Rossetti
Member
Hi,
I am just starting out on cycling in my mid fifties. The initial reason is to start getting fit but also to explore along the canals and River Trent near where I live. If I really get into it then I'll probably look to buy a road bike in the future for further afield travels.
I've had lots of differing advice from friends and acquaintances, the usual stuff about suspension, brakes, Hybrid v Mountain etc.
As a result I went down to my lbs the other day and had a long conversation with the owner. I told him the sort of terrain I would be going on, and he obviously he knows the local area very well, in additiona I want to able to carry a small camera bag on the back etc. The dealer is mainly a Ridgeback agent and so we went through their range, his opinion wass that I should go for a hybrid. As a result we settled on a Ridgeback Element as offering everything I needed for starting out.
After telling a friends about this he has said that I should think of spending an extra £100 and going for the Ridgeback Dual Trek as it has disk brakes and a better gear set.
So I spoke again to the lbs and told him what my friend had said. He disagreed, saying that for what I was doing v brakes were more than adequate and I didn't need the extra weight and potential hassles of a disk set-up. With regard to the gears he did admit that they were the next set up but again he felt that the difference between them didn't warrant spending an extra £100. I was quite impressed that the dealer was arguing against the higher priced bike.
Since then my friend has suggested that I should go for something different again.
My inclination is to go with the dealer who has a great reputation locally but what are the thoughts on here? Does anyone own a Ridgeback Element and what do they think of it?
I am just starting out on cycling in my mid fifties. The initial reason is to start getting fit but also to explore along the canals and River Trent near where I live. If I really get into it then I'll probably look to buy a road bike in the future for further afield travels.
I've had lots of differing advice from friends and acquaintances, the usual stuff about suspension, brakes, Hybrid v Mountain etc.
As a result I went down to my lbs the other day and had a long conversation with the owner. I told him the sort of terrain I would be going on, and he obviously he knows the local area very well, in additiona I want to able to carry a small camera bag on the back etc. The dealer is mainly a Ridgeback agent and so we went through their range, his opinion wass that I should go for a hybrid. As a result we settled on a Ridgeback Element as offering everything I needed for starting out.
After telling a friends about this he has said that I should think of spending an extra £100 and going for the Ridgeback Dual Trek as it has disk brakes and a better gear set.
So I spoke again to the lbs and told him what my friend had said. He disagreed, saying that for what I was doing v brakes were more than adequate and I didn't need the extra weight and potential hassles of a disk set-up. With regard to the gears he did admit that they were the next set up but again he felt that the difference between them didn't warrant spending an extra £100. I was quite impressed that the dealer was arguing against the higher priced bike.
Since then my friend has suggested that I should go for something different again.
My inclination is to go with the dealer who has a great reputation locally but what are the thoughts on here? Does anyone own a Ridgeback Element and what do they think of it?