[surfatwork]

Get a hybrid or an MTB. Won't recommend a road bike for casual use.
Don't skimp on the drive train. You'll save a few thousand at best, but earn yourself a whole world of bother and irritation. Enough to put you off cycling for ever.
A front suspension is highly recommended on our roads.
As for brands, if it's for single user casual use, firefox or decathlon is fine. If it's becomes more serious, you can always upgrade.
And most importantly, get the frame geometry right or you'll end up with back and knee niggles

[Candy$Cars]

Originally Posted by comfortablynumb

According to the Decathlon website, the 100 is a discontinued product. The Riverside 120 is not discontinued, but out of stock in all Pune stores at least.

Somehow either there is immense demand for the Riverside 120 or it is only made in very little numbers just to keep the entry price to Riverside series low because I have never ever found it in stock in either of the many Decathlon stores in Delhi-NCR or at Chandigarh.
TBH, the 120 is very VFM and I wanted to get it but ended up buying its bigger brother the 500 as 120 was never in stock and I didn't want to pre-book online without seeing it.

[SDx]

A friend was in similar situation as yours during lockdown, he opted for a pre-owned one from OLX and saved himself 10k. If you are ok with it, could get one to start with and move on to better option at a later stage.

[karsouvik]

I was also in same situation last year and was confused about which one to buy. After lots of trial and considering the budget I choose Fantom bike 721 series MTB and I am pretty happy till now. It is a 27.5" frame with Shimano tourney 21 speed and being a 6ft it is pretty comfortable for me as it has seat adjuster. My wife also rides it comfortably without any issue. And if you are a first time and casual cyclist then you can think of it and if you are in Bangalore then better to go for MTB considering the road condition here. I was little sceptical to buy Fantom bike as the brand was unheard off but I found their frame quality and configurations are quite good and robust, and price wise competitive also.

[010101]

An update to all! I went to decathlon and tried to check out the Riverside 500 but couldn't find myself comfortable on it. Checked out the rockrider and it seemed comfortable enough for me.

I have a Rockrider ST 30 now.

I took a ride back home on the bicycle. The distance of 5km never seemed as long as it did on the bicycle. A reminder of the age that I have managed to put on and my lack of bicycling experience in the last 15-20 years. Over the adventure trail that is Bengaluru, even with the lack of a suspension, I wasn't feeling the jolts as much, thankfully. I have taken the bike out a couple of times and I am fairly used to it now.

The weight difference when compared to a motorcycle and the relatively slimmer tyres still need some time to get used to

Thanks to all who posted with their suggestions. It did help me get some clarity on what I should be looking for.

[antz.bin]

Congrats 21 on your purchase.

Anyways, this thread finally motivated me enough to take the plunge into cycling. But instead of going all in with a new purchase, I have gone the renting route.

For everyone in Pune, this one is for you.

Yesterday I saw this on Furlenco:


So, I googled Renacle and found these guys.


The rental includes periodic service as well. These guys also offer service packages for bikes not rented from them (should come in handy later since Decathlon is 13km /20 km from my place).

Anyways, I placed the order yesterday and the cycle was delivered in a couple of hours.

Opted for the Hybrid 21S, which surprisingly also came with front suspension.

Within the first 24 hours, I have already ridden it for 20km. That face tells that I definitely enjoyed myself on my maiden ride to Khadakwasla dam this morning.


Definitely worth a try so thought of posting about it here.