buy magazines (dirt, mbuk, mbr, etc) and read the reviews. also, ask advice. either from shops, or website forums.

buying a bike depends on the type of riding you’re going to be doing. sounds like a hard tail would be best for trails and street. also depends on your budget.

Go to your local bike shop and ask them. No amount of advice from this website can substitute from the knowledge that they can give you. You need to make sure that the bike fits you properly and you can not get that from any on-line website. No matter what brand of bike you buy, if you get it from an actual bike shop, it will be a quality bike.

I have two – a Specialized Rockhopper and Raleigh M80. I like both. Both are stable on the trails.

If you aren’t going to be riding heavy duty off road, you may want to stick with front suspension only (aka hardtail). My Rockhopper is old and has no suspension and my Raleigh has front suspension.

Make sure to get one that fits – of anything that’s probably the most important. Depending on what you want to spend, most brands are very similar within the price ranges. You might see slight differences in frame geometry, but probably nothing that notiecably effects the ride.

I recommend trying a few out. You’ll hit one that feels like an extension of yourself.

buy a used one without all that suspension crap the cheap one’s are real heavy and not needed for non offroad racing. you can get a deal on a used one without all that unnessesary new- age bullshidt. .

bikesdirect.com and rscyle.com have good ones that are cheap. Look for components that at least have a shimano deore. Deore XT will cost more.