Whether you want to ride for fun, fitness or finances, learn everything about biking

 Temperatures, along with gas prices, are steadily on the rise in Utah Valley

"Biking is good exercise -- you save money, and you get fit. You can't go wrong there," said Amanda Brinkerhoff, a bike mechanic at Taylor's Bike Shop in Provo. "And for all the tree huggers out there, it's good because you're not polluting the air."

This summer, however, "tree huggers" aren't the only ones embracing bike riding. Travis Martin, manager at Mad Dog Cycles in Provo, said biking is becoming increasingly popular as people become more eco-friendly, health conscious and fed up with gas prices.

"They make bikes for all types of people now," Martin said. "Just like shoes, there are all sizes. People do differing types of riding for different types of things. They are starting to use bikes as a tool instead of a toy," Martin said.

Whether for work or for play, it's clear that biking has multiple benefits. Here are some tips for buying, fixing up and riding a bike this summer.

Excite Bikes

Roadsters/Utility

Most common for commuting and exercising, road bikes typically have 10 speeds and are great for covering a lot of ground, said Chris Thompson, a bike specialist at Outdoors Unlimited at Brigham Young University in Provo.

"Tons of people are getting into road bikes for triathlons and things like that," Thompson said. "On a road bike you can cover more ground and get the same amount of exercise as you would on a mountain bike."

Mountain

Mountain bikes can be purchased with full or hardtail suspension, which work as shock absorbers that add comfort during a bike ride, Thompson said.

Full suspension, which has front and back tire suspension, gives more comfort but is also heavier than hardtail suspension, which only absorbs shock on the front tire, Thompson said.

Mountain bikes are best for covering rough terrain and mountain trails. Downhill bikes, although they are a type of mountain bike, are "basically like a motorcycle without a motor" and are much more extreme than typical mountain bikes, Thompson said.

Cruisers

These retro bikes originated in the 1930s and typically have a single speed, according to schwinnbike.com, a retailer of cruiser bikes. "Beach cruisers are for going to the snow cone shack or Wendy's," Thompson said. "It doesn't have any other purpose except a comfortable around-town bike."

BMX

Made specifically for urban jumping, racing and stunts, BMX bikes are smaller and "easier to throw around" than other bikes, Thompson said.

"Your typical newspaper boy would ride a BMX bike," Thompson said. BMX biking is a major part of Summer X Games, an extreme sport competition, and will be added to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Fixed Gear

Also known as "fixies," these bikes were originally used for big-city couriers who deliver business documents. Fixed-gear bikes, which do not have breaks or gears, have since been gaining in popularity, Thompson said. Riders cannot coast or brake to a stop on these bikes. Instead, they travel backward when they push the pedals back and come to a stop by resisting the pedal rotation.

Tandem

"Tandem bikes are like beach cruisers for two," Thompson said.

Designed to be ridden by two people, a tandem bike is controlled by the front rider and powered by the first and second rider. Tandem bikes are mostly used for short rides around town with a date or a friend.

Where to buy

• Bike shops: Though you may be spending a little more money initially, buying a bike at a bike shop will pay off in quality, said Bike Magazine editor Lou Mazzante.

"You're going to be connected to a network there," Mazzante said.

Specialty bike shops offer services such as bike fittings, bike repairs and warranties. For example, Taylor's Bike Shop in Provo offers unlimited tune-ups on bikes for 60 days after purchase, and five additional tune ups after that.

"People should shop for a bike shop rather than a bike, where they will give you the extra attention," Mazzante said. "The shop is going to get you the bike you need."

Bikes from a specialty shop start at about $290, though the average bike sale is usually closer to $500, said Martin of Mad Dog Cycles.

• Mass-produced bikes: Stores such as Target and Wal-Mart offer bikes between the $50-$200 price range, with a few specialty bikes closer to $300, said Erik Standifird, executive team lead at Target in Orem.

Target and Wal-Mart both offer fully assembled bikes that are built by outside company Impact, their best seller being the Schwinn beach cruiser, Standifird said. Target offers repairs within 90 days of purchasing a bike.

"People that come in to buy bikes here aren't heavy mountain bikers that are going to thrash it hard," Standifird said. "A cheaper bike does just fine for the casual rider."

• Thrift stores: Second-hand stores such as Deseret Industries and Savers offer used bikes for sale from $5-$20, though these bikes often require repairs.

• Rentals: A few bike shops in the Utah Valley rent out bikes for a fraction of the purchasing cost. For example, Brigham Young University's Outdoors Unlimited offers a variety of bikes for hourly, daily or weekly rental, prices ranging from $5 to $120.

Mad Dog Cycles in Orem also rents bikes, including road, hybrid and lime (with automatic gear changing) bikes for 24 hours starting at $20. Those who rent bikes for more than one day receive an additional 10 percent off each day, reaching up to 50 percent.

Where to ride

"One of the greatest things about Utah is the diversity of the terrain," said Mazzante. "You can find everything from desert to Alpine trials to Moab, which is one of the original biking terrains."

Mazzante also said that places like Brian Head Resort in southern Utah have miles of undiscovered trails.

"In Utah, if you have a bike, there is a place for you to ride," Mazzante said.

Some of the best places to ride in Utah:

• American Fork Canyon: With a breath-taking view and clear trails, American Fork Canyon is great for less-intense biking, said Thompson of Outdoors Unlimited.

"It has a ridge-line trail that's got amazing scenery and really good terrain to ride on," Thompson said. "It's all dirt -- there are very few rocks, but the scenery is the No. 1 point."

• Moab: This national mountain-biking Mecca offers both simple and advanced riding, Thompson said.

"There is really easy riding and really technical riding," Thompson said. "It is where I learned to love mountain biking, and it definitely caters to every level."

Thompson said the two most popular trails in Moab are Slick Rock and Porcupine Rim.

• St. George: "St. George is always exciting -- it has some fast trails that are not extremely technical but are really fun because of the speed you can go," Thompson said. "They are really bicycle-friendly."

Thompson said Gooseberry is one of the best trails in the St. George area.

Safety gear

"Obviously, the biggest thing is to wear a helmet," said Bobby Brighman, employee at Bingham's Cyclery in Provo. "I see way too many bikers on the road without a helmet. It's not a law in Utah to wear one, but it should be."

• Gear: Mountain bikers may need to buy additional pads and shin guards, though a helmet is the best protection for the average street rider. Brighman also said he recommends that riders have a white light on the front of their bike and a flashing red light on the back for riding at night. Though these lights do not come with most bikes, they can be purchased for around $15 each.

• Riding: Bikers should behave as if they were another vehicle on the road, Brighman said.

"If you're riding on the road, just behave as if you were another car and stop for traffic lights and stop signs," Brighman said. "You have to follow the same rules."

Brighman said that bikers should ride in the same direction as traffic and yield to other pedestrians.