Originally Posted by
Scheherezade
Get an older touring bike. The early Trek 520s all had pretty aggressive geometry compared to modern touring bikes. You can get a great vintage touring bike for less than $400 on Craigslist (if you have a decent market), and you'll have money left over to make the bike bombproof (Marathon Plus tires, replacing any old cables, etc).
I've been on the look out and I rarely if ever find road bikes at all, let alone vintage on craigslist. I'm going to start scouring ebay more often I guess.
As for those of you that posted bikesdirect bikes, what is the quality like from them? I have been to their website a few times and I've looked long and hard at the Windsor Tourist, but I wanna make dang sure I'm not getting a lemon.