I want to purchase a bicycle

These days I’m walking to work. It takes 35-40 minutes (walking fast), which is just too long. I could take the bus (which is ridiculously convenient) but I like getting a little bit of activity since I don’t get much in my 12+ hours at work. I think that a bicycle would be a good idea. I’d still get a little bit of excercise, but I wouldn’t lose so much of my time every day.

The problem is, I know nothing about bicycles. I’m hoping that you all can provide some advice on what sort of vehicle I should get.

The ride to work is ~2.5 miles each way. It is very flat. The streets are pretty well paved, but there are the occasional rough spots. I go to work pretty early (for this area) so there isn’t much traffic.

Since people always ask, I have no idea how much I am prepared to spend. I’m not setting a limit and buying the best that falls under that limit. The price I’m willing to pay depends entirely on how much value I feel that I’m getting out of my purchase.

So that’s all I can think of that seems relevant. I hope you all can either point me in a good direction or at least give me some other things to consider. I don’t even know what variables are in play when considering a bicycle purchase.

Are you planning on using the bike for anything besides this commute? If not, I’d recommend taking a look at hybrid bikes. They’re sort of a cross between a mountain and road bikes, keeping you more upright but without all the stuff on a mountain bike that you don’t need. For a commute this short, pretty much anything will do. Go to a good bike store (not a department store) and get fitted for a good bottom of the range hybrid/commuter bike.

Fit is the most important thing. For this ride, you’ll have a pretty easy time no matter what the bike. You’ll want a helmet for sure, and I like biking gloves by they may not be needed for this short a ride. Will you be carrying your work stuff? A rack and bag, or a bike messanger bag, or just a small daypack should carry your stuff.

I’d also get a spare tube and tire changing tools, plus a pump. As long as you keep your tires pumped up to the right pressure it’s unlikely you’ll get a flat, but it’s a pain if you do and have to walk.

Bottom line, for this commute anything will do. The question you need to ask is what else will you be using the bike for? If you plan on more riding we can explore other options.

Thanks for the quick reply. I will likely bike around on the surrounding very flat roads with my roommate when we have the occasional free day (we work together and she is looking to buy a bike too.)

I have a helmet.

I carry a backpack with my laptop and maybe a couple of notebooks in it. I’m assuming I can just keep this on my back, or would that cause balance problems?

I still think a hybrid/commuting bike would serve your needs. If you don’t have much experience on a road bike there’s no need to get one now. A full mountain bike would be wasted for this kind of riding, and too heavy for your needs. The backpack would be fine. I prefer a messenger bag, but it’s not that big a deal.

2.5 miles each way isn’t that far. A $100 Walmart would probably last you a couple of years, if that’s all you are prepared to spend. But I think you’ll be happier with hybrid bike purchased from a real bke store. I’d say $300-$450 is a good price range, plus the cost of accessories. If possible, asks some local cyclists to recommend a shop.

Bike brand doesn’t matter very much. Just go with whatever your local bike shop sells.

When you buy the bike, also get lights and whatever else you need, so the shop can install them for you when they assemble the bike. I recommend you get fenders too.

I suggest you get a patch kit, portable pump (I highly recommend the Topeak Road Morph) and spare tubes. You don’t want to be late to work because of a flat tire. Also, inflate your tire to the max pressure indicated on the tire, and check the pressure once a week; this will greatly reduce the chance of a flat tire. (Most common cause of flat tires for beginners is the “pinch flat” - you try to ride over a bump, and because there isn’t enough air in the tube, the tire gets squashed and pinches the tube.)

Backpacks are perfectly fine for a short commute; I use one too when I ride an upright bike. (Most of the time I ride a recumbent bike.) If you think you’ll be doing longer rides too, or do errands on the way home, you may want a luggage rack installed.

I started a job at a factory near home in February, about 11 miles give or take. I’m really happy that I no longer travel 100+ miles a day.
Early this summer I bought a Schwinn mountain bike from Amazon, less than $150 and free shipping. I put a rack on the back and got a bag that fits between the top tube and seat tube. I carry a small tool kit, an inner tube, and a small frame pump. All in all, I have less than $200 dollars in the whole rig. I ride to work almost every day and I have put well over 700 miles on the bike. I’m happy with it all.

Consider a Classic Cruiser bike.

I got mine from Trek, & I love it!

I get a lot of compliments, too, as it looks really sharp.

I’ve fitted it with a rear basket, & use it for the occassional grocery store trip.

My best advice, though, is to buy from a bike shop.

Remember that bikes ship in boxes, disassembled. So, your bike is never any better than the guy who takes it outta the box. At a bike store, your wheels will be assembled by a bike mechanic. At Wally-Mart, it might be assembled by a trained bike mechanic…or, by a 78-year-old Greeter named “Gert”, whose aquaintance with tools is summed up in the phrase: “I need a hammer to drive all these screws in.” I guess you’ll never know which, 'cause Wally-Mart puts their bikes together behind closed doors.

I always like these threads. Helping someone buy a bike is a lot of fun. And just for fun, I’ll add this, Bianchi bicycles.

These are the types of bikes you probably want. Every bike company makes them, I just like the Bianchi styles. Since you are riding on flat ground, the number of speeds isn’t very important. The Milano is, I think, a very stylish bike. The Avenue will do everything you want it to. And if you think you can get away with a single speed (very flat road, not trying to go 20 mph) the Rollo is cheap and you don’t have to worry about shifting it. 2.5 miles isn’t far so a single speed is feasible, but if you want to go on longer rides with the roomate maybe a multi-speed bike is a better choice.

Using a backpack is fine, or most hybrid bikes can take a rack.

The Milano is a great bike for two reasons:

1 Very little maintenance

2 You can wear long pants and they’ll stay clean

Giant Cyprus. I’m picking it up on Wednesday. Maybe not the perfectest bike, but it’ll do for now. I had never ridden anything with shocks before. Makes for a very smooth ride. I pretty much rode everything the shop had and liked that the best. Thanks all for the advice.

Looks like a good choice.

Make sure you take advantage of the free 30-day checkup. (Assuming they offer it - if they don’t, I’d consider finding another shop for repairs and accessory purchases.)

They do. They also stressed that I really needed to do that. After that they said that I could probably learn to do most of the maintenance on my own, but they’d be happy to take my money if I didn’t want to. There may be a “how do I take care of my bicycle” thread later, although I imagine some googling will get me some useful info.

sheldonbrown.com has good bike-fixing info.

also, parktool.com

That bike looks like a good choice for what you describe. Look for good paved/gravel trails around where you live and get in some longer distances after work & on the weekends. Don’t know if they have converted train trails up there, but that kind of bike is perfect for them.