bicycles and accessories
The wife and I bought some new bikes the other day. We first were looking just for her.
The bike that she was using wasn't comfortable so she didn't use it very much. The breaks were usually too far for her to reach. The seat and posture prevented her from biking very far. She didn't understand how to effectively switch gears using the toggle switch that came on the old Peugeot.
For my birthday (later this month) I requested that we would go biking together. She was quite adamant about how she wouldn't want to go biking with the bikes that we currently have.
We first looked at the local small bike store. We tried out a few bikes. Obviously a price is a concern. They didn't have much of a selection of bikes. Which is usually a bad thing. For us on the other hand, we have very little interest in Specialized, Trek, or Cannondale bikes. All well out of our price range. -We could have afforded a bottom-of-the-line model, but it would lack features and would be a theft magnet. Strauss had a variety of Schwinn, Diamondback, and GT bicycles. All competitively priced and highly functional for our demands.
I am partial to red bikes. It is the colour of my old Bianchi, my Chrome messenger bag, and my long sleeve bicycle shirt. We originally had sticker shock at $200, but then soon realized that bikes don't come much cheaper than that.
The two manufacturers that we were interested in, after comparing the features and price, were Schwinn and Diamondback. We were not interested in spending more than $200 on a bike. Which quickly turned into not wanting to spend more than $250 on a bike.
The wife was looking through the women bikes. I spotted one that I liked, took it out for a ride. She decided that from the two in our price range that there was a Diamondback (wide tires) and a Schwinn (classic look). My only concern is that she had a twist gear changer (verses the trigger type) and front shocks. We decided that we would research the Schwinn Voyageur GS for price and reviews on the internet before we buy anything.
Long story short we got two high-rated (afford ability and reliability) hybrid bicycles for $505 (with tax). Edgewood costs $349 retail and Voyageur $329 retail. 10% off of already store sale price and $25 credit for the Bianchi. Saving $220 or 30% off retail.
Today we sold an old Peugeot Monaco that we purchased from the neighbor early last year for $40. We sold the bike for $45. We didn't put any money into it, rode it for a year, then sold it a year later for $5 more (12.5% gain). We would have kept it, the frame is too small for me and the wife did not like the posture.
I used the money to purchase a head light and tail light for the wife's new bike. They are close-out, last year's models. I compared them with the most current offerings from respective companies. To get the best deal, I looked at REI-Outlet. $60 retail (the price of new) for the head light, I bought it for $28 (41% off plus and additional 20% off special) The bike light retails for $13 (affordable w/o any additional discount), I bought for $10.19 (15% off regularly retailed price by signing up for a newsletter). After shipping and tax $46.98, regularly $83.75. A discount of $36.77 or 44% off.
As some of you may know (all 3 of you), it is going to be my birthday here soon. You can see my Wish List.
I would like to hear comments about what you think about what is on my list. For example: "Why didn't I choose the Mars 3.0 light instead of the RF6?"
The other day I biked to downtown Stillwater, MN from (East Side) St. Paul, MN. A 20 mile ride (mostly on the Gateway Trail). It made me think about how neat it would be able to go to Stillwater for a day (enjoy a wine bar or antique store) then ride back again. It takes about 3 hours to get there. If we took the entire day and allowed ample time to rest before going home, it would be nice to say that we went 40 miles in one day on the bike.
Once we both get lights for our bikes, it sure would be nice to bike at night when it isn't so hot with the son. Perhaps if the bugs aren't too bad and we have a bright enough light, we could take some unlighted trails. Have you ever seen a high powered bicycle head light go through the woods at night? It is like watching an alien abduction. A clear white light zoom inside the trees w/o making a noise, it's very cool.
The bike that she was using wasn't comfortable so she didn't use it very much. The breaks were usually too far for her to reach. The seat and posture prevented her from biking very far. She didn't understand how to effectively switch gears using the toggle switch that came on the old Peugeot.
For my birthday (later this month) I requested that we would go biking together. She was quite adamant about how she wouldn't want to go biking with the bikes that we currently have.
We first looked at the local small bike store. We tried out a few bikes. Obviously a price is a concern. They didn't have much of a selection of bikes. Which is usually a bad thing. For us on the other hand, we have very little interest in Specialized, Trek, or Cannondale bikes. All well out of our price range. -We could have afforded a bottom-of-the-line model, but it would lack features and would be a theft magnet. Strauss had a variety of Schwinn, Diamondback, and GT bicycles. All competitively priced and highly functional for our demands.
I am partial to red bikes. It is the colour of my old Bianchi, my Chrome messenger bag, and my long sleeve bicycle shirt. We originally had sticker shock at $200, but then soon realized that bikes don't come much cheaper than that.
The two manufacturers that we were interested in, after comparing the features and price, were Schwinn and Diamondback. We were not interested in spending more than $200 on a bike. Which quickly turned into not wanting to spend more than $250 on a bike.
The wife was looking through the women bikes. I spotted one that I liked, took it out for a ride. She decided that from the two in our price range that there was a Diamondback (wide tires) and a Schwinn (classic look). My only concern is that she had a twist gear changer (verses the trigger type) and front shocks. We decided that we would research the Schwinn Voyageur GS for price and reviews on the internet before we buy anything.
Long story short we got two high-rated (afford ability and reliability) hybrid bicycles for $505 (with tax). Edgewood costs $349 retail and Voyageur $329 retail. 10% off of already store sale price and $25 credit for the Bianchi. Saving $220 or 30% off retail.
Today we sold an old Peugeot Monaco that we purchased from the neighbor early last year for $40. We sold the bike for $45. We didn't put any money into it, rode it for a year, then sold it a year later for $5 more (12.5% gain). We would have kept it, the frame is too small for me and the wife did not like the posture.
I used the money to purchase a head light and tail light for the wife's new bike. They are close-out, last year's models. I compared them with the most current offerings from respective companies. To get the best deal, I looked at REI-Outlet. $60 retail (the price of new) for the head light, I bought it for $28 (41% off plus and additional 20% off special) The bike light retails for $13 (affordable w/o any additional discount), I bought for $10.19 (15% off regularly retailed price by signing up for a newsletter). After shipping and tax $46.98, regularly $83.75. A discount of $36.77 or 44% off.
As some of you may know (all 3 of you), it is going to be my birthday here soon. You can see my Wish List.
I would like to hear comments about what you think about what is on my list. For example: "Why didn't I choose the Mars 3.0 light instead of the RF6?"
The other day I biked to downtown Stillwater, MN from (East Side) St. Paul, MN. A 20 mile ride (mostly on the Gateway Trail). It made me think about how neat it would be able to go to Stillwater for a day (enjoy a wine bar or antique store) then ride back again. It takes about 3 hours to get there. If we took the entire day and allowed ample time to rest before going home, it would be nice to say that we went 40 miles in one day on the bike.
Once we both get lights for our bikes, it sure would be nice to bike at night when it isn't so hot with the son. Perhaps if the bugs aren't too bad and we have a bright enough light, we could take some unlighted trails. Have you ever seen a high powered bicycle head light go through the woods at night? It is like watching an alien abduction. A clear white light zoom inside the trees w/o making a noise, it's very cool.
Labels: bicycle, bike, cycle, diamondback, gateway trail, minnesota, mn, schwinn, st paul, stillwater
posted by asciiadam
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