'ello everyone! Here's the scoop: I've been riding a Nishiki mountain bike since 7th grade (I'm now 22 ), and am looking to upgrade to a "road bike". Last summer, on average I rode my Nishiki 10+ miles 3-4 times a week. As much as I enjoyed having to peddle downhill to keep from coming to a complete stop... I'd like something a little smoother (so I can increase distance, etc.)

This forum has been a tremendous help (by browsing through posts alone), but unfortunately there are a few questions I have regarding frames. It pretty much seems to be everyones trend to recommend buying a bike based on the frame alone, but it seems everyone is pretty vague on what actually makes a frame good. The brands the local LBS' carry (that I could afford) are: Specialized, Felt, Trek, and Lemond. I've already kind of decided to stay away from Trek, so really the three choices I have are Specialized, Felt, and Lemond. Lemond seems a little pricey, so if it were really worth the price I might be convinced to go that route. I'm torn between the Specialized Allez and the Felt F90, as both bikes have good reviews on this forum. Which, in your opinion, has the better frame? The LBS salesman recommended the Allez, saying "the frame is similar to mountain bikes" which is nice (if true) since that's what I've been riding forever.

BTW, this is my first post on BikeForums! w00t!