Originally Posted by
timtak
Thank you everyone. You saved me 800USD.
I did not notice it was nine speed, which is a deal breaker. Drat. Truth be told, I am a Lance fan and it is very nostalgic.
There is a 10 speed in Dura Ace for the same money or a bit less but it is a 58cm frame which would be overdoing it.
Ooh
I could purchase both, move the Dura Ace to the 56cm frame and inject myself with testosterone.
Well, I own this very bike, the Trek Madone 5200 from 2001. This one might be a year older or younger, because mine is all white, also with USPS decals.
This was the first carbon bike I ever bought / rode. Bought it used about 6 years ago. Never having ridden a proper road bike before, this thing felt FAAST!
- Mine is 10 speed Campagnolo Chorus. So you can definitely fit / find these bikes with 10 speed components. Kind of surprised that it has 9 speed, because I think that era was definitely 10 speed already.
- The ride quality is quite harsh on it. The frame is very very stiff. Good if you are looking for a real "race" machine. Not so good if you are looking for a bike to do long endurance rides on.
- Keep in mind that Ultegra or Dura Ace from that era is probably equivalent with modern 105 in terms of performance. So... don't get too carried away with the high-end names.
I am planning to sell mine personally, because the frame is just a bit too big for me. That being said, I think they are cool looking frames.
I paid 500 EUROS for mine about 6 years ago. I'd say for $500 I would buy it. $800 is a bit much.