thanks steve, this is very helpful. i am in kind of a complicated position. i've been riding fixed gears for a long time, having given up on gears at some point in high school, but now i guess i'm going back to the gears, and i am looking for a road bike. i don't plan on doing a whole lot of touring, but i do plan on touring now and then (a friend and i are riding from michigan to maine this summer--2-3 weeks--it would mainly be very occasional trips like that). on the other hand, i am doing my first triathlon this fall.

so i'm in a really tricky place--i need a bike for pretty opposite purposes. i worked in a bike shop for a long time, and if anyone had asked me this then, i would for sure say something along the lines of, "just buy two bikes." but i'm a college student and don't really have the space or the cash to buy a touring bike and a race bike, not to mention that, being realistic with myself, i don't think i'm serious enough about touring OR triathlons to buy a bike for each. the main thing i'll be using my bike for is just riding, for fun, for fitness, for speed.

i'm thinking about going with a cross bike like the jake the snake or the tricross and just fitting it with some fast tires for tris and my daily rides, and thicker ones for touring. i also have a chance to buy a new, very nicely built up gunnar roadie at a REALLY good price. i am worried about touring on a bike as aggressive as the roadie, but wonder whether in the long run the roadie would be the best bike for me. OR i could go with something like the bianchi volpe or the giant OCR.

anyway, sorry for rambling--that's where i'm at right now. any thoughts are very much appreciated.