Originally Posted by
MegMC
for the purpose of fitness and longer day-rides on urban bike path pavement, potentially with light touring (as in bringing a camera and lunch on a day trip)
Racing bikes are the best for speed and overall efficiency on long rides, but they sacrifice some practicality to achieve that. As many have noted, a lot of racers can't take even medium-sized tires. Also, many do not have eyelets on the dropouts to mount a rack-- which gives you a great deal of flexibility for carrying a lunch, camera, etc. Although you can get around that with saddlebags and handlebar bags. The tire clearance is a bigger limitation IMO. For that reason I would recommend a high-end 80's vintage sport tourer such as Trek, Miyata, etc. Most of them are actually pretty quick and sporty as their name suggests-- not quite as much as a dedicated racer but close enough. At the same time they'll offer better wheel clearance, a smoother ride, and the ability to mount a rack if you want. There are lots of these around and you don't need to spend much to get a really nice one. Also, don't obsess on a particular frame and particular components, that can come later (if at all). Just find the right style and something that pleases you visually. And get a complete bike, it's much cheaper that way.