I'm looking at the
http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bik...rrus-comp-disc and the
http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bik...ort-disc#specs
I'm looking for something to ride on a daily commute to work mostly through the city area. Only about 10 miles round trip. I do a few nights a week out on street/dirt roads for about 40 miles.
One of the bigger things I'm looking for is for bikepacking. I was originally looking at touring bikes, but realized I'd be only doing things like 2 nights bikepacking trips and had no use for a real touring bike.
The tricross looks like it's geared lower and would be better for the big hills in the Allegheny mountain areas with gear. The Sirrus looks like it might better for me around town. Most of my riding is for fun and fitness versus commuting and bikepacking. But, I want to do all 3 of those things on a new bike.
So are one of those better than the other? One big difference is the drop bars. I've never really used them. Are there better bikes in the sub 1400$ range that are better? Or which of those 2 is the better choice?