Road Cycling - Can I or are there better choices?

To make a long story short, my 2000 LS Tuscany was on a trunklid carrier on my buddy's car. The car was smashed like an aluminum can by a dump truck (we were miraculously OK). Needless to say, the bike is no longer useable. I got insurance money (not quite enough for a replacement Tuscany, but a decent check) and I was about to replace it. I am going off to college this fall and hope to ride collegiately. I am hoping to make Cat B by soph and A by junior year. Anyways, I am not going to be able to afford a new ride in the middle of college so I need this one to last. My question is....is a "all-purpose" (that's what the salesman told me when I bought it) bike like a Tuscany going to be ok for racing at the collegiate level? I know that there are some things done on the design of the bike to make it a more comfortable and forgiving bike than something like maybe a Vortex or Sienna. I really liked (make that loved) it but now is the only chance I'm going to have to get something different. So anyways, before I ramble to much further, my question again.....can I ride a Tuscany in competitive collegiate cycling and not suffer a disadvantage of it not being LS's "real racing" bike? I could be dead wrong on that but please correct me. Thanks!

p.s. If my dig camera wasn't in the trunk of the car....I'd have some damn good pictures to post too.l

I have no experience with Lightspeeds but I'd say that a Tuscany being one of LSs higher end models (and if you check out the website) its not going to be a disadvantage. That being said going up in race class isn't about the bike, its about the training.

Here is what Litespeed says about the Tuscany:

Optimum for: Circuit race, Domestic race, European classic, and non-competative fitness.

Capable of: Criterium, hilly course triathalon, flat course tiathalon, and fast touring.

Not intended for: Loaded touring.

So, as long as you don't race with a tent, extra clothes, and a three day food supply, it looks like it is very capable. ;)

It is a beautiful bike. I am glad I didn't see pictures of a smashed one.

For racing, you might want to check out some AL bikes, or AL with carbon rear stays. You should be able to get a lighter weight frame with more stiffness than Ti, at a lower cost. Of course, you'll give up the Ti ride.

At least you might want to test ride a few other "race" bikes before just getting a replacement Tuscany...never hurts to try out other stuff, and now's a good time.

I raced just fine on a 15-20 year old Trek 1200 last year. My guess would be that a couple year old Litespeed is gonna be ok for racing. Oh, and as far as categories go: I seriously doubt you're going to need to wait till sophomore year to get to Cat B. You've got an entire year to train before your season will even start, and I'm assuming you've done quite a bit of riding before now. In the Northwest, that's more than enough time to be Cat B ready. I, for example, started riding last February, and I came from a completely sedentary lifestyle, focusing my energy on academics and theatre over athletics. Right now, I take super long pulls on our training rides, and I'm the second best time trialist on our team. My coach has told me that I'll probably be FORCED to ride A by the end of the year to prevent sandbagging. Depending on where you're going to school, you'll probably start as a B and be able to ride A by the end of your first season. Just be sure to get lots of training in. Good luck!