I'm thinking of getting an 09 Soho for commuting. Any inside of first hand info would be helpful. My old LBD says they wont be available till end of month. Also the thought of a District come spring is also on my mind.

I like the Soho's... Got an 08 Soho S and put Crank Brothers 50/50's on it. My pedals are black/silver and so far have been great. Basically I got em cuz I think they fit the general look of the bike.


http://www.crankbrothers.com/5050_plates.php

I'm tempted by the Soho, especially since I have a long standing relationship with the LBS here that carries Trek. HOWEVER--I haven't seen a price yet on the 09 Jamis Commuter 4.0 but unless you really want that belt drive, I really like the Jamis better on paper. Alfine 8-speed, a dynohub with an LED headlight, double rings, fenders, & a rack. BUT since I have a flat commute, the Jamis Commuter 3.0 is still on the top of my list.

The "complicated" (split) dropout is so that you can get the drive belt inside the rear triangle. On a typical single speed, you break the chain, wrap it around, attach the chain, slide it back in the dropout for tension. Since you can't break and splice the belt, a split dropout is required.

I have the 2007 Soho and the Geometry is wonderful. I converted it to a Single Speed and don't think that I'll be picking up the 2009 as it doesn't really offer me much gain. I do, however, want to pick up the District and make that my daily commuter and turn the Soho back into stock (1x9 w/ SRAM X-9 derailleur) version as a kid hauler and grocery getter.

Other than preproduction versions, nobody should have the Soho yet. Unfortunately, it has been pushed back to an estimated ship date of 2/2/2009, as has the District. This leads me to believe that it is largely an issue of stocking the belt drive system.

Bumping this one up. I was thinking about all the things I don't like about my winter beater bike, and my rim brakes and derailuers were top of the list.

The front derailuer gets finicky in the cold sometimes, so now I never use the front derailuer. That leaves me 8 gears from the rear derailuer,so far the rear has not failed me. Thank god it is flat around here, rim brakes suck riding in the snow.

So I start looking around for an IGH bike with disk or roller brakes. The Specialized Frisco and the trek Soho have IGH and non rim brakes. Trek has the belt drive, Specialized has 26 inch rims which means my current studded tires won't fit.

So, who is riding one of these?

Anyone gotten one of these yet?

Same question here. A friend ordered one from our LBS last week (they did not have it in stock), but the owner called him this week and said Trek did not have them in stock at their distribution warehouse and that they didn't know when they would get them. Now my friend doesn't know whether to wait or to get something else. He really needs a bike as he got his other two stolen (his commuter and winter beater).

I'm interested in the Soho myself. I received the following from Trek..."Mid- to late-June is indeed the current ETA for these bikes, both for new stock and for filling current backorders." This is what my LBS said as well. Apparently the other belt-driven bike, the Trek District is out and about. If the feedback is positive, I'll probably wait. If not, I'll look for another model.

They have one of these in my LBS and it's a sweet bike.

Trek Soho 09
 

I have an old Trek Clypso that has has been a great cruiser, but as I am getting back into commuting, I need a faster bike. I test rode the Trek Soho 09, and I must say I was quite impressed. The bike was robust and nimble. Very responsive. The gears shifted very smoothly even while climbing a sharp hill, and found uphills a breeze. The price is a slight deterrent, but I cannot stop thinking about it. I think I am gonna cave in this week...especially since I'll be commuting to school all through fall....anyone wanna talk me out of it? Please do...talk some sense into me...cause maybe I'm just being a hyper consumer...