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Quality used bikes are remarkably affordable. I'm a sucker for 80s road bikes; $200 gets you something decent, bring it to a shop for a tune up and probably new brakes.

10-speeds are most common, so you have to be ok with that; although some vintage bikes did have 3 chain rings. Older road bikes tend to have narrow tires, because everybody thought they were faster; 1/4" tires are workable on unpaved mixed use trails, but 1/8" will be pushed around easily by tree roots and ruts.