What am I even looking for?!?

[lauraelmore1033]

You can definitely ride trails with a cyclocross bike, but as I recently discovered doing the "Stinky Spoke" ride, certain areas of steep, (somewhat, but not too technical) single track, or thick gravel will give you trouble. If you don't mind hopping off the bike and hoofin' it through those spots, you can certainly still have a lot of fun with your MB buds. I did, however, scour craig's list afterwards for an "entry level" MB, and am finding that having the proper bike for the conditions is MUCH more satisfying.

[ACiveE]

You can definitely ride trails with a cyclocross bike, but as I recently discovered doing the "Stinky Spoke" ride, certain areas of steep, (somewhat, but not too technical) single track, or thick gravel will give you trouble. If you don't mind hopping off the bike and hoofin' it through those spots, you can certainly still have a lot of fun with your MB buds. I did, however, scour craig's list afterwards for an "entry level" MB, and am finding that having the proper bike for the conditions is MUCH more satisfying.

I've attached a generic photo from the internet... would a cyclocross be able to handle this? This is what a lot of the trails around me look like. I have been browsing craigslist but it seems like you need to be *very* savy... not quite where I am yet!

[lauraelmore1033]

Definitely looks do-able, I'd say.

[moderncyclista]

I'd go cyclo-cross bike. It would be lighter on average than a mountain bike. Which is one of your concerns right? With back probs. and flights of stairs to climb. Lots of manufacturers make them - one thing - if you are short, most cyclocross bikes don't come in a small enough size. I think Surly's CrossCheck is the exception. If you are not, you don't have to worry.

Trek makes the XO-1 and XO-2 www.trekbikes.com, Specialized makes the TriCross www.specializedbikes.com, Jamis makes some fine bikes - Nova Race, Nova Pro, and SuperNova www.jamisbikes.com, and the other suggestions are great too!

Do your research. That is the best advice I can give you. Go to your Local Bike Shop (LBS for short on the boards) and ask questions. Do not go to a dept. store - steer clear of cheap. Quality does matter in bicycles. Or, if your budget is big go custom. You have lots of options. Happy bike-shopping to you.

[KnottedYet]

I ride my Surly Cross Check on trails just like that and little dirt and gravel roads. She likes 'em!
http://surlybikes.com/bikes/cross_check_complete/ Anything more exciting than stroll-able trails, I wouldn't ride any bike on. Cuz I'm just not that coordinated...

If I did things like that more, I'd keep knobby tires on; but mostly I ride on asphalt so I use smooth tires.

[ACiveE]

Hmmm... so I went to a LBS this evening. I told them my desires and asked them about cyclocross bikes. They balked at the idea stating that it would be an incredibly rough ride and that it didn't seem to be what I need. They suggested a Gary Fisher dual sport. Ideas??? Is that a ridiculous suggestion? They said riding a cyclocross would be like slapping slightly larger tires on my road bike. On packed dirt, a decently comfortable ride but on larger chipped rock, it would be bumpy and jarring.

Following this suggestion I inquired about why I would go with a "dual sport" instead of just a mountain bike then... they didn't really answer that for me.

[KnottedYet]

Well, I'm not sure why they were recommending a hybrid.

Your descriptions of your needs were so clear from your post that a hybrid didn't really leap to mind, and since you already ride and have a beloved road bike and know your back does well in road-bike position. (I loved my hybrid, I'm not knocking hybrids. If you posted to us that you didn't have a bike at all and were just beginning to explore the different kinds of riding available, and didn't want to be in a road-biker position; you bet we'd've been talking about hybrids we know and love.)

Did you like this shop? Are they worth a second try? Did you feel like they gave you some good reasons why a hybrid would meet your needs, or did it seem more like the standard "woman walks into a bike shop" routine? Did they even offer to let you test ride a cyclocross or mountain bike? Did they even show you what cross and mtb they had?

ETA: cyclocross and road bikes have different geometry. Geometry definitely changes the character of a bike. Cross aren't just road bikes with wider tires slapped on. That sounds kind of like a cop-out on the shop's part. Also, they need to let you ride the bikes AND talk to you about them, not just redirect you. They should let you feel the things they are talking about. I'd have more faith if they said, "Here, ride this cyclocross in the gravel of our parking lot. Then come back and ride this mtb. Last ride this hybrid. Then lets talk about the bikes and the rides." (I guess I'm spoiled by my shop. They never tell me something if they can have me experience it instead.)

ETA #2: I loved my hybrid, it was a Kona Dew. (no suspension) Kona makes a Dew Drop now, which is the Dew but with the dropped bars for the road position you like for your back. http://www.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=dewdrop It's very similar in character to a cyclocross bike.