Hey deangy, sounds like you’re in the same situation I was in 2 months ago (complete novice, looking for a bike to commute 30 miles a day, and use at trail centres at the weekend). On the recommendation of my brothers, I opted for the current Genesis Core 10 as a decent starter do-it-all bike, that was within my budget. Being a newbie I cant comment on other bikes in the same price bracket, but I’m chuffed to bits with the Core 10, and after hitting Glentress a couple of times I’m completely hooked, the bike seems way more capable than I am, and probably gives me confidence above my skill level. The commute to work was pretty rough to start with (9 miles towpath and 6 miles road/cyclepath), but that was mostly down to the fact I hadn’t done any exercise/sports in over 20 years, and after only a few weeks I felt my level of fitness had drastically improved. The only advice I would give for a long commute on a MTB is to switch the knobblies for semi-slicks, the difference was immediate (I switch to Conti Travel Contacts for the commute thru the week then stick the oem mountainkings back on at the weekend for trails)