My Bike Options

i was hoping to get some responses.... any of the bikes on my list that should be excluded, for component, customer support vs. the others? or any bikes i should add to my list that i have yet to look at? What in you veteran guys is the best bike for the money? thanks

thanks so much for the helpfull responses, im indebted to all of you. gees, this is a bike buying advise forum isnt it? just looking for a little help here, any advice is appreciated- thanks.....sorry for the mild sarcasm.🙄

It might help if you had any photos of any of the bikes you're considering...

I would, if I were you, lean toward the bike that fit best, that felt the best when you rode it, and that best pushed your giggle buttons. If you haven't already, you should test ride these bikes at the shops that have them.

When you get down to it, it's pretty much impossible for someone to make a bike suggestion for you because fit and ride feel aside, there are a lot of intangibles that go into someone choosing a given bike. Those intangibles are specific to each individual.

In the price in which you're looking, there's not going to be much, in terms of components and performance, that differentiate the bikes at which you're looking.

huckleberry658 said:

Ok- A little background. Im 42, Im a former powerlifter, but i had gotten quite out of shape over the last ten years. I had a heart attack, and a quadruple bypass last year. I got a giant mountain bike and started riding it about 100 miles a week. It was not satisfying me. I want to buy a road bike. I have limited funds since i am rebuilding my life and missed quite a bit of work. I told my wife to set aside my birthday and christmas present money so i could by a road bike. The options i have locally. felt f95, felt z100, diamondback podium 1, specialized allez , a jamis one guy showed me. all in the 750-850 range. I havent rode any for fit yet. I am leaning to the felt f95 because the salesman spent so much time with me and suggested changing the bar because of my shoulder width. A couple of the others spent alot of their time trashing other local bike stores, which turned me off. Any positive or negative feedback on these bikes would be appreciated, or any new suggestions. I really want to hit it hard this spring and do some 40-50 milers, and my first goal is a 100 miler by the end of the summer, ive really got the bug now. thanks.

Here's something to consider even if budget isn't a consideration at the moment ...

The first thing to do is to buy some city "slicks" & appropriate inner tubes ...

If your rear wheel's cassette doesn't have an 11t cog, then change to an appropriate cassette which has one.

Buy a 46t or 48t chainring (presuming you have a 104BCD, 4-arm crankset).

If the 48t chainring isn't large enough to provide the gearing you want & if your crank uses an ISIS BB, then get a road crankset for it

If your current MTB is a hardtail, then you can actually morph it into a road bike with 700c wheels OR continue to use the 26" wheels & only change the bars & shifters (the attached picture is a hardtail frame that I mated to a 700c fork + 700c wheels ... I had the advantage of being able to use spare parts, so just think if this as what can be done rather than what you should do).

After another season, because I'm partial to steel framed bikes, I recommend that you consider a steel framed bike (e.g., JAMIS).

huckleberry658 said:

felt f95, felt z100, diamondback podium 1, specialized allez , a jamis one guy showed me. all in the 750-850 range. I havent rode any for fit yet. I am leaning to the felt f95 because the salesman spent so much time with me and suggested changing the bar because of my shoulder width.

Sorry about our unresponsiveness. As for myself, I tend to glaze over generic-looking thread titles posted by guys who haven't done any homework. Here's my advice to everyone posting here--say something about yourself, like "Former power lifter seeks sensible road bike advice."

So I'm glad I finally peeked in. Your opening post says a lot about yourself and that you've done some homework. So here's my advice--get the Felt. All bikes in a given price range are pretty comparable, but a salesman who spends time discussing your fit pre-sale and doesn't insult your intelligence talking trash about the competition is a salesman who deserves your patronage. Besides, I just dig Felt--they're a spunky smaller company that competes against the biggies (like Specialized and Trek) by designing and spec'ing their bikes with an eye toward value and performance.

Here's a photo of me on my Felt, finishing my first 100-mile ride in almost 20 years. I was feeling fresh enough to sprint up to the finish at Folsom Field at the University of Colorado.