well, I'm not sure yet. I hope that's where you guys/gals will come in! I'm definitely looking for a new road bike, but at this point I still don't know much about the manufacturers or what makes one better than any other. Trek vs. Specialized vs. Giant vs. ....? I'm sure I could find fans of each, but I would love if someone could help break down the pros and cons or the differences between them all (I may need to repost or move this to another discussion area). I have noticed that most of them have lower-end models in the $500-600 range, give or take. My budget would probably be in that ballpark but I'm not sure what you're getting with their low-end models, if they have much cheaper components and it will only leave me wanting something better. I'm not necessarily set on buying something brand new though, I'd be more that ok with finding a nicer used bike. My concern then is figuring out what I want (or at least enough about the different lines to know what I'll like and what's a good deal) and then hoping to find it. I've looked around on craigslist and in the local shops and it seems like nice used bikes are very hard to come by (as opposed to walmart brands or old clunkers). St. Louis, which is 2 hours away, has a lot of nice used bikes posted on craigslist and in other areas but I can't exactly drive up there every time I find one I'm interested in looking at. If there are other places I should look, please let me know. But this lack of selection may require me to look at buying a brand new ride.