Interesting questions. Firstly, regarding the Lemond question, absolutely. Lemond's bikes are gorgeous and well-made, that's not in question. Where the Lance stuff is considered, well, that's between them. They're adults, they've been exchanging dialogue on the subject for a while, and frankly, anyone who's had as close contact with Armstrong as Lemond has likely has a valid opinion on the matter.
The jury remains out on the facts, and Armstrong deserves the benefit of the doubt from the public. But though he may be a hell of a cyclist, and a courageous guy for overcoming cancer, but none of that makes him more above scrutiny than the next guy. That said, a good bike is a good bike. Anyways...
This is, of course, an impossible question, so I'll just toss out some of my favorite bike brands that make nice models in that price range:
Klein - highly refined, luciously painted American aluminum goodness.
Lemond - highly refined, luciously assembled American multi-material goodness.
Sycip - simple, minimalist, sexy-mod Northern California goodness.
DeRosa - utterly romantic, artisan Italian goodness.
Pegoretti - classic Italian steel and al, best graphics in the business.
Giant - lots of options, great value. My favorite choice in the big-company category.
