I'm looking to get into road biking. I started getting into it 5 years or so ago, but then I moved to NYC and promptly stopped riding. I haven't been on a bike in 4 years. Recently, I moved to Portland, Oregon, and I'm excited to get into riding again. Being pretty new to the sport, and not having rode a bike in 4 years, the process of picking a bike tha fits right has been a little difficult.
There are tons of stores here in Portland, but I found 4 that seem to have the best recommendations on teh internet...at least for the quick search that I did.
All four places didn't have much stock left for road bikes in my frame size in the price range I'm looking at ($800-1200). Apparently, at this point in the season, in that range, stock is limited and the companies have sold out until 2009.
I found two bikes in my price range that seems to work. A Trek "1.5" yesterday, and a Lemond "Tourmalet" today (a Specialized Allez is also somewhere a bit farther back in the pack).
The Trek 1.5
http://www.trekbikes.com/int/en/bike...d/1_series/15/
I had a professional fit done to see how they could tweak it to my specs and they dialed it in pretty well. (At least I think. It's been years since I last rode, and I never had my own bike...always hand-me-downs that weren't fit for me. Not sure if I can tell what a perfect fit is).
My brother, a fairly avid rider, told me I shouldn't buy until I have a "fit kit" done with the computer software that recommends frame geometry from a few specific companies, but I haven't found a store here that does that.
Lemond Tourmalet.
http://www.lemondbikes.com/bikes/roa.../tourmalet.php
I tried the Lemond today. It was interesting. It rides in a slightly more upright position and I kinda liked it, but not necessarily better than the Trek. I ended up being a 59" frame in the Lemond as compared to a 62" in the Trek. The guy at the store didn't give me a super fit job like the guy with the Trek, but said he would work with me to tweak the fit with a different stem, etc., if I was interested in buying. To note, he did do the fit kit measurements, but I ended up riding just about everything in the store in my price range/size, so I'm not sure the fit kit measurements did much.
I'm torn. The dude that had the Trek dialed in a fit, but did need to make a bunch of adjustments to get it to where he felt it locked in with my body. He had to turn the seat post around to get the seat farther forward, and he had to put a shorter stem on it with a slightly higher angle (along with wider handlebars, at no extra cost, to fit in line with my shoulders). The Lemond, I have no way of knowing how much better it might fit if I worked with the guy. It felt pretty good, but there's no way of comparing the two side-by-side so I'm really not sure. The Trek was fitted on a training stand in the shop, the Lemond I rode outdoors. Ergh...I'm confused.
Comparing the two bikes:
-The Lemond Tourmalet has a carbon fork and carbon rear triangle, Tiagra components with a 105 rear deraillier, and the more comfortable seat.
-The Trek has a carbon fork, aluminum rear triangle, Tiagra/Tiagra components (maybe some Sora in the brake system).
From what I hear, the Lemond has a more typicaly European geometry, whereas the Trek is more typical of an American geometry. Why do they both feel pretty good? (I did try one bike, a Canondale, that definitely did not feel right...so at least I know I can tell if something is really off for my build).
The Lemond is probably the "better" bike, not considering fit. But, fit is 90% of the game...so it's a wash.
Did the Trek require too much tweaking to dial in to my body?
Am I getting a better fit on the Trek than I could get on the Lemond with the guy just making a few quick adjustments?
I can't really answer these questions until I take both bikes a month into the future and ride them for a few hours each. That's not possible.
Any advice?