Trek 5500 opinions?

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Rivermist said:

Am thinking of buying a Trek 5500. If anyone has any
experience or knowledge about this bike I would appreciate
their opinion.

I am currently riding my second 5500. The first one became
expensive splinters after a car rear ended me. Fortunately
for the past eight years without any significant impacts the
bike still serves me well today. I plan to install a new
gruppo soon.

I am a 6'2'', 175 lb rider. I purchased my first and second
5500s for bike racing. At that time I though my triathlon
days were behind me. For my size, the 5500 is light, almost
as stiff as an oversized aluminum tube frame (Klein or
Cannondale, for instance) and seemingly as smooth as a high
quality steel frame. I set my 40km TT pr on my present bike.
However, the setup for a bicycle time trial that might be
followed by a criterium or road race in my in my case was
useless for doing triathlons because of that pesky run.

So before I start prattling on forever: does the bike fit
you for its intended purpose? If the bike fits, buy it! If
not, consider others. My 60cm frame is great for fast
training and bike racing. If I decide to switch back to
triathlons, then a different frame and fit will serve me
better for the bike portion of the race.

David (for the geekly, the fingerprint contains my
email address)
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"Rivermist" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:P6GBc.154768$Ly.59812@attbi_s01...

Quoted message said:

Am thinking of buying a Trek 5500. If anyone has any
experience or knowledge about this bike I would appreciate
their opinion.

My experience is along the same lines as David's. I bought
mine for tri's, also a 60cm, but I weight 210 lbs.
Unfortunately, I was seduced by the frame material and did
not pay close attention to the geometry.

It is a wonderful feel/fit for cycling but, for me, is very
awkward feeling when tricked for a tri. I use a Trek 2300
"beater" for racing and aero trainnig.

The more technical the course is, the more fun it is to
ride.

Last thing, the cable guides (top tube) continually come
off. I have to clean and re-epoxy every year. If it happens
more often than that I "make do" with a tie-wrap until the
next major cleaning.

rsquared