Originally Posted by
lcrider
Someone once told me, "if you don't want to buy a road bike, don't ride one". Boy was that the truth. After years of hacking around on a mountain bike, I rode a road bike and had to have one. After suffering a few sleepless nights of sticker shock at the prices, I spent way more than I wanted, but have never regretted it. BTW, I was working out 1 to 1.5 hours every day on an elliptical/weights, and once I started riding, I almost DOUBLED my calorie consumption.
Great advice. You could also add the word
expensive before bike. I also started on a mountain bike, then went to a hybrid and finally a road bike. I think many people are afraid of the narrow tires of a road bike and the drop bars. I know I was for some reason when I got back into biking. Bike shops also seem to steer people to mountain/hybrid/comfort bikes. I have even had an LBS direct me to cyclocross bikes when terrain was not an issue. Today I have 3 road bikes and no hybrid or mountain bikes. The only problem is that I have had friends/family members ask me why I need 3 road bikes. Right now I cannot justify the fourth one. Give me time...