Lacch

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/528466688123471/?ref=category_feed&referral_code=marketplace_search seems overpriced, but I have no idea about the age/model

This has been a big wakeup call... My wife and I have been riding up and down the paved trails with our kids in tow in the trailer (at a fairly fast pace sometimes), no helmets. I know the risk isn't as big as when you're riding a trail, but I realized that I need to drop the 80s mentality that I grew up with and make sure everyone is always wearing a helmet. (including the kids when I have them in the trailer) Everyone already has a modern helmet (except me) but they're not doing anyone any good sitting in the garage. I owe you guys big for this advice. seriously. My entire family thanks you.

The Specialized 29er sold in under 15hrs. At least new listings seem to be popping up daily. refresh, refresh, refresh... I looked through my garage for old gear... dug up an old skate helmet and my wife's old jogging pack+bladder. I don't know what a bad fall on a trail looks like, but I'm guessing this helmet won't do much to protect me. Thanks again for all of the generous offers! I'll keep reaching back out with any new listings I come across.

I took @AntonioGG's advice and hit the trails with a cruiser yesterday just for fun. My wife has a decent cruiser with beefy tires, so it did "ok" on the roller trails. (Walnut Creek - Log loop, for example) This made me realize that my next big consideration is gear. Once I finally get a a bike, what sort of must-have gear should I be considering? Helmet? Phone mount? water bottle holder? Not looking to go gear crazy, but need to get an idea of the basics and factor that into the budget. Thanks again to all of you for your advice and feedback!!!

great advice.. thanks man. found one more... https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/3874899125904992/?referralSurface=messenger_lightspeed_banner&referralCode=messenger_banner seller confirmed that its a Large frame, waiting for them to confirm the year.

new find... https://austin.craigslist.org/bik/d/austin-scott-29er-scale-960-rockshox/7255663496.html thoughts?

interesting... I made a low offer, making sure the owner knew I wasn't trying to insult.... why not. Thanks for the tip!

woah. this thing looks amazing, and right at $1k! Apparently Sun-n-Ski is a registered dealer, I'll call around the Texas stores tomorrow. Thanks!! as for PB, I can't buy a bike without sitting on it... I'm too much of a noob.

The Rockhopper has a $700 offer on it, picking up tomorrow. If it falls through, I have a standing offer at $650.... we'll see. Thanks for the pricing guidance! Also, I decided to pass on the Gary Fisher, I just don't have enough knowledge to gauge the condition of a 12+ yr old bike. At this point I've accepted that I need to keep refreshing craigslist + FB multiple times a day. Please continue to let me know of any deals you guys come across!

Do you guys tend to favor Specialized over Giant? I ask because it seems like the Rockhopper and Talon are comparable models, yet there seems to be no love for the Talon. I just got done calling 5 more bike shops in N Austin.... not one Large hardtail in stock.

no clue how to guage the 2009 Gary Fisher Paragon vs the RockHopper listed above.... Might just come down to which one I can ride first. any advice here?

thanks for the tip! I just sent a message to the owner.

I'm somewhat hooked on the idea of a 1x... maybe I shouldn't be? I messaged the owner anyway, might as well check it out. thanks for the find! oh, and @CBaron thanks for the offer!!! super kind of you! I'll reach out later this week If I intend to take you up on it. thanks man.

I totally understand the advice to be patient, but as a reference, I have been taking the kids riding every day for the last few weeks, and this is my current setup..... I don't even think this bike is all that safe... its been making some scary noises lately 😐

I had a talk with the wife last night about budget/goals and we came to the same conclusion as @CBaron. One thing I haven't mentioned is that although I intend to hit up Walnut Creek with this bike when I'm riding solo, over half of my time on it will be neighborhood rides with the family and pulling the kids in a trailer on the "new" paved trail between Balcones Woods <-> Walnut Creek. (we live right next to it) Either way, I need a new bike, and hitting the Walnut Creek trails seems too convenient to pass up if I'm buying a new bike anyway. As much as I love aggressive sports, I honestly don't' know if I'll stick with mountain biking. After our talk we decided that the 1000 budget is a must, so I won't be able to jump to the nicer models many of you have recommended. Here is my new question... If I go with the Talon 2 and take it on the Walnut Creek trails, will the cheaper bike have a negative impact on my experience or can I still have fun and see if I stick with the hobby in 6, 9, 12mo? I've been looking for a used quality bike, but in today's environment there just isn't much out there to pick from. Thanks again for all of the help!

Thanks again for everyone's feedback/advice, you guys have great community here! I tried out the XL Fathom 2 today... it was too big. I loved the features, but its was obvious that the bars were just out of reach. too bad, because otherwise it was a great bike. I also stopped by Bike Farm, Trek and ATX bikes today. A few things became pretty clear to me... - This is a horrible time to buy a bike... 😐 - @ATXZJ is right, I'd need to up the budget to 1200-1700 to get all of the features I want in a quality bike At this point I have 3 options that I'm considering... all new bikes and available at local stores today. (Availability is the biggest issue I'm dealing with) 1) Giant - Talon 2 ($650)- cheap, basic, but ticks some of the core features I'm looking for. might be a good choice to test the waters before I dive in too deep. I'd likely consider a dropper post as the first upgrade. Also, I don't think tubeless is an option with the stock wheels... 2) Marin - Pine Mountain 1 ($1450) - ticks most of my features, but I'd have to bump up my budget quite a bit. 3) Trek - Marlin 8 ($1200, I think?) - I'd have to preorder this as its not officially released yet. I think it fits what I'm after, but I've never seen one and would have to wait for it to get delivered to find out (expected delivery is end of May?) I did ride~10 different bikes today, so that's progress! Any thoughts on the bikes I listed above?

lol. thanks, will do. Here are the 2 Giants that I'm currently considering... https://austin.craigslist.org/bik/d/austin-extra-large-21-inch-2019-giant/7273088404.html https://austin.craigslist.org/bik/d/pflugerville-2019-giant-fathom-29er/7284393368.html

Thanks for all of the feedback! I've been checking out craigslist and FB and have a found a few bikes worth checking out. There are 2 XL Giant Fathoms (1 and 2) listed for just around $1k. (a 27.5 and a 29er). I'm afraid XL is a bit large for me at 6ft, but I'm going to check them out. If you guys have any feedback on the Fathoms, I'd love to hear it. I'll also head into Bike Farm later today and talk to someone in person. One thing that is intimidating about bike farm is the number of brands they have listed online. Being a noob, I'm only familiar with the most popular brand names (Specialized, Giant, Trek, etc) What are some of the other reputable brands I should be considering? I want to make sure I don't fall for a knock-off.

will do! thanks for the tip.

Hi all, 43 yr old buying my first mountain bike. need help! (I'm good on anything with a board, skateboard, snowboard, skimboard, etc, just new to bikes) At this point I'm just looking to pick up something used, cheap'ish (<$1000) that can hit the trails near my house (Austin TX, Walnut Creek) Anyone here willing to spend a some time on a phone call or emailing to help me narrow down options? There are lots of used bikes listed around me, I'm just not sure where to begin. Ideally, I'd like to start with a 'must have' list to help narrow down the options. This is what I have after a few days of research... -under $1000 -Hard Tail -Derailleur clutch -29 or 27.5 -L/XL frame (I'm 6foot) -1x drivetrain Is there a cutoff year that I should consider? like, if I find a 2001 bike on craigslist, any reason I shouldn't be considering bikes of that age? any suspension features to consider as a must have?