Hi Folks,

this is my first post. I'm a newbie living in Hampshire who'd like some advice. I'm looking for my first bike & have my eye on the Giant Talon 2.5. I used to be a keen club runner who has had to stop due to osteo athritis in the hip so have taken to the moutain bike instead.Any advice on bikes & basic kit would be appreciated. Plan to do both road & off road biking & perhaps taking the bike to tracks in the locality by car.

hi d28,
where abouts in hamshire are you?
someone local will be able to recommend a good local bike shop that you can test bikes and get good fitting advice.

happy riding

near Basingstoke

If you're the Andover side then there's a Giant dealer their. They also have a club which do beginers rides every monday night. A nice friendly shop with plenty of bikes within the Talon price range. They're also a Cube and Specialized dealer. HTH.

thanx Maximus. What's the shop called…also be interested in the beginners rides as well

Behind The Bike Shed

I would highly recommend Mountain Trax in Wokingham. They are a Giant dealer, as well as many others, and have a huge range of demo bikes.

Would recommend checking out the HCC website as they have some routes you can download. Don't rely on waymarking though! I have a pretty good knowledge of Hampshire trails so feel free to post up any questions. If you have a GPS and mapping software then can send you some gpx files.

Please also see my thread for Hampshire and Surrey riders. 🙂

you could try pedalon in tadley, they do cyclocross bikes if you like on and off road at speed and giant, trek etc

make sure you get a helmet that fits, but dont worry about kit much, just get out and ride

If your company do bike to work look into it. going to get a lot more bike for your money, you will soon be upgrading!

bike kit is trendy, ie last years model cheaper, (*hideous price rises over last couple of years), Pedal On Tadley http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/giant_talon_2.html
do giant, have some sale bikes now, see also Pauls Cycles http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/brands/giant_bikes.php who also do giant, and other internet dealers etc etc, ebay.

kit – helmet (eg bell slant), gloves(padded palms), shorts(baggy and pad), pump, puncture kit and learn how to use.

Hampshire Council v good
http://www3.hants.gov.uk/cycling/cycling-maps-leaflets.htm

Get OS maps of area as well.

A cheap shower curtain/plastic sheet will protect car

Well I know nothing about bikes or Hamptshire but just thought I'd say hello, welcome to the forum and I am sure you will soon be enjoying lots of great bike rides 🙂

Hi mate pedal on cycles is a giant dealer in basingstoke. Good choice of new sport fella!!

Hello and welcome. There are a fair few folks off here within a few miles of you, so plenty of people to show you around if needed.

Bike and kit wise, something that fits is the most important thing.

Rusty ('ampshire 'og living in Dorset)

Hi OP, I'm down the road in Tadley if you want to do some local loops anytime…

There are a couple of decent bike shops in Winch too; Hargroves and Peter Hansford. I think Hargroves has a sale on at the moment, might be worth checking out?

Also, if you are looking for some new rides, Black Wood near Micheldever Station has some nice singletrack running through it and is worth checking out.

Have fun.

thanx everyone I appreciate the advice

Banjo Cycles in Newbury also sell Giant/Specialized etc. and are a nice bunch.