for what you described. For even money, you'll get better components on a hard tail as opposed to a full suspension. Also, 29 inch wheels are more popular right now than these 26 inch wheels -- I would go with the 29er's unless you intend to take a lot of trails with tight turns or you are pretty short. If it were me, I would spend the money on a used (one or two year old) like-new hard tail 29er entry level Trek or Specialized.