DougG

I'm not a true touring rider, but do have one of my bikes set up for what I call "light touring", or what some people call "credit card touring." That is, more robust than a go-fast road bike, relaxed geometry, wider tires, Brooks saddle, rack with trunk bag, triple crank, etc. I think about replacing it with something newer occasionally, but lately it seems like I can't find anything new that looks like it would be a good basis for this type of duty: everything is either carbon with no consideration for racks & wider tires, or is aluminum in a cheap package with low-end components.

So I am looking seriously at this new Trek model, the 720 Disc. I'm not sure that I'd actually have need for as much storage as they give you with those front bags, but they'd be nice to have around, and most of the rest of the bike looks just right. One of my other bikes (trail bike) has hydraulic disc brakes and I'm really sold on them now.

Living in Michigan, I'm not likely to be doing much mountaineering -- although we do have some good-sized hills in some parts that are steep, albeit short -- so the compact/11-speed gearing might be sufficient with a 34x32 max low gear (at 68yo I need more help these days). In any case, that can be remedied later.

Anyway, after making a few calls, the issue is going to be finding a dealer that stocks one, especially since I'd want to look at it and ride it before making a decision. Again, around here the emphasis is on bikes for rail-trails and MTB, with few shops carrying many road bikes at all, let alone a specialized one like the 720. You'd think that with as many Trek dealers as there are around...

So I'll be watching these forums for any comments on this bike if anyone gets one. Anyone else looked at this model? What do you think?

fietsbob

Our LBS Is a Trek Dealer , they are very nice alloy framed bikes .. any pro shop will change components at point of sale.

a Cyclist joining a Supported trans continental ride ordered 1 to pick up after flying in from Hawaii.


As a Touring destination the LBS sells few Real touring Bikes as Many people bring theirs .

those 2 dry bags look just right to carry 2 Growlers of microbrews .. and it will take mudguards and a rear rack too , though not stock

The 520 disc in steel is fine too.. as is the Cross Rip models also disc /drop bar..

DougG

Yeah, up to now I've been looking at the CrossRip, especially since it comes with those auxiliary brake levers that I like so much on my current bike (brakes readily to hand when tooling around on the tops). My main concern is that it's probably heavier than the 720, and of course Trek never tells you what the bikes weigh. I could still go that way, and they do have those always in stock.

fietsbob

those extra CX top mount levers are easy to add. dont get hung up on total bike weight.

said here elsewhere ... $1, a Gram is about the cost to make things weigh much Less ..

tom cotter

if your local trek dealer doesn't have a 720 in stock, 30 seconds on their dealer networked computer can locate the closest dealer that does have one sitting on the floor. They can even find one in your size, if it's out there. Call the dealer and ask.

Darth Lefty 

There doesn't seem to be a lot of difference between the Crossrip LTD and the 720 except for those bags. They both have rack mounts on the fork, similar frames and a lot of the same cockpit components. The 720 has one year newer controls, the geometry differences amount to about 1 size (a 54 crossrip should sit about the same as a 56 720), Crossrip has a little more trail, a little more heel clearance, a little more wheelbase. 720 has DuoTrap mount and Crossrip has gel under the tape; they have different saddles and tires. Frankly it's not clear to me why they're two models. I guess it's just market segmentation.

Latif

Those front fork bags look like a great idea. Couldn't find them as a separate item on trek's site. Will have to head over to our trek dealer to find out.

bikemig 

This is an idea from backpacking; you don't need to buy them from Trek.

Anything Cage vs. Everything Bag - Bikepackers Magazine