I forgot about this thread. Thought I'd post the update of which way I went on this decision. In choosing between the bianchi or the kona i chose... drum roll... the surly crosscheck!!! I wanted steel and the bianchi wasn't available. I wanted the 105 groupset from the kona so I got a build of the Surly CrossCheck frame with the 105 groupset. I couldn't be happier with it. Here's a pic of my bike I just took this weekend after my first half-century!