I got my 7.7fx last week, its the 2010 model. I have been cycling it about 20km a day since then on my commute to work. I must say I was a little disapointed with it initially but I'm starting to warm to it now. The bike looks amazing, so much so I carry 2 locks! My disapointment is with the speed, it seems once I get up to a steady crusing speed of about 15km/h it gets very hard to push it any faster. I think maybe I'm just a bit paranoid that some part of the drivetrain is not configured correctly like crank tightened too hard or something? I'm hoping maybe the bike will loosen up after a few more km? I'm comparing all this against my old hybrid, a Ridgeback(English bike company) Cyclone, which I have been using for the last four years. It was only a third of the price of my Trek when I bought it orginally but I think its actually faster once I get up to a cruising speed.
Besides the speed issue, which may just be in my head, nearly everything else about this bike is impressive. Other observations so far are
- The acceleration from a dead stop is amazing.
- The saddle is comfortable and suits me.
- The brakes are good so far but they do look a little cheap so not sure how well they will hold up
- The overrall the ride is very comfortable so it seems the carbon fork and isozone thing works. In fact a friend had a quick spin on my bike and commented afterwards that "It doesnt feel like you are riding a bike at all!!"
- I don't like the way the rear shifters are designed for a 9 speed cassette but its actually a 10 speed cassette. Its only a small thing but you would imagine Shimano must have specific shifters for a 10 speed cassette?
- Gear shifting is seemless and very smooth, this is where I think the extra money spent realy shows. My old hybrid had some low end shimano groupset but the 105 groupset on the trek is a massive step up for me and I have really noticed it.
- I asked the LBS to fit mudguards and rack as well. It does take away from the look of the bike a little but function over fashion is more important I'm afraid. I havent cycled with a pannier bag yet but I'll report back when I do.
I'll post up some pics soon once I find my camera