Originally Posted by
Steve B.
Go for it, if you can find it. Advantage to a gravel is you can buy a 2nd set of wheels, install wider gravel tires then what would fit on a Domane and ride the abundance of gravel roads in your area. My Topstone gravel with 28mm road tires is only maybe 1/2 MPH slower than the carbon road bike that is 5 lbs lighter. Any added weight of the Checkpoint over the Domane might not ever be noticed.
My wrecked bike is a Topstone 105 that I built up some carbon wheels for. I just ended up riding the road mostly and was getting an itch to perhaps get a more road specific bike. Now that I will be getting a new bike, I still have the same reasons I got the Topstone. I'm certainly not concerned about the weight of the bike. I'd have to drop 40 lbs of my own weight before I need to worry about any extra weight on the bike.
Originally Posted by
cyclezen
seem like all good reasons ...
Trek Checkpoint seems a very nice bike, versatile, and having 2 wheel sets, one for road and one for the more varied conditions of gravel, is a nice way to config a bike like this.
If I didn;t have a bazillion bikes already and wanted 'one' bike to rule them all (which is, of course, impossible ... LOL!), I'd opt for something like the Checkpoint.
Ultimately its all about the motor, and unless your income rides on cycling, then it's what strikes your fancy and will do service for you.
You're not 'Old', so likely this won't be your last bike; if you're really infected by the 'terminal' illness, riding a bike... LOL!
Ride On
Yuri
I don't consider myself old either, but 60 isn't 20. And I would also like to think I'll have other bikes as well. But realistically, I don't think a road bike with aggressive geometry is for me so that's what has me thinking endurance bike. Then I wonder what really is the difference between an endurance bike and gravel bike other than tire width and gearing. I prefer gravel gearing, for now, and can fit narrow wheels.
Originally Posted by
shelbyfv
I agree. Sounds as if you want the Checkpoint. It's not like it would slow you down or that you would care if it did. Will be a nice bike.
What I'd like to have is a fast, aggressive road bike, but I'm pretty sure I'd find that too uncomfortable. So, that points me towards endurance bikes. So, really I'd like to talk myself into something considered a road bike, I.E., something like the Domane. But then I look at the specifics and it seems I would get about the same bike in a Checkpoint if I put on a wheelset with narrower tires and get gearing that works better for me and the riding I'm doing.
As for getting a bike, that's why I'm trying to get the ball moving now. I figure it's going to be months before I get something. So, if I can figure it out and get it ordered now, at least some of my recovery time where I can't ride will overlap the delivery time. I do still have my old 25-year-old hybrid "dad" bike to have something to ride until I get a new bike. Something is better than nothing at all. That will just make the new bike that much sweeter when I get it.