I'm such a newbie that I don't even have a bike yet. I casually mentioned to my younger sister that I was considering getting a bike to have some fitness variety and she has been asking me every day if I have gotten my bike yet. I am getting bored just going to the gym for the last 5 1/2 years and thought a bike would provide the variety. There are several issues to confront: I am really old (60), I haven't been on a bike in more than 30 years, I am really intimidated by riders with the cool gear who whizz past me on Saturday mornings when I leave my subdivision and I don't know a d*mn thing about how to choose a good ride. Unfortunately I live in Texas and my sister is in Oregon so she can't really hold my hand through this process. I just found this forum and thought I would throw myself at your feet and ask for some guidance. I don't want to invest my life savings in a bike (I don't have that many more working years in me to replace my retirement savings) so I want something in the $400 - 500 range. Then I need to know what, besides a helmet, is absolutely necessary for someone who will not likely be doing any marathon-like rides. Can you help???