a week for now. I've been meaning to start doing cardio training anyways and that takes care of it. I'll see where it takes me, but even if I can get the time down to 50 minutes each way... spending 3:20 a day riding my bike is going to be an excessive use of time. Once a day might be a better goal eventually.

It is a little crazy, I'm not going to lie. Possible side effects might include rock hard calves and forearms that look good with my shirt sleeves rolled up. Not to mention better endurance. Hopefully soon enough we can get my son riding his own bike, but I don't really know what age is appropriate for a 9 mile bike ride. It would be more convenient since the bike can be left at school in the morning and picked up by vehicle in the afternoon.