MH>         I am fifty five years old, six feet one inch tall, and with a
MH> thirty three inch inseam.  Should I opt for a 22 or a 24-inch frame on my
MH> new bike?
I'm 6'2 with a 34 inch inseam, so I'm 1 leg-inch taller. I'd think you'd
want to go with the 22.
MH>         I have looked at a mountain bike from Toys or Us, owned by a
MH> co-worker.  I was not impressed with the quality of his bike.
Any bike from Toys R us won't be impressive
MH>         I also looked at the Fuji, and Giant.  I was impressed with the
MH> quality of both of these bikes.  I had a chance to ride the Giant 630 in
MH> the parking lot, and was impress with it's quality. I almost bought it on
MH> the spot.
Trek, GT and Giant are all very very respectable bike makers. Goto a bike
shop and look at the lower priced bikes, instead of shopping at Toys R Us,
Sears, Caldor or other such department type stores.
MH>         Now I don't plan to do a lot rough "hotdogging" type of
MH> off-roading.  However I do want a bike that climbs wells, fit me, and to 
be
MH> easy on my old knees.
MH>         I like to ride for 10 to 16 miles a day for pleasure, also I 
ould
MH> like to do all my errands and light grocery shopping by bike.  So any
MH> information on size, brand, gear set (gear ratio), how many speeds, and
MH> anything I may have left out will be greatly appreciated.
I'd strongly suggest you check into the Trek hybrids. They are a combination
between Road bikes and mountain bikes, and fit the type of riding
description you want to a 'T'. Mountain bikes have fatter tires, are heavier
and are kind slow and sluggish for any kind of road riding. A hybrid takes
slimmer, but not skinny tires, mountain bike type of handlebars at an
easier, more gentle angle for your back and a real nice gear selection for
your no-pain knees. Most are either going to be 18 or 21 speeds..
Good luck,
GH
 * WCE 2.1G1/2251 * garyh@superlink.net
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