Jamis Satelite Sport
 

I rode quite a few of the road bikes in the $700 range recently and really enjoyed my ride most on the Jamis Satellite. Outside of possibly a new seat are there any parts you'd recommend upgrading or other first road bike items to purchase? Thanks for any input you have, great forum for helping a first time rider

Great bike with a nice steel frame. Pretty low end components, but they work great when properly tweaked. Not really an upgrade, but getting a decent tune-up will be helpful. In terms of a "real" upgrade, you could drop a pound with a carbon fork, but I suggest you ride the heck out of it for the summer, and then decide what isn't working for you.
Bryan