Hi all,
Been lurking for a while, but this is my first post.

I'm set on getting a new bike this season and am leaning towards getting a 2011 Trek 7.5 FX from my LBS. I test rode that and a Cannondale Quick 3 and the Trek felt best to me.

Last year i did 4000 miles, mostly on limestone Rails to Trails type trails. My rides consisted of many 80 - 110 mile trips and i plan on doing more this year. My bike was an older Cannondale H300 hybrid around 10 years old.

I was wondering about peoples opinions on the 7.5 FX who have done trail riding and distance riding.

I do plan on changing out the seat and changing out the stem to something that is higher or adjustable so i can be more upright on the long rides.

If you plan on changing the stem so that you get a upright riding position, why not look at the Trek 7xxx series bikes?

You can get the 7500 for the same price as the 7.5fx and, IMO, have a bike that sounds better suited. Slap some planet bike hardcore fenders on it and have at it. The 7500 also adds inline suspension in the fork, which should help if the trails have any rough spots...

I ride the Erie Canal trail system here in upstate NY and its all limestone, well except in the ritzy towns it goes through, where they pave it...The rest is all fine crush limestone. I would not be without either fat tires (mtb) or front suspension on this trail. Most is nice and smooth but there is just enough that is rooted up and rough to make suspension or fat tires well worth it. Of course if your trails are smooth, you can just use a good 32c or larger tire that has some knobs to it (don't want smooth tires IMO).

This is all my opinion. Others will say its fine for that, but personally I wont ride such skinny tired bikes in loose stuff (fell once doing that, scuffed elbow real good). Heck, if the trails you ride don't have much for hills I will even say get a SS mtb, because that is what I did and I absolutely love it

Thanks for your opinion.

One reason im upgrading my bike is because i do want to get more speed and performance out of my new bike than i did last year and that was why im leaning towards the more performance FX over the more comfort 7500.

I didnt have front shocks on my bike last year and i didnt feel i needed them and I would not want to be slowed down by them. One reason i was intrigued by the 7.5 FX was the carbon fork because it should absorb more shock and trail vibration than my aluminum fork last year.

I usually did keep 700x38c tires on my bike last year and the 7.5 having 32c was a minor concern of mine, but worst case scenario the rims on the 7.5 could take 38c tires easily. When i test rode the 32c tires seemed like they would be fine on trails, but we have tons of snow here so i was only able to try it out on pavement.

Well, maybe your trails are flatter than mine then, or...smoother is the correct word

And you could always step up to 35c or 38c if needed. You may wish to wait till spring and actually test ride the bike, I personally would not shell out almost a grand on a bike and not get a good test ride on the trails you intend to ride. Just a suggestion, however. I test rode my sirrus in a town that has worse roads than where I ride, so I got a good feel of how it would do, and I liked it.

If the tires on it don't do well, there are always cross tires

The 7.5 does GREAT on limestone trails. I own three bicycles and my 7.5 gets the most use. Buy one, you wont regret it. Here's a picture of my 7.5 on the New River Trail.

Will the 7.5FX even safely take tires larger than 32mm. I believe the rims are 14mm if I am not mistaken. It would be a stretch for a 35 or 38mm tire on such a narrow rim. Personally, I like fat tires on unpaved trails. They always feel more comfortable, especially if you plan long rides. And front suspension is nice too, although not a necessity. I have a 7.5FX and regard it as strictly an asphalt oriented machine. But if it is your only bike then it will work on these types of trails even when it may not be the ideal platform.

One of my other bikes is a Trek Navigator. I even thought it would do better than my 7.5 on the rail trails I ride, but I found out I didnt need the front suspension or all the extra weight. Bought my 7.5 last summer and I got in 1200 miles on it last year. Around 600 miles of it was rail trails. The stock tires did just fine and I never felt insecure riding it where I did. I would never try to ride it on a slick muddy trail or over tree roots etc. It is not a mountain bike. But for smooth rail trails I believe its just the ticket, especially if you wanna ride long distances.

I just still think if you are going to change a stem out to make a bike more upright, you should look into something different. My sirrus is pretty upright as it is, more so than my MTB or SS. Yet I prefer the mountain geometry for off-pavement riding.

Definitely change tires out for something with SOME tread if your going to ride limestone trails, if you get the 7.5fx. Marathon supremes have a nice amount of tread but are still known to be a smooth rolling tire. You kinda want some side tread for turns, limestone is loose in corners.

I would also very highly consider some Planet Bike Hardcore fenders for whatever bike you purchase. Limestone trails are very dusty and all that dust will collect in pivot points, chains, bearings, etc and wear away at your bike. Another reason I built a dedicated SS for the limestone trails here: Less crap to wear.

I've ridden a fair amount on trails as rough as the local (northern Illinois) limestone trails and the limestone trails themselves on 28 mm tires and they are perfectly adequate which is not to say that wider tires aren't better. I switched to 32s as much for the pleasure of having my name emblazoned on the side of the tires as to try a wider tire. My bike is a Fuji Absolute 1.0 with a CF fork and it came with 14 mm rims. I don't really know how much good the CF fork does. I do have to agree with the notion that 32 mm tires are about the max for that rim width. Late in the year I got a second set of wheels with wider rims and the 32s work noticeably better on them. I assume that 28s would as well. On the other hand either of those two widths should work fine on the Trek rims and on your limestone trails if you go with the Trek.

If you don't mind the expense of a second set of wheels then you can get a wider set later on to run wider tires yet (frame permitting). Having two sets of wheels with different tire widths does give you more flexibility to deal the with the road surfaces you expect on today's ride after all. I've got two sets now and I am entertaining a century ride so that is what I plan to do. I'll probably get a good grade of 38's for normal use and a good grade of 28s for the century and other long road rides. Most performance oriented hybrids come with road wheels and flat handlebars whereas I'd rather they came with MTB or touring wheels and drop bars.

Ken