I am helping a friend get back into cycling - she's in her mid-20's now but hasn't ridden since she was a kid. Her main interest is in riding for fun & fitness, and I think a road bike would be a good choice for her, but her budget means that a fitness/city/performance hybrid makes the most sense. Also, she test rode a few today and found them more accessible and easier to just get on and ride for the time being than a road bike.

So she's probably going to pick up a Giant Rapid 3, or maybe a Trek 7.2. What I'm wondering about is if it would be stupid to consider swapping the flat bars for drops in the future once she gets more accustomed to riding again if she wants the option of more hand/body positions while riding (say next year sometime).

Obviously the brake levers & shifters would have to be swapped along with the bars, but I assume that it shouldn't be too hard to find appropriate STI brake/shifter units (like a Sora 3 front / 8 rear) that would work with the derailleurs on either of these bikes. It might not be cost-effective, though - but it might not be bad if we scored some good deals on eBay and also sold off the stock stuff.

Thoughts?