That should be "Good Deal**********"
Marin - After-Market, but New in Box 2012 Four Corners Touring Bike - $700 ... MSRP $1100, REI has it for $900
http://www.marinbikes.com/2012/bike_...&Four_Corners_
Surly LHT seems to be the consensus top of the heap, but my budget is stretched as is, and I'm not sure I want such a tour-centric rig.
What I'm looking to do.
I really want a "all-rounder" that has some touring chops and isn't such a drag on uphills as my 1986 Peugeot P8 Avoriaz (it's been a long time since I bought a bike... that was High School). My wife is really keen to get me cycling again; we've been doing rides. I want to get back into it with something nice, but wait until this works out for a couple of years before I commit to spending real cash. I am not a speedster. My goal is to commute, weekend tours maybe, bike with my young family (we got a Burly trailer off of Craigslist for a song), and half-day rides with my wife (w/o the children).
This bike comes from a reputable company, seems to have the low gearing (but not uber low gearing) that I want. I tend to like low-tech (so the bar shifters aren't a turn off). It has the potential to have disc brakes added. It has all the mounts for racks and fenders so it would serve pretty well as a commuter. It seems to be a decent jack-of-all trades.
Not a lot of information about people that own/ride this bike on the web. Of people that do own it, the reviews have been positive except one. There have been a few blurbs by what seem like hard core tourers that don't like certain aspects. I saw another guy who was looking at the bike for a similar price and the people there said for that price point it was probably the better overall choice.
What say anyone?
It seems that at this price point, and given my overall ambitions and budget it's probably a decent deal.
I should also mention that I am sufficiently competent with bicycles to repair them on my own and have kept that Peugeot tuned pretty well these many years... not a neophyte, just haven't been riding seriously in a long time and the technology/choices are pretty crazy now.