Weight of a mtb compared to a Trek hybrid

[sundial]

If you wait for the 09's, there is a significant weight drop, say from ~24 to ~21.5 lbs in the Epic, but I don't know if it's available in the mid-range (expert) or higher range (marathon). Specialized hasn't updated their website yet with the new bikes but it's rolling in the shops now.

You might want to also consider the Era if you fit a women's specific design. It's the women's version of the Epic. It is designed to be lighter than other WSD mtb's for that reason.

I have the '08 Epic Comp and it weighs about 24 lbs. I do think about some day upgrading to the Marathon series to get the bike in carbon fiber. But I also remember that lighter sometimes means it won't absorb as much shock if you barrel down a mountain, lol. I exercise the dogs with it and I banged my body around with it in a race and I have to say I'm more than pleased with the performance--excellent handling, good brakes, and rapid shifting. It's not too bad to lift, just kinda awkward compared to handling carbon fiber mtb. Say, you don't have one of those in your steed yet, right? Hmmmmm.

[pardes]

Thanks, Sundial. We have a local distributor and I'll go heckle them for a while. However, the last time I was in their bike store, they didn't even acknowledge my existence....as if I was invisible, so I left. Perhaps they thought I was someone's grandmother who had wandered in by mistake.

[Becky]

Thanks, Sundial. We have a local distributor and I'll go heckle them for a while. However, the last time I was in their bike store, they didn't even acknowledge my existence....as if I was invisible, so I left. Perhaps they thought I was someone's grandmother who had wandered in by mistake.

Having just looked up who the local dealers are, I'm not surprised.... I think I've feuded with every LBS in northern DE

BTW, isn't the Epic full-suspension....?

[sundial]

We have a local distributor and I'll go heckle them for a while. However, the last time I was in their bike store, they didn't even acknowledge my existence....as if I was invisible, so I left.

Ooooh, that would prompt me to be even more persistent about showing them! You know, one of the perks of being older and wiser is you can get by with a whole lot more stuff than people your junior. That includes miffery. Miffery is giving them the audible "Hmpf!" and, "Well I guess I don't need that measley carbon fiber mountain bike after all. Maybe I'll go to that OTHER bike shop."

Did I tell you about the awesome mountain biker that left EVERYBODY in the dust? Know what? SHE was in her 50's. And she could haul her happy hiney anywhere she wanted and nobody could keep up, lol. She raced with the experts (all pro roadies that were men). I want to grow up to be like her. I'll bet some bike shops misjudged her and wanted to write her off.

Don't let them write you off. You march back in the store and you get that bike of your dreams. If you want a full suspension bike with bells and whistles then you show 'em! Heck, call Running Mommy. She offers EXCELLENT customer service and has some dandy mountain bikes at her store. And I'll bet she'll throw in a hunk to ride with you on the trail.

[withm]

Pardes - your Trek 7.2 will be just fine until we get snow. Then.... do you really want to be riding your bike? If so, change the tires to something with a little more agressive tread (snow tires if you will). Or give yourself a break and wait for the snow to melt before venturing out again. If you really really want to ride in snow, wide knobby tires, the biggest that you can fit, and FENDERS will make winter commutes bearable.

For more, check out the Ice Bike thread in Bike Journal - there are many many posts there by people that do this every day in very cold climates.

But really, your bike will serve you well.

Now if you are looking for an excuse for another bike, and have the space to keep it.... by all means, get a beater bike and studded tires if you like for the snow. But I can hardly believe you would want to buy a nice new bike and ride it in snow and salt... and then have to clean the bike every couple of days for the pleasure of riding in the snow. Remember how messy your car gets when driving in slush? Transfer that to you, your clothes, your panniers, the contents, not to mention your drive train.....

For more, see the Ice Bike website:
http://www.icebike.org/

The clean up alone keeps me from riding voluntarily in the rain/snow. If it happens while I'm out there that's one thing, but ......

[uforgot]

Pardes, I read through this thread again and I guess we need to know exactly what your plans are for a new bike? Are you going off road or strictly bad weather commuting? The Epic with the full suspension would be if you are planning to jump logs and ride technical trails wouldn't it? Not exactly a commuter for racks and panniers. You don't need any suspension on a commute. It just makes it harder to ride and the bike heavier.

I'm with withm on this one. When it snows and gets yukky here in Missouri, my good bikes don't leave the garage. I take my cheap craigslist commuter out.

Edit: I was thinking, the way you like to tour and take pics, I would be more inclined to just use the Trek as a commuter and get a Rivendell Glorius (or velo orange) mixte loaded with racks for your photo trips and traveling. Here is one off of the Rivendell bicycle site. www.rivbike.com

[sundial]

Uforgot, you made some valid points but I'm thinking that Pardes is weighing the choice of winterizing her Trek FX and/or buying a mtb for fun stuff to do year round. Am I right, Pardes?

[uforgot]

Uforgot, you made some valid points but I'm thinking that Pardes is weighing the choice of winterizing her Trek FX and/or buying a mtb for fun stuff to do year round. Am I right, Pardes?

I'm not really sure, that's why I asked her to post what she wants to do with it. Initially I thought she was going off road, but I'm not certain anymore.

Pardes???

[pardes]

I have been rather sketchy in describing what I want since I wasn't clear myself. After reading all the posts and weighing the pros and cons this is what I want.

I want a high-quality, lightweight, full-suspension mountain bike for the dirt trails that the Trek just can't maneuver. If mtb's are built to take punishment, it should be fine for bad weather days (snow, etc) that are infrequent here. I would be using it for weekend rides and a few randon in Winter and frequent in Summer weekday rides when I want to do a run after work.

I want a bike that is more stable in rain or the infrequent snow/slush/ice that we get in Delaware. (Those days I would ONLY bike to the one of many bus stop where it is only 0.4 miles away that I've have to walk anyway.) But again, snow/ice/slush/salt would be a rare event. (My lips to God's ears.)

Since snow/ice/salt/slush is very rare in Delaware I don't think it would require having a cheap beater bad weather bike. Of course, when my ex-husband, then new husband lured me to move to Delaware by promising that it never snowed in Delaware and one week after I arrived there was a snowstorm (1976) that shut down EVERYTHING for over a week. The snow was 2 feet high! It paralyzed the state. Since then there has only been one really bad ice storm so for 33 years we've been relatively snow/ice/freezing rain/salt free.

Since I've gone totally GREEN, I really need a second bike if the Trek is in for repairs or maintenance. I no longer use the car for anything. (Speaking of which I must remember to start it now and then and let it run to keep the battery charged. I'll try to remember to open the garage door. )

So from what I've been seeing for pricing, a very good full suspension light-weight mountain bike seems to be in the range of $2000 for a mid-level high range category. So that is what I'm shopping for. I've been loving the advice you've been giving on particular models to look at or avoid. Thank you very much.

So you full-suspension people tell me what you love about your bike brand.

Thanks again.

[fastdogs]

I don't have a full suspension mountain bike, mine is front suspension only. You could consider a front suspension mountain bike with a suspension seat post maybe.
I do look at the full suspension ones, maybe some day. Right now I am so in love with my chocolate bike that you couldn't trade me a $2000 bike for it right now.
I am having so much fun with it that I think everyone should have a mountain bike. Even if we feel out of place out on the trails with all the young guys.
vickie

[Irulan]

I just don't get the

I want a high-quality, lightweight, full-suspension mountain bike for the dirt trails that the Trek just can't maneuver. If mtb's are built to take punishment, it should be fine for bad weather days (snow, etc) that are infrequent here. I would be using it for weekend rides and a few randon in Winter and frequent in Summer weekday rides when I want to do a run after work.

um, it's all about the rider, not the bike. Now if you want a more plush ride on the trails, THAT I can understand, but if anything a hardtail is more maneuverable because it is are both lighter and more responsive to body english.

More stable in rain, snow or whatever is going to be about tire choice, not what kind of suspension you have.

Put me in the ranks of the confused on this one. A FS for anything resembling commuting or commuter alternate is overkill. A FS for winter riding, just asking for trouble. Plus, on anything flat, smooth or not technical even the best designed FS will suck away some of your energy transmission through the suspension unless you lock it out so you might as well go HT or rigid anyway.

I have both a Kona and Specialized full suspensions that I love, but only for trail riding. I'm convinced that they would be thieve magnets used around town, especially at a bus stop ( are you mad?)

my two cents is all. My vote would be for a dedicated trail bike, full suspension for the plushness of the ride, and another bike for weather/bus stop etc.

irulan

[pardes]

I wouldn't be using the mtb for commuting, I would be using the Trek for commuting. I wanted the wider tires of a mtb for trail riding and those rare bad weather days. Yes, I understand that knobby tires give less grip surface compared to a slick tire, but the wider tire width itself would give more road stability. I can't put anything wider on the Trek than a 32 the way it's configured.

As for a mtb slowing me down on the road...when I do use it on the road... I'm already slow. Speed is not my goal. I wouldn't mind a little road mushiness in return for a more stable ride at those times when I need it. Even the Trek with 700X32 tires with very sturdy diagonal tread that I already switched out for the original 700X28 tires, the 32's are still slippy on sandy/leafy areas of the road.

"...a hardtail is more maneuverable because it is are both lighter and more responsive to body english."

I'm sure that is true for someone in their prime with fast reactions and athletic ability. It's less true for my reaction time and abilities. Though they have improved, they've also leveled off and I find, under less than ideal circumstances, that I get in more trouble with a road bike because it IS so responsive and fast.

A decade ago I had a $100 Walmart mountain bike that was very stable under those kind of road conditions. Of course it weighed 4000 lbs and disintegrated into a pile of rust within 6 months even though stored inside and never ridden in the rain. Poor thing was stolen off my car bike rack outside the lab before we had a locked parking lot in a not so great part of town. At least it didn't have to face the fate of the Trek replacement that went up in smoke in the house fire.

I want the full suspension for comfort, plain old comfort.

As for theft potential. Shrug. I'm as careful as I can be now. I refuse to become one of the many "seniors" who locks themselves in their houses, nails the windows shut, who takes their expensive jewelry out to play with inside their house though they'd never wear it outside. They rot in their vacuuous, silent, musty, boring safety behind triple-locked doors. If the bike gets stolen, it gets stolen.

If someone tried to steal Magdalene out from under my eyes, they'd have to come through me first. (I once took on six drunken hunters with a tire iron who were amusing themselves with hanging a hunting dog puppy....and I won. Arlo, the puppy, came home with me). But a bike? An inanimate object? As much as I love my Trek, I wouldn't risk harm defending it. Besides, I live in what some call a fantasy world of believing that people are generally good and wish no harm to me or my property. I believe Anne Frank said much the same thing.

I'd rather be out on the road on a bike that is just right for me and take my chances with what others call the felonious nature of my fellow man.

Thanks, I'll check out the Specialized since you like it so much. It has been suggested by others who also love it very much. And we have local dealer.

[Becky]

Having just made the switch from a hardtail to a full-suspension, I'll say this:

I knew that it was going to be different but I couldn't, in my wildest dreams, have fathomed how different. It's heavier, it's higher, and shock setup is a whole new thing for me. I love my FS, but I find myself somewhat limited by it. It's simply overkill for so many things. As a result, I'm currently shopping for a hardtail or maybe a cross bike- something for fire roads, towpaths, quick trips around town when I don't need the commuter, etc. (Anyone have a 46cm Surly frame that they want to sell me?) If you'd told me that I'd be buying a hardtail 3 months after buying the FS, I'd have laughed. But here I am.

Moral of the story: go ride some FS bikes. The more the merrier- different brands and models use different rear linkages and will feel a little different. Then decide if your needs are better met by FS or a hardtail (front suspension only).

[Irulan]

thanks for all the clarifications... only takes three pages of posts to get there

May I suggest now that I get what's going, that in a quest for FS you be very mindful of geometry? There's a lot of variation in body position. Based on what you are saying you are after, you might like an all mountain type set up for body position, which is more comfy and stable than a race type position.

An AM or "trail" set up has a more slack head angle ( front fork is at more of an angle) by a few degrees. The handlebar/stem set up also puts you a little more upright. The more classic race type geometry has your butt higher than your handle bars - which is great for speed but not necessarily the best for technical riding and comfort. We are talking "degrees" here but I was reminded of this yseterday when I rode my friend's GF Cake with flat bars and didn't like it at all.

[sundial]

If someone tried to steal Magdalene out from under my eyes, they'd have to come through me first. (I once took on six drunken hunters with a tire iron who were amusing themselves with hanging a hunting dog puppy....and I won. Arlo, the puppy, came home with me).

Alrighty, now I have an idea where you are headed. I really liked my hardtail because I actually enjoyed the feel of the trail underneath me. It was lighter and easier to handle BUT I didn't get as good of traction on uneven surfaces like I would with the full suspension. Also, my joints told me if I continue to play hard, I need to find a softer ride. Thus I bought the Epic.

Try all of them and see which one fits you best. I have tried Trek and Gary Fisher and Specialized just fits me better.