Road Cycling - Yes, another recomendations thread

Okay, same old story. I'm new to biking and want to get a nice road bike for use in the spring. My goals/predicted use is for some endurance riding, generally beyond 60 km per session, and my budget is around $1100 Canadian.

Went shopping to four LBS today and got the exact same opinion from everyone I talked to: get a carbon fork or you will regret it.

Two of the shops I talked to said the same thing in addition to the fork: get Tiagra instead of Sora, or you will regret it.

That said the bikes recomended to me by the shops were the Giant OCR3, Devinci Chicane, Giant OCR2, Cannondale R400, and an Argon 700T. Those are listed in order of price. Of those, the Giant OCR2 and the Argon are the only ones that come with Tiagra though all of them have carbon forks.

If I want something for lots of endurance riding and some light racing at the end of the summer, which of those would suit me best in your experienced opinions? The Argon seemed to me to be almost unquestionably the best equipped but also the most expensive of the bunch, clearance at $1400 (reg. $1650).

I'm new to road bikes and just confused about all the options...HELP!

If you are going to do endurance riding and light racing (?) I'd recommend 105. Not sure if Tiagra will suit your needs.

Have you looked at good used bikes or 2002, 2003 leftovers.
Maybe you should look around at a few more bike shops or wait for addition clearance/sale items later in the fall and winter. Spring is a long way off. Don't rush into buying a bike you're not 100% satisfied with.
And make sure the bike FITS!!!

Look at Felts. The new F60 has carbon stays and a Ultegra/105 drivetrain for $1150.

http://feltracing.com/2004_bikes/images/f60_02.jpg

http://feltracing.com

sheesh, what a bargain!

how do you know the pricing of the felts? i don't see it on the page.

in any case, i suspect $1100 canadian (around $800-$850) wouldn't buy a F60. it might buy a F80, still with carbon forks and 105/tiagra mix. without being able to see pricing, i'd guess it's in the $700-900 territory.

dunno much about the felts; haven't ridden any or anything, but my lbs carries felts and i can say that they definitely look kewl. if only they used the red of the F90 on some of their medium-level frames too....

there's also not much about felts on other sites like roadbikereview, but slowtwitch (http://www.slowtwitch.com/mainheadings/product2003/roadbikes/feltroad.html) has some good feedback about them.

I'm new to road cycling as well this year and I can give you an idea of what my experience has been. I bought an OCR-3 because it was about the most inexpensive new road bike out there and I didn't know where I was going to be going with road cycling. The OCR-3 was a 2002 demo that I picked up for $650 CDN.

I commute to work about 36 k round trip and on my days off I manage to get one or two 50 to 55 k rides in. The OCR-3 is stock Sora. The rims are Alex DR-13.

The first thing I can tell you is that I'm hooked and the bike gets the credit. Weight was an issue (mine, not the bike) and I've lost 35 lbs since June. However, I'm looking to start pushing myself more and I know that I'd like to get more out of the riding and myself. The longer rides take me a couple of hours and your arms can take a wicked beating from the roads when your out for a while.

I like the frame and I'm pretty sure I'm going to stick with it, but I'm looking to go to a carbon fork. I've also been buying components for an Ultegra setup as a winter project. I'm being careful about picking up te components but hope to be into a full Ultegra setup for $1000 - 1200 CDN which includes my original bike purchase.

On a lighter note, I thought the yellow on the OCR was pretty cool as well when I bought it. Now I'm a little embarrased by it when I come accross other cyclists. I think something a quiet gray would have been better for me. I guess the trick is to buy what it will take to get you into it and keep you interested. If the frame is worthy of upgrading, it's always an option.

Thanks for the info on that Felt, the price on that F60 with those components sounds nice. There's two other specialty bike stores in town that I can check out and I'll be sure to ask about Felt bikes.

I did phone one more store today and the manager told me that he could get me a 2004 Trek 1200, also with a carbon fork and Tiagra, for $1200 (on the floor pricing is about $1350). That's one more option that I'm considering; the price and package is nice but I personally don't care for the look of the lower end Trek bikes.

originalbart, thanks for the comments on the OCR-3. I also plan to do some commuting since I used the odometer on my car and found that it's about 15 km to University (one way) from my home so I could make the ride daily.

I'd second RonH and recommend you go with the 105 groupset over Tiagra. I think you'll be happier with it in the long run. The basic design is the same as Ultegra/ Dura Ace but not as light. You might want to check out roadbikereview.com for component reviews. As for bikes in your price range, how about Fuji Roubaix Pro? Very nice with full 105. In fact there's even one on Ebay right now for $850 USD new in box. Don't know if it's your frame size, but they do come up that way pretty regularly. Happy shopping :) !