ac29593

If you buy the bike my guess is that those 10 mile rides will turn into 20 miles, and those 30 mile rides will turn into 40-50 miles. Worth every penny.

I am recreational and spent a bit extra on my Felt F55 to get exactly what I wanted. I had more than I ever needed in my full 105 triple set up (and still miss that bike since it was my first road bike), but now I have the gearing the way I like, more comfort, and no more drooling over the F55 that I liked so much every time I walked into the shop. I set personal records in miles for one trip and mph the first season I had it on the road

Vermont22

Get it if you have the cash.

Just make sure the geometry of the frame fits you as a "recreational" rider. The Madones have more aggressive geometry - make sure it works for what you're doing.

caloso

Buy the best* bike you can afford. Ride the hell out of it. Wear it out. Repeat ad infinitum.










* "Best" means best for your body and style of riding. Might be steel, Ti, CF, or bamboo. Might have 30 gears or 1. Get the idea? Good. Now go ride.

SteelCan

Was this question really posed so that the answers would guide your decision?
You are preaching (or in this case, pseudo inquiring) to the choir.
I'm surprised you didn't see responses also suggesting you swap out that inferior wheelset with carbons.

gettingold

Fail. Very comfortable bike.

gettingold

Except for that damn crackling noise...

fauxto nick

I can't say I know much about the Madone but if I were riding for recreation I would never go out of my way to buy a race bike. I see people riding Pinaello Princes in LA a lot who are obviously out there for recreational riding. That's great, I pass no judgement on them spending the money. I do consider it foolish to buy a bike for racing and then have to run all this extra spacer to make it comfortable to recreational riding. The money would be better spent on a plus bike.

Drag

What he said.

2cyl

The Madones have a pro fit (aggressive w/ shorter head tube) and a performance fit (longer head tube much like the old Pilot series).

The 4.5 is real nice as long as it fits you. Don't buy it b/c its on sale, buy it because it fits.

BikesAreCool123

For the OP, the Madone 4.5 is a recreational bike (it has a tall head tube). The Madone 5.2 & up come in rec and race geos.

2cyl

Good to know - did not know the 4.5 only came in one fit.

tollhousecookie

Madone 4.5 = "poor mans" race bike.

wookv

My 2 cents story:
I'm brand new to roadbiking, but I wanted something with 105. Turns out that with the end of season sales going on, I got a full carbon scott cr1 team for less than a trek 2.1 (my other option).
If I paid full retail, I'd think it's too much bike, but I think it's the fanciest new bike I can afford, complete with look cromoly pedals, shoes, bike computer and arundel cages, all for under $1500.
I only ride ~30miles/week, and some occasional metric centuries but I love it!

It's only overkill when a noob like me brought it in to the LBS for derailleur tuning, and it turns out there was nothing wrong! (I was probably cross-chaining)

cheval

umm.. just be sure to let us know how the new bike rides.

NickExxon

Do what I do - spend waaay too much money on a bicycle. My reasoning is I'm determined to get my money's worth out of it so I have to ride lots.

Or you could use Rita Rudner's pretzel logic, "I buy a new dress cause I need change for gum."

Too Many Toys

Wow, thx for all the helpful & constructive comments! On advice of some of the poster's (sp?) I actually RODE some bikes.

And I've decided that I'm going to do a Specialized Roubaix Compact. It just fit & felt better then the Trek Madone 4.5. Both nice bikes & I think I would have been plenty happy with the Madone, but glad I took advice given here & test rode some stuff.

Panthiest

I just pulled the trigger on a Trek Madone 5.2 for they have a sale going on that ends this month. There were only 3 left in the size that fits me so I just got that under the wire. I have a trek 1.5 that I purchased last year and I love the bike, very compfy, so I didn't get the pro- fit but I did get a bike with much better components, 5lbs lighter and for $3100.00, a great deal! Trek sorta shot themselves in the foot when they started project one. Nobody was buying the stock bikes so they had so many left over that they had this sale to get rid of the stock bikes. Their loss, my gain!

tntyz

Sounds like a sweet deal. A lot of posts on BF stating the Trek is overpriced, but many people seem to be able to find decent bargains, plus they've got a good financing program for those without the cash.

Beaker

Do you mean a Roubaix Comp or a compact crank?

I ended up buying an 07 Roubaix comp 18months ago and really enjoy it, it's been a great frame and is all very upgradeable if/when the need arises. I was testing out a Trek 5200 and a CAAD8 before hand, and the Roubaix just fit me like a glove - it wasn't even on my radar until I swung my leg over the saddle.

Drag

Word.

Far too many self-proclaimed holier-than-thou types (you know - the carbon wheels are only for us racer goofballs) dictating how you can enjoy your hobby.

Ignore BF.

Ride what you want.