Descent bike. I've owned one since January. Only have about 2200 miles on it, but they've been trouble-free miles. I'm a heavier rider as well at about 220 pounds, but I hammer the hell out of the bike and zero issues. I think it will handle your weight just fine.

The only advice I have is to make sure the LBS trues the wheels right for you; they are 32-spoke, 3x laced, but machine built. I took delivery of my bike, jumped a bunch of curbs, rode it like I stole it and then took it right back to the LBS the next day and had them re-true the wheels...since then, no issues.

The gearing, at 44-17, is near spot on. I can hammer up just about anything but the steepest climbs, and I spin out on the flats somewhere between 18-21 MPH. And it's fairly light weight...probably somewhere @ 21-23 pounds.

Oh, one thing: the bike gets A LOT of attention. It's very stealthy and looks GREAT. I can't go more than a couple days without someone asking what it is, how cool it looks, etc, etc.

If you read the Q&A's on Trek's website for the bike, they claim they built this to be a tough commuter. I thought this was marketing BS at first, but it's held up to my (near) daily abuse. Bottom line: I recommend it...it's surpased my expectations for a $550 mass-produced Trek.

Later...

EDIT: yes, the stock pedals are JUNK. I didn't leave the bike shop without installing some SPD's