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Hey guys, I need some cycle buying advice.
I have similar sentiments as alot of the people on this thread. I am sick and tired of going to a gym, and running/cycling looking into a mirror or a tv screen. To be brutally honest, its a sorry excuse for the real thing.My current gym subscription ends in some days. I did consider moving to a fancier gym and took a three day trial but I just couldn't convince myself to pay a discounted price of ~16-18k on a 6 month membership.
So, the whole idea of getting a cycle has been going around in my head for a while now, just to be able to have the open sky above me more than anything else. To be used for exercise, losing some weight and for nearby commutes in the locality.
I have had a Hero Ranger Swing 15 gears in the past. (circa 2005), bought it for 3800 bucks. Stopped using it many years ago. It was terrible to say the least, something kept going wrong with it.
I understand cycles have become much better now. As of now, I am not at all willing to spend a lot of money on a cycle, atleast initially. Contrary to the advice being given to buy what you can almost not afford. hahaa.
I have a budget of 15k, plus minus a bit for basic accesories. The cycles on my mind are Firefox Roadrunner,FF Rapide S,Hercules ACT 110s. I believe there's a brand called Montra which has a good hybrid in the same price range mentioned. A little research yielded a lot of people saying, the entry level bike one should go for with eyes closed is a rockrider 5.0, but is it available in ncr anymore?
What do you guys suggest? I am 5-7 and 70 kgs.I am looking at hybrids only. I don't want to constantly have to fiddle with whichever cycle I buy. So a good service/aftersales is important. Preferably nearby. There are two firefox stations in my vicinity. One at ghitorni and one in a mall. Which is a good store in Gurgaon to go to?

Guys, need some advice on the Btwin Kemmel from Decathlon. I've always wanted to start cycling again(after school cycling !) and have finally decided to buy a basic bike. My budget is 8k and I was initially into buying the Hero / Hercules bikes with dual shocks, disc brakes and the likes. A little research told me to stay away and now I have narrowed it down to the Kemmel. The store nearby quoted 7999/- for this bike.

Is this good for casual biking ? I will be using it on a few broken / bad roads quite a lot and hence looking at an MTB. Any other alternative.

I really can't increase my budget right now...

@fiat_tarun: test it out along with the rockrider 5.0 and make your choice.

Thanks. I shall check out the rr 5.0 as well. Is 8k the going price for the Kemmel ? Any idea on the rr pricing as well ?

RR5.0 doesnt sell in NCR. Don't even bother.

Please goto cyclofit (ghitorni) for a good range - look at GT/Mongoose as well. Montra is Oh-kay. Being a BSA brand, I don't trust them as much as a GT/Mongoose/Schwinn. They would cut costs on BB/hubs/chains etc even while using standard derailleurs etc.

More than the bike, join groups like https://www.facebook.com/groups/Pedalyatri or their google group. Riding daily is the best way to make use of one's bike. Else unlike a treadmill, u cant even hang undies on a bike - so no alternative uses!!

as for the bike - buy the best bike you can almost NOT afford.

@madhu33, so have you got your bike yet? Which one?

Hi sumith ,no man not yet. Family commitment kept me tied up whole weekend. The bike purchase has taken a back seat for the moment . But surely will get one soon.

I finally picked up the Btwin Kemmel. The Rockrider 5.0 was coming to 10k here in Chennai and I could not stretch my budget. Got the Kemmel at 7990 with some free accessories (bell, side stand, lock & mud guards) + 2 free services.

Decathlon Bangalore is selling the same bike at 7k, but no accessories and carting it back to Chennai would have been a problem

The bike feels good so far, although I've hardly used it much. The brakes feel really good. The ride is quite harsh on broken roads.

Hope the enthusiasm lasts and I cycle regularly!

Would you know of someplace where I can rent a cycle in gurgaon? I want to rent a decent one for 2-3 days to get a feel of cycling before going ahead and buying one.

Hey promit

I am too similarly confused and not a bad idea to rent and try before buying one
Where are you in Gurgaon ?

a. renting isnt cheap - normally 500-600/day or so for a GOOD cycle. check with Supreme IF they do it: https://www.facebook.com/supremecycle - itsnot common in GGN. BLR u can, easily.

b.Plus the concept is a failure. To take a crass example as a married man - no amount of dates with your girl friend will prepare you for the transformation post marriage. ergo, unless you rent a good bike, have good riding buddies, you won't get a true feel of things.

Best option - find a relative / friend who cycles a lot (or atleasthas multiple cycles). Borrow his/her spare cycle, find out a good local cycling group (or take the bike there) such as pedalyatri, ride with them for a week or two atleast, and ONLY then can you decide. Renting can just be a very expensive way to get more confused and reduce your budget! By yourself you can't even know if you're doing it wrong, or force yourself towakeup at 5 everyday :)

/my MTB went to two relatives in the exact same fashion, and then they got inspired to buy their own bikes.

Absolutely.

Buy a decent bike, ride it and if you find that you don't care for cycling, sell the bike at a loss, which will be less than a rental.

Okay, fair enough. Makes sense agree:

I put up in DLF Phase-1 and I go to Saket for college. So anywhere in and around Gurgaon or South Delhi would have been convenient for me. Apart from the Supreme Cycles mentioned above, I found another guy on Cyclop group on facebook. It's about 400 bucks a day, and a 3-5k security deposit depending on cycle. After Phamilyman's post it doesn't seem very feasible anymore.Anyway I'm still sitting on the fence. Let's see how it goes. Where in delhi/gurgaon are you based?

Alternatively,u can check with firefox/track n trail - they occasionally have promotional rides where they hire out bikes!:thumbs up

i was in sohna road till 20 days back. now in chennai!!

Hey Tarun,
Isnt this a mountain bike? Where do you ride it normally?
Why did you choose a mountain bike if you want to stick to city limits?

I am also getting interested.. But want to start with a hybrid bike.