Road Cycling - Trek 2300

I am looking into buying a 2001 Trek 2300 and just wanted some feedback on the model. What do you think about the ride? What is your overall opinion of this bike? What are some other comparable bikes from other companies? Thanks.

Trek makes excellent bikes and the 2300 is right in the middle of the line. I ride with a couple of folks who have them. But, after one and two seasons (respectively) they are both looking at other bikes. One at steel bikes because of the ride qualities of steel and the other at titanium, for the same reason.

Trek also makes Lemond bikes, which are steel (or titanium/graphite at the high-end). You might want to try out a comparably equipped Lemond in the same size/price range and see what you think. Both are excellent bikes, but considerably different in their ride qualities. Make sure to spend at least 15 minutes going up and down a couple of roads and not a simple parking lot spin.

Similar bikes will be just about any brand name (Raleigh, Fuji, Bianchi, Specialized, Jamis, Marin, etc.) within plus or minus $100. All the bike manufacturers have pretty similar cost structures and use about the same level of equipment at a given price point. Trek may be able to offer just a bit more as they own so many brand names (Trek, Lemond, Klein, to name three) and also own Bontrager for wheels and components. That doesn't take away from their quality, though. Thoroughly good bicycles.

I would recommend checking out Cannondale's offerings, along with Specialized as well. It depends on what kind of deal you're getting on the (used?) Trek, at least as far as recommending comparable bikes to check out. The important thing is to get out there and ride a bunch of bikes and find the one you are most comfortable with, along with the shop with which you are most comfortable (if you're actually buying from a shop).

I've got a 2002 Trek 2300 with about 500 trainer miles and 500-600 road miles so far and love it. I rode an old steel Fuji for a while before this one and the improvement to the 2300 is not even comparable. I really like to LSC Bontrager lite wheelset. I like the paint on mine, but notice that some of the upper Italian bikes as well as Cannondale have a better paint finish. I had a Cannondale mtnbk recently too. I will probably keep this bike long term, although in a few years I may have a custom paint job put on it. You can look at a few of the lesser expensive brands and tell a difference in the frame quality and also the feel difference in just a short ride. It's not a top of the line Casanti, but I'm not sure that I would be able to tell the difference until I am a lot more experienced anyway.