Originally Posted by
newtwowheels
.... I have a long (20+ miles each way) ride ... My question is, would I benefit from a better bike, would I experience a noticable increase in speed? ....would a more expensive bike such as a Trek Madone (or another bike is the same price range ~$2000 [the 07s are on sale]) ride noticably faster....
If you had a recumbent bike, you could
definitely cover that distance in considerably better comfort and less overall exertion than you are now. Depending on which recumbent you picked, you could also average as much as 3-4 mph faster.
A "moderate" choice might be the RANS V2:
http://www.ransbikes.com/V2%202607.htm# (price=~$1600, ~2 mph faster is a typical gain over an upright)
A more extreme choice might would be a Challenge Fujin:
http://www.challenge-recumbents.com/...selectie=fujin (price=~$2600, 3-4 mph gain)
If you want a more comfortable/faster bicycle they're out there, but most LBS's don't know a thing about them.
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