Originally Posted by Don Cook
IMO that the word "comfort" and "road bike" are mutually exclusive. No matter what you call the bike, the general characteristics of a comfort bike aren't the same as those of a road bike.
I disagree. My Trek came with a suspension seatpost. I got rid of it because it seems to sap a certain amount of power from my legs. Without it, my ride does not seem any more harsh on my backside than it did with the suspension.
My bars are about 2" lower than my seat. My rough guess is that I ride about 2/3 on the hoods, and about 1/3 on the drops. Yet I'm still very comfortable when I ride.
I think that the Trek 1000c/1200c/1800c bikes are more of a marketing ploy than an innovative bike design. The suspension seatpost is there for comfort, yes. But that comfort is in the head more than anything else. Trek realizes there is a market niche (very evident on this forum) that really wants a road bike but fears that they will experience physical pain when they transition from their hybrid or mtb.