I'm pretty sure I read on here that the Lager is basically the same bike (steel, geometry, components) as the Dawes SST. Of course, the Lager comes in different color schemes... are they worth $300 more? It's up to the individual I guess. They have some '09 Lagers at my bike shop for $500 and if it were me, I'd go with one of those over a BikesDirect bike. But again, that's just me.