After what seems like a gagillion years of looking for a new bike, I've finally put down a deposit for a 2010 Torker Graduate, which was ordered for me by my LBS today. The Graduate is also the very first bike I began considering months ago when I started looking around.

I considered bikes for twice as much money and for half as much, but each one was just a little this or a little that not quite right. I rode mountain bikes, other commuter types, "performance'' hybrids (whatever that means) and road bikes. I went to every bike shop around me, many several times. I stayed up at night studying components, bike reviews, comparing geometry.

I'm mentally exhausted from it.

In the end, the Graduate fit the bill - its not expensive, and although it is not the most exciting bike on the block, it has the internal gears, drum brakes, fenders and chain guard I wanted. It also is steel, which I like (not fanning any flames here, just a preference.)

And the bike shop I decided to go with, turns out, are a good group of guys. Through my indecision, incessant questioning and changing my mind, they were right there, which is why I went back to them. I feel like we now have a kind of relationship, which will hopefully turn out well for me.

I'm making several changes to the Graduate before I get it, but I'll save that for another thread.

Today, I bought a new bike. Let the rejoicing begin!

Congratulations. It's a pretty big step to pull the trigger sometimes. I hope to get a deal on a road bike this November or December when the LBS is (hopefully) trying to clear out inventory to make room for new bikes.

Congratulations! It is a big step, indeed. I had a similar experience to yours, except I ended up choosing one of the most expensive bike on my list of choices. Sometimes I still feel a little bit of buyer's remorse... but that quickly fades after a minute or two on the bike. FWIW I think the Graduate looks like a great commuter and if there were any Torker dealers in my neck of the woods then the bike would have made my list.

That totally sucks. Now you have the agonizing wait