good buy? 1st bike

Hey all, I'm mike, new to the site. Just recently have begun thinking of startn some road riding, I've been doing mountian cycling for quite some time.
I visited my local bike shop owned by a family friend. . . And looked at a few models, few of which realy fit as well as a 2002 LeMond Alpe 'd Huez. The bike is a brand new unit, not sold. I believe chuck, my friend from the store, said the model usually sells for around $1400.00. I put a deposit on the bike today, and will pick up later this week at a final total of $1000.00. Its a steel frame bike, and is flawless,
Now, this bike fits well, that I'm convinced of, it rode comfortably on the 25 min. Cruise I took it for. . . My questions are. . .
1) are LeMonds good bikes? I'm told yes. . .
2) where does the Alpe rate on LeMonds model is it the lowest? I'm sure its not the highest. . . Is the Alpe a good model?
3) am I going in the right directions for a start? Is the alpe a good starter bike?
4) what do you all out there think of lemonds? Are they well built? Relaible? Comfortable? Are parts affordable? Is a lemond a overall good value? That I should be proud to own?
I truly appriciate any info you all can input. . . Wish me luck, see you all out on the roads.