<p>I'm going to start my freshman year at cal poly and I won't be taking my car. Everyone tells me that a bike would be a good idea, but I'm not really sure what type I should get. I know the differences between and mountain and road bike but does anyone with a little more experience have any suggestions? Thanks!</p>
<p>Depends on the answer to this question:</p>
<p>Do you intend to ride on off-road trails?</p>
<p>No idea about the Cal Poly SLO campus, but I ride a mountain bike to school every day, even though I almost never take it to the trails. To me, mountain bikes make better commuter bikes as it’s much easier to ride over any imperfections on the road with wider wheels. They also allow the cyclist to easily ride on grass which might be necessary if the road is, for whatever reason, impassible. </p>
<p>If you’re looking to buy a bike, I recommend Craigslist. Lots of great used bikes on there. You should also get a rear rack to put a milk crate on the back as this allows for easy backpack storage when riding. Fenders or mudguards are also a good idea depending on how much rain SLO gets. </p>
<p>But the most important thing to buy (besides a bike) is a decent u lock. Bike theft happens all the time on college campuses which is one of the reasons you should avoid getting a super expensive bike. No thief is going to go after some well locked POS thing from the early 90s if there are better, more expensive bikes ripe for the taking.</p>
<p>Thanks!! Those are great points! I think I’ll go with the mountain bike then!</p>
<p>Actually, a road bicycle makes a better commuter on the road, or even light off-road trails, than a mountain bicycle. You can choose slightly wider smooth tires for on-road commuting comfort while maintaining efficiency through lower rolling resistance than knobby mountain bicycle tires.</p>
<p>Don’t forget to read this on locking bicycles:
[Lock</a> Strategy](<a href=“http://sheldonbrown.com/lock-strategy.html]Lock”>http://sheldonbrown.com/lock-strategy.html)</p>