https://www.performancebike.com/shop/...estore_ID=1791

How about a steel framed, commuter oriented road bike complete with fenders and a rack for $650? I see a Deore rear derailleur and Tiagra brifters. Not bad spec. I'm sure the wheels aren't great, but they are a 32h/36h combo, which is smart. The bike seems like a poor man's Bianchi Castro Valley(when the CV was cool). The new Schwinn seems to be real quick to get on a hot trend.

I picked up an '07 World DBX from Performance a couple weeks ago. Started commuting this week and couldn't be much happier with it.

Yep. I got my Fuji Touring from Performance for $595 on Father's Day weekend. Very similar specs to this one. The Fuji is only available in-store. I've got about 850 miles on it and each ride, I like it better.

I've been stalking performances website. Hopefully, they have some great models in the store too. I got a 15% off total purchase coupon in the mail too. So this weekend I plan to get a road bike.

Wow, what a great find! I may drive 130 miles to the nearest retail store to try out that thing. Looks like they nailed the parts combo and price point.

Ditto. Arrived yesterday. I think it might have been the last one because it got pulled from their website soon after I bought it. Anywho... looking forward to putting it through it's paces next week. I can't believe they dropped the price to $799. With a 10% coupon code, it was about $750 shipped. That's a lot of bike for that price.

I've got it put together, but still dialing in the front derailer and rear disc. It's my first time dialing in a derailer and it's been a pita.

They are very helpful in the Austin location. They've answered questions about which tool to buy and more than once pointed me toward the cheapest they had saying it was more than sufficient - once to a floor pump when I was leaning toward a more expensive model (which they said "tends to be returned"), and once to the cheapest clamp-on chain cleaning thingy they sold.

I like them.

They've had that on there for quite a while haven't they? I'm pretty sure I've seen that out for a while..

I think it's gone up in price, too. I'm pretty sure it was around $559 not too long ago. The Scattente Triple was $559 and it's gone up to $649. I nearly bought that one when it was at the lower price. But glad I held out for my World DBX.

I remember seeing the World DBX for a while, but this is the first catalog I've seen the World Tour in. DBX has discs, World Tour has cantis. But I could be mistaken.

I mostly like the setup, except: The 700x28 tires are too skinny for commuting in my opinion. No frame geometry is given, and size "S" and "M" are the only ones available.

If you could see me now, you'd see a bunch of question marks flying around my head.

How are 28s too skinny for commuting?

Anyone know anything about this one?
https://www.performancebike.com/shop/...estore_ID=1791

My wife took it for a spin around the parking lot this weekend. Is it a good value for the price or is there something better in the $500 price range? She thought it was pretty comfortable.

I guess I just like fat tires.... I know the 700x28 marathon plus tires are a favorite around here for commuting. It just my preference for wider, that's all.

I have 700x32 tires and they are as narrow as I would want. Part of the bike path I take sometimes isn't paved. With my tires, riding the unpaved path is OK, but jarring. Last week I took a long route home that went about 10 miles on the unpaved path. Then, it started raining and my wheels starting sinking. I'd put even wider tires on my bike if I thought they'd fit under my fenders.

I was just saying that for me I would swap out tires for wider ones if I were to buy that bike.

d2create - all i know is that if had a Riv and then took my significant other to get that bike, I'd be in BIG trouble.

just kidding - I have no knowledge of your vs. her usage. I'd prob get something used vs. the World Ave. Something w/ some lower/mid end Shimano or SRAM components.

I've read posts around here that said good things about the Kona Dew Plus, but I have no personal experience. It has disc brakes and has an MSRP of $500, no fenders or chain guard though.

Yeah, there goes my chances. Need tall bikes.

Fair enough. Luckily, I get to stay on pavement for my entire commute. The Fuji Touring came with 32s but I changed them out for a 28 on the rear and a 25, up front. This being my first bike with 700c wheels, I'm keeping the 32s just in case I need one and can't get to the LBS before riding to work, (I have a several backup 27" & 26" tires in my shop).

Oooh, that bike is soooo close to what I want in my next bike. I also wouldn't mind 32 tires, so that I can use it for hauling all the stuff my family of four needs for a day on the unpaved bike path. And I want something light, my current steel schwinn hybrid is a hernia buster to get up on the rafter hooks. But the price point makes up for a lot, doesn't it? Too bad no large frames.

Hey, I never said I was buying it.
Separate finances = a happy marriage!

Basically she's just looking for something that is comparable to my Riv in terms of style of bike. In other words, an all-arounder... good for the street, paved trails, sidewalk, hard packed dirt, commuter style riding (but she won't actually be commuting). Right now she either has to take her Bianchi Milano which is slow and more geared towards neighborhood casual riding, or her cannondale synapse which is more for racing style... too twitchy, fast and limited. And she wants cheap cause she's not really IN to cycling like I am. Something like a Riv would honestly go to waste on her at this point.

Right, she's not IN to cycling so she only has a Bianchi and a Synapse. I'd guess she's pretty broke from the things she IS IN to.

Anyway, it's pretty wild how polarizing the concept of separate vs. combined finances in marriage is. My wife and her best friend are having an ongoing argument about this at the moment; my wife acts like her friend and hubby are nuts b/c they run their life like a business, "buy each other out" of houses they own together, keep everything separate. Whereas we've only had joint accounts of every sort since the day we moved in together oh those many years ago. ;p

My opinion? I ain't got one. I'm too lazy and disorganized to keep the books, so she's welcome to all the money as long as I never have to balance a checkbook.

Awesome bike!

Kinda off topic, but how would one petition either Performance or REI into building a store?

I have had one for three weeks now, and I really like it. I added a dynamo lighting system, but otherwise I'm riding it around central Fairfax County Virginia (west of DC) every day, just as it came from the shop.

I should add that I got the World Ave. 1 for just a shade over $400 with a web discount (which the local store honored). I find it very responsive, and geared very nicely for all the terrain I have to tackle around here. It can be a little bit hilly sometimes.

I'm spoiled here in the DC area. There are a bunch of Performance stores around--two within biking distance of my house, two more within a half-hour's drive. The quality of the stores varies pretty widely, though. The one closest to me doesn't seem to have many people working there who know much. The one that's a half-hour bike ride away is considerably better. And the one in Rockville, Maryland, where I got the bike, is awesome.