Need your advice...

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

My wife is looking to buy a 2004 Klein Aura XV. We are in sunny (and flat) S. Florida and she is a
long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so. The cost is about $1900. What other brands should
she consider in the same price range (+/- $700)? She is determined to buy this over the weekend so
any help would be greatly appreciated!

What kind of riding? In the touring style you have a Bianchi San Remo at abou $1200 or a Specialized
Sequoiah Elite at about $1300 with suspended seat post.

--
Dave Kerber Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

Quoted message said:

My wife is looking to buy a 2004 Klein Aura XV. We are in sunny (and flat)
S. Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so. The cost is about $1900.
What other brands should she consider in the same price range (+/- $700)? She is determined to
buy this over the weekend so any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks, Dan

The single most important thing is whether or not the bike fits her well.

There are many great bikes. Differences are not so much in brand names as in

1. The material - steel, aluminut, Ti, carbon

2. The component group - Shimano or Campy, level of quality of the component

3. The design of the bike for the body of the person. Terry makes bikes supposedly designed
specifically for the anatomy of most women. Lemond makes bikes for those with shorter legs and
longer torsos. Some of the compact geometry bikes may fit women appropriately.

4. What your wife wants to accomplish with her riding is important. While 60 miles per week is
certainly a nice accomplishment, it is at the low end of most serious bike riders, who will
generally average at least 125 miles per week up to 250 - 300 miles per week or more. It makes a
great deal of difference in comfort as to how many hours someone is going to sit on a bike seat
and a bike each week.

5. Certainly the 2004 Klein Aura XV is a nice bike. Why does she specifically want this bike?

Rather than buying a bike specifically by brand name, get to a Local Bike Shop and discuss the above
issues, and whatever else occurs to you. Get a professional fitting. Find a LBS that you feel you
can trust. Find a material she likes.

Good luck!

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Quoted message said:

My wife is looking to buy a 2004 Klein Aura XV. We are in sunny (and

flat) S.

Quoted message said:

Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so. The

cost is

Quoted message said:

about $1900. What other brands should she consider in the same price

range (+/-

Quoted message said:

$700)? She is determined to buy this over the weekend so any help would

be

Quoted message said:

greatly appreciated!

Dan: You might have a tough job talking her into anything other than the Klein, assuming that it can
be set up properly for her (in terms of fit). There's an emotional appeal to the Klein that most
bikes lack, and I often find women in particular drawn to them, even when it's clear it might not be
the appropriate bike. But if it is a good solution for her needs, I don't know if I'd spend much
time trying to talk her out of it. If there's something about the Klein that might make her want to
ride more, then it just may be the right way to go.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles chainreactionbicycles.comchainreactionbicycles.comOpen ↗

"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My wife is looking to buy a 2004 Klein Aura XV. We are in sunny (and

flat) S.

Quoted message said:

Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so. The

cost is

Quoted message said:

about $1900. What other brands should she consider in the same price

range (+/-

Quoted message said:

$700)? She is determined to buy this over the weekend so any help would

be

Quoted message said:

greatly appreciated!

Thanks, Dan

Thanks to everyone for the great information! Mike said it best - after a lot of internet and local
bike shop research, she fell in love with the Klein. We will go to the local dealer to see if it
fits her. She is upgrading from a mid to low range Fuji so if the Klein is comfortable it will
definitely be a step up.

Thanks again, Dan

Dan Krueger said:

My wife is looking to buy a 2004 Klein Aura XV. We are in sunny (and flat) S. Florida and she is a
long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so. The cost is about $1900. What other brands should
she consider in the same price range (+/- $700)? She is determined to buy this over the weekend so
any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks, Dan

Dan Krueger said:

flat) S. Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so.

Curiosity compels me to ask the collective: Is 60 miles/week a long distance? I checked my distance
numbers for the last several months and am averaging around 500 miles/month--and this is Indiana in
the early winter. I thought I was moderate on distance.

-=Dave=-

"Dave" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Dan Krueger said:

flat) S. Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so.

Curiosity compels me to ask the collective: Is 60 miles/week a long distance? I checked my
distance numbers for the last several months and am averaging around 500 miles/month--and this is
Indiana in the early winter. I thought I was moderate on distance.

Well, what's your comparison group? Compared to all cyclists of all types, 60 miles per week is a
lot. That's 3000 miles a year, which will impress most people who don't hang around bicycling
newsgroups.

Even among those hanging around here in r.b.m., that's an OK distance, although nothing special.
Since you made me curious, I checked one of the old "How many miles did you do last year" threads,
the one for the year 2000. Those who posted to that thread (and allowed their post to be archived by
Google) had the following miles:

over 10,000: 1 8000-9999: 0 6000-7999: 3 4000-5999: 11 2000-3999: 4
< 2000: 2 total posters with explicit mileage listed: 21. total posters not telling the truth, or
skippping this thread because they had more posts than miles for the year: unknown.

You have a pretty ambitious comparison group for 500 miles in an Indiana December to be "moderate".

--
Mike Kruger I didn't believe in reincarnation last time, either.

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Dan Krueger said:

flat) S. Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so.

Curiosity compels me to ask the collective: Is 60 miles/week a long distance? I checked my
distance numbers for the last

IMO no. I'd consider that at the low end of an "enthusiast" rider, especially when the roads are
flat and the weather is usually conducive to riding. It would be toward the high end of an average
week for me, but I know I don't ride as much as many other riders in my area.

Quoted message said:

several months and am averaging around 500 miles/month--and this is Indiana in the early winter. I
thought I was moderate on distance.

--
Dave Kerber Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

Dave said:

Dan Krueger said:

flat) S. Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so.

Curiosity compels me to ask the collective: Is 60 miles/week a long distance? I checked my
distance numbers for the last several months and am averaging around 500 miles/month--and this is
Indiana in the early winter. I thought I was moderate on distance.

-=Dave=-

It is dependent on what you are 'riding for'. I ride, in the winter base pohase, typically 600
miles/month. During the heart of the racing season, I am up to 1000 miles/month.

Joe
--
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Dave said:

Dan Krueger said:

flat) S. Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so.

Curiosity compels me to ask the collective: Is 60 miles/week a long distance? I checked my
distance numbers for the last several months and am averaging around 500 miles/month--and this is
Indiana in the early winter. I thought I was moderate on distance.

-=Dave=-

Dumbass.

That was one of the dumbest questions I've seen. I think I'll go back up to the top and sign off
like Kurgan does. If the OP thinks 60 miles a week is long distance then it is long distance.

And you are coming out as somebody that just wants to brag about how much they ride.

--
Perre

You have to be smarter than a robot to reply.

Per Elmsäter said:

Dave said:

Dan Krueger said:

flat) S. Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so.

Curiosity compels me to ask the collective: Is 60 miles/week a long distance? I checked my
distance numbers for the last several months and am averaging around 500 miles/month--and this is
Indiana in the early winter. I thought I was moderate on distance.

-=Dave=-

Dumbass.

That was one of the dumbest questions I've seen. I think I'll go back up to the top and sign off
like Kurgan does. If the OP thinks 60 miles a week is long distance then it is long distance.

And you are coming out as somebody that just wants to brag about how much they ride.

--
Perre

You have to be smarter than a robot to reply.

1. My apologies to Dan and his wife if they thought I was being critical of her--I was not.

2. If I was bragging about distance, I would have made it much higher, like that four foot rainbow
trout I caught. Or I would have said I did it in only 15 hours of solo riding ( five three-hour
days, by the way 8-) per month.

3. Thanks for your contribution to the signal-to-noise ratio of the newsgroup.

-=Dave=-

Mike Kruger said:

Well, what's your comparison group? Compared to all cyclists of all types, 60 miles per week is a
lot. That's 3000 miles a year, which will impress most people who don't hang around bicycling
newsgroups.

Even among those hanging around here in r.b.m., that's an OK distance, although nothing special.

I figured rbm would cut out the Sunday-ride-to-the ice-cream-store and similar groups.

Quoted message said:

You have a pretty ambitious comparison group for 500 miles in an Indiana December to be
"moderate".

Maybe I do need to adjust my frame of reference. Although it was up to 63 F here a couple
of days ago.

Thanks for the info,

-=Dave=-

Joe Cipale said:

It is dependent on what you are 'riding for'. I ride, in the winter base pohase, typically 600
miles/month. During the heart of the racing season, I am up to 1000 miles/month.

How much of the 1000 is race miles and how much is training miles (if you don't mind sharing that)?

Thanks,

-=Dave=-

Dave said:

Per Elmsäter said:

Dave said:

Dan Krueger wrote:

> flat) S. Florida and she is a long distance rider - 60 miles per week or so.

Curiosity compels me to ask the collective: Is 60 miles/week a long distance? I checked my
distance numbers for the last several months and am averaging around 500 miles/month--and this
is Indiana in the early winter. I thought I was moderate on distance.

-=Dave=-

Dumbass.

That was one of the dumbest questions I've seen. I think I'll go back up to the top and sign off
like Kurgan does. If the OP thinks 60 miles a week is long distance then it is long distance.

And you are coming out as somebody that just wants to brag about how much they ride.

--
Perre

You have to be smarter than a robot to reply.

1. My apologies to Dan and his wife if they thought I was being critical of her--I was not.

Hey they had nothing to do with this. He's probably just sitting there laughing his ass off.

Quoted message said:

2. If I was bragging about distance, I would have made it much higher, like that four foot
rainbow trout I caught. Or I would have said I did it in only 15 hours of solo riding ( five
three-hour days, by the way 8-) per month.

Didn't you 😉

Quoted message said:

3. Thanks for your contribution to the signal-to-noise ratio of the newsgroup.

You're welcome.

--
Perre

You have to be smarter than a robot to reply.