Cyclocross - Advise for a new guy

I have a good friend that runs a ton and is thinking about getting back into riding. He lives in the country and really can’t use a road bike because half of the roads are gravel and kinda rough. He also can’t use his MTB because the gearing isn’t really set for the crazy hills he has. So I thought- cyclocross baby, cyclocross.
I’m a roadie so I haven’t the slightest insight into your crazy world. Could someone out there look at his situation and let me know your suggestions?
Thanks a million.

Redline Conquest baby, Redline.

http://www.redlinebicycles.com/adultbikes/conquest.html

I normally ride a 61 or 62 road bike. I feel most comfortable on a 57 or 58 CX. I do have a 55 CX bike that rides pretty good but I have it set up long and there's a mile of seat post.

I don't know what you mean by "crazy hills". If there are any significant climbs then by all means fit the bike with a triple which would mean changing the front derailleur, the bottom bracket and the cranks.

SpD type pedals come on the bike and are perfect for an ex-runner. Start him with a set of those sneaker-type of bike shoes that I HATE.

Specialized Tricross, baby, Freeroad! :)

Redline, Specialized... never (both still rockin bikes).
Kona all the way. Dr. Dew, Jake the Snake, or the PHD.

Probably hard to pick a bad cross bike.
- Lemond (Steel)
- Surly cross check (Steel)
- Redline (Alum)
- Bianchi Volpe
These are more of the common cross bike that you will find out there, and they are all good performers.
I have ridden the Lemond and the Redline, the rides are different, but both good. There are alos alot of people that really like the Surly and the Bianchi as general all around good bike's that work for fitness riding/ trails and commutting as well. The Bianchi comes stock with a Triple and can be had at a reasonable price. Actually all the above bikes can be had at a good price.

The important thing to remember as one of the other members wrote is that Cross bike need to be fitted smaller than a road bike because of the additional BB heights. This means that some time it is difficult to dial in the fit. I can ride most road bikes with a top tube length of 56 - 56.5 comfortabley which translated to a a 56 cm frame (most times). But I had 3 cross frames that I had to give up because the fit eas not quite right, I finally had to go smaller in size to get the proper fit. On my Ridley and Cannondale I ride a 54cm....both with different stems ( 100cm and 110cm) and seatposts (Setback and no setback) to get the proper fit. once they are dialed in properlythey can be very comfortable to ride in all sorts of conditions.

He also can’t use his MTB because the gearing isn’t really set for the crazy hills he has. So I thought- cyclocross baby, cyclocross.

cyclocross bikes are designed for racing on a fairly flat course so the gearing is way higher than a mountain bike and isn't going to help your friend climb any hills. in cyclocross you run up the steeper hills so i guess if he's a runner he'll be ok ;)

I broke my Specialized S-Works CX - stress fracture on the rear dropout. They replaced it with a road frame that was no good to me because they discontinued the cyclocross model. I have a Lemond Poprad now and LOVE IT!