I do plan on riding in whatever weather comes my way as I'm able, and I agree those fenders on the KHS stop short of where they should, so I'd be replacing them ASAP. So them being included on it is of no real advantage for me. I wonder how much weight that rack is rated for? I have no idea what make or model it may be. If anyone her does please let me know.

Sure enough those three bikes are very much alike overall. Almost exactly the same capabilities and equipment, although they all look fairly different from one another. The only dislike I really have with the Novara is the color; I don't really like red on a bike, although the lack of bold branding on it is appreciated.

One the other hand, I really love the blue on the KHS, and the finish on the Marin is beautiful as well. I'm not sure what if any difference this makes at all, but I like the look of the head-tube being a bit longer on the Marin. Also the Marin is a bit more stretched out in the cockpit overall in comparison to the other two, which for a small guy like me may not be a good thing.

I like the way that Marin and KHS routed the cables so cleanly and out of the way. One thing of note about the KHS though is that it has only two bottle-cage mounts instead of three like the other two have.

So in the end, I'm not really sure how much these seemly small differences will actually make for me in real-world use. I feel that if the Marin is a good fit for me body-wise, I'd likely go for it, because I love the look and finish of it, and I like the way the cables are routed and the fact that it has three bottle-cage mounts.