OK I think I've narrowed down my search to two bikes... The Fuji Forza Sagres which is supposed to be a "ergonomically designed roadbike" vs the trek which I guess is more of a high-performance hybrid road/comfort bike.
Fuji Forza Sagres:
http://www.fujibikes.com/road/bike.a...ID=27&yr=2004#
Trek 7300FX:
http://www2.trekbikes.com/Bikes/City...0_FX/index.php
I kind of want to stay around that $400-450 price range (or less).
My situation is I haven't ridden bikes in a while (maybe 5-6 yrs) since I was a kid but I plan to commute daily to downtown LA ... I live about 8 miles away, and on my way back home I'll be going up some steep hills. I'm not in the best shape either... 5'9 270lb... but I plan to hopefully get stronger and more fit with this new bike. I'm only 26 years of age so I think I could handle it after a few months.
So having said that, which of these two do you think is best suited for me? Should I stick with the more comfortable one or the more efficient one? Or do you think 8 miles uphill is a challenge for a fat guy like myself and I should just take the bus LOL (lets hope not).