erin fu, offroad mountain biking? is it me or is that really funnie? ;)

do you know where you're going to ride and how hard-core you'll be?  if you're primarily doing paved road and plan on doing this for awhile, a road bike seems to make the most sense.  you can get a good starter bike for around 800 new, less if you get last year's model or one used.  i almost got a 2006 bianchi brava for around $650 this year, but then I got tempted by more expensive, lighter bikes and ended up not buying anything.  If I get back into biking after the kid, I think I'd spring for something in the 1k range.

if you're going on trails where there's gravel (like the town lake trail) or want to sit more upright while you're riding, though, maybe a hybrid.  hybrids are heavier and less popular, meaning they're less expensive.  i think you can get a pretty decent hybrid new for 400-500.

test drive a lot of bikes and see what you like.  =)  it's pretty fun to test them out!

Craigslist. Lots of ppl are selling their bikes post-MS150.

yeah depends on what you do. if you're just going to be the casual rider, i would just go with a hybrid. i wouldn't dish out the money for a road/mountain bike unless you're really going to get into one of those sports.

oooou.... mountain biking is FUN! but i think you would probably like non-off-road stuff better.

not sure where you would research what a good bike is, though :( do you remember mayha? i think she was into biking at some point in time. you can try asking her. i'm pretty sure she has a really nice bike.

as for the $400 bike not lasting the test of time??? er... i hope that person is wrong.

anyway... that's the only person i can think of right now =)

HI!!!

If you want to use it for exercise, I would either go for a mountain bike and do real mountain biking or get a road bike and do real road biking. Originally, I got a road bike and Bonnie got a hybrid b/c she liked to sit more upright. She ended up not liking to ride it b/c it was so heavy, and we ended up getting her another bike - this time, a road bike. Now, she loves to ride her bike, and I use the hybrid when it rains. =)