Originally Posted by chandltp

That's a personal preference, I think. I rode my 120 miles 2 weekends ago, and 106 last weekend. I regularly take it on 60+ mile rides. Then again, it's possible you don't consider those to be long rides. Yea, the stock saddle can get a little uncomfortable at those distances, but I've decided it might be the bike and not the saddle, as I've tried 10 different ones and keep going back to the original.

Another bike might be better, but I don't feel like my bike has limited me. Might I have done better on a road bike? Sure, but that hasn't stopped me. I tried a Windsor Tourist a few years back but it turned out to be too big for me and wasn't comfortable.

Although I've discovered any weight on my hands causes numbness in short order, so next year I'm getting a tadpole recumbent for distances.

ChowChow: My bike is a Trek 7000 and I highly recommend it if you can pay a little more than your budget.