Bearonabike

I have been back into biking for about 2 years after a MAJOR accident (me vs. car- car won) and a 20 year refrain from biking. Two years ago, I bought a Trek MultiTrack hybrid and LOVED it. I'd forgotten how much fun a bicycle was. About 6 months ago, I bought a Trek fitness bike to help accelerate the weight loss. Right now, I can push the hybrid (without bike shoes) 40 miles with minimal stop time and many friends tell em its time to get a "real road bike" and leave the beefier frames for commutes and short more intense rides.

This gives me 2 choices, racing or touring bike.

I'm leaning toward touring for a slightly longer wheel base as I'm a pretty big guy, even with the weight off (I'll NEVER drop out of the CLYDESDALE class).

My question is: What should I look for in a good touring bike under $1000? If you have a specific brand/model, that's fine, I'd like to hear it. If you simply have a set of features I should definitely get or something I should definitely avoid, that's fine too. There's lots of thinking through to be done, my problem is, I don't even know north from south when it comes to this bike type and how they perform.

Shiznaz

I don't think it sounds like you could really go wrong with an approproately sized, off the rack touring bike. I'm not all that well versed in touring bikes (especially new ones), but unless you are racing or doing serious training in a paceline a touring bike will be more suitable in almost every way, especially given your size. I think that the trek, cannondale, fuji and other major manufacturers all make a touring bike at your price point. Check out what they have at the bike shop, get fitted properly and take a few models for as long a test drive as possible. Or just do what I did and buy a bike blind off the internet!

cooker

I bought a second hand Trek 520 that I'm happy with. A lot of people recommend a Surly (or Surley?) Long Haul Trucker but you have to buy the frame and add your own components, or pay a bike store to build it up for you.

mycoatl

Touring bikes +/- under $1000 (some of these list under $1k, other slightly over) not in any particular order:

Bianchi Volpe
REI Novara Randonee
Canondale T800
Trek 520
Jamis Aurora
Fuji Touring
Windsor Tourist
Surly Long Haul Trucker (currently available as a frameset, but will be available as a full bike for about $1000 early 2007)

Call around to bike shops in your area and see if they have any of these in stock that you can test ride. You can also look at these bikes online, compare features, etc.