Hi everyone,
First time poster and really glad to find this community
Firstly. A bit of background. I am a complete novice who started mountain biking literally a month by going to the Cycle Lab bike park in Bryanston, Johannesburg and renting their bikes and hitting the trails there. I have mostly been only doing the beginner trails and last weekend I tried out one of the intermediate trails which was definitely a challenge, but I am absolutely loving it and so hooked and I am definitely ready to get my own bike so that I can explore more trails around Jhb
Choosing the right first bike especially as someone who has barely begun his journey has been one of the most stressful things ive done lately. Shimano, Suntour, groupset... All these terms make no sense to me and I am trying my best to slowly understand. While I make sense of it all. I need some help deciding my first bike.
I am a fairly short person at only 165cm tall. The bike I hire has 29 inch tyres and has 1 gear in the front and I think 12 gears in the back and feels comfortable but not sure what frame size it is. From my research, my understanding is a small to medium frame is recommended for my height. I will mostly be using it for doing dirt trails with some hills, berms and wooden bridges such as the cycle lab bike park beginner/intermediate level trials (for those that have been there) . I also intend to take it on some hiking/biking trails around JHB. Dont plan on doing anything too advanced or extreme. Hope this info helps give some context
My budget is around the R10k which I know is on the lower end but thats what I can afford for a first bike right now. From my research. I understand that a hardtail bike is the go to choice around this budget. I have made a shortlist of some bikes I think might be good options as a first bike and just needed some opinions to see if I am heading in the right direction.
silverback stride comp se aluminium hardtail mountain bike 2023 - https://www.cyclelab.com/product/1017962-bike-mtb-ht-alu-slvback-stride-comp-se-my23
This one was recommended to me by the cycle lab salesperson as something entry level but should be good enough to do what I need it to do
https://www.sportsmanswarehouse.co.za/product/scott-aspect-960-29-mountain-bike/
https://www.sportsmanswarehouse.co.za/product/titan-rogue-nova-29-mtb-2/
These 2 I am considering mainly because I get a discount with Vitality at sportmans warehouse
I have been looking a lot into the 2nd hand market but from what I have seen from previous posts is that it doesn't have the greatest value as you end up spending a lot to fix them especially as someone who doesn't know what to look for, but I am open to going 2nd hand if it makes more sense for my budget. Also happy for any other recommendations
Thanks
