felt. try felt. felt rulesw in the lower prices.

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customerjon @gmail.com is where information happens.

if you want a new bike:

the fuji america ace with sora 21 speed retails for $519. it's got a cro-moly frame, alex wheels. weighs 24.5 lbs.

the raleigh grand sport with sora 18 speed (i believe, it's got 9 speed cassette and i can't imagine it has a triple up front, or at least it shouldn't) is $549. it's got a 7005 aluminum frame. weighs 25 lbs.

the khs flite 300 is also sora. it retails for $659.

i'm sure you could find some other entry-level bikes in the range. but it might be worth not having the bike on vacation to look for a good used bike. for that money, you could get a much better bike if you are willing to look. i got a barely-used cervelo eyre (replaced by the p2k in their lineup, retailed for $2000) with ultegra everything for less than $1000.) you could probably find a very decent bike with shimano 105 or 600 (predecessor to ultegra) in your range or just above it. some places to look are the classifieds on www.roadbikereview.com and ebay. be sure you buy safely and consider using an escrow service if you buy online used.

good luck.

Just the other day, a friend of mine asked me to find him a road bike for under $400. "That's gonna be tough," I told him. So far, the only new bike I found was the Ibex Classic 3300 for $379.

http://www.ibexbikes.com/...es_sale_Roadbike.htm

I don't know anything about the frame quality, but what the hay. It's the best I could find so far. I'm gonna keep looking.

If anyone else knows of any other "cheapy" road bikes let me know.

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E-Z

--It ain't a good idea to swim near MY bubbles!

did they show you the trek 1000. I believe they retail around $450. At least thats what i paid for mine three years ago. Good luck.

Bob

Go second hand. You'll get a much better deal.

Hey:

Check out http://www.bikeswholesale.com/ I've had an Ironhorse I bought from them for $420 2 years ago, sora-equipped, as my first road bike. I'm still using it for commuting and loving it, some 2500 miles in, all original gear still on it but for pedals and saddle. I had a good experience with the company, and have a friend who rides a Tommaso from them as well.



T

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"The mind can calculate, but the spirit yearns, and the heart knows what the heart knows."

If you go new, Giant and Felt are the bikes to look into. Both carry Sora equipped road bikes for around $500. The Trek 1000 is good, too, but I have never seen one of these in a LBS for less than $600 (and I used to own one). Other good choices that have been mentioned include Iron Horse and KHS.

As another poster wrote, you can often get a good deal on a better bike buying used. For example, my LBS has an older Cannondale road bike with an Ultegra/Dura Ace mix component package for $400. The bike is in excellent shape; very low miles. Deals like this are out there if you look in the right place.

RP

Felt, Felt, Felt, Felt or did I mention Felt.

I got my Trek 1000 w/Sora in Febuary 2002 from the LBS for $525, it was the prior years model. I got the same bike (current model year) for my wife in April for $600.

I road the bike into the ground, the Sora components just were not meant for 5k miles per year. However, the bike was pretty good overall. My wife has put on 1,000 miles total since April 2002 and she loves the bike. It works great for her. BTW, she did a small group ride with us last weekend, 32 miles averaging 24mph on this bike and had no problems.

http://www.supergo.com/...itempageitemid=22269

Check it out.

All,

I've been doing some more research, based on the advice in this thread. In the price range I'm looking at, many of the bikes I see have Chromoly frames, which makes them pretty heavy, or they're low-end aluminum with all Sora components. Giant's OCR3 seemed like the best buy as far as new bikes go, with a decent aluminum frame and Sora triple drivetrain. Who was it who was recommending Felt? I love Felt bikes, but their lowest end model (F85) retails for around $1000.

All that said, based on some of the ads I've seen on Ebay and Roadbikereview and Craigslist.com, I think I'll get a better deal on a used bike than a new bike. There are about 4 pages of bikes on Ebay that are reasonably close to what I'm looking for. I've also found someone selling a 1992 Trek 2100, all 105 components, not ridden very much. I'm a little worried about its age, particularly for the components, but otherwise sounds like a decent bike. Anyone ever ride one have any opinions? It's too old to be listed on roadbikereview.

Lee

I still say check out the link I posted above. All 105 components and should weigh in at under 19 lbs.

During Schwinn's recent demise, I picked up a Schwinn road frame for about $350. It was the same frame they were using on their top end $3800 Dura Ace bike before they went bankrupt. It weighs about 2.6 lbs and looks very similar to this offering. Best $350 I ever spent. No pose value whatsoever (I actually removed the cheesey lablels from the anodized frame), but I also ordered a Campy Record group by mail order, an Easton carbon fork with carbon steer tube on closeout, SLR saddle, Easton CT2 carbon seatpost that was being closed out, some Speeddream wheels at about $520 (1500 gms for the pair), and I now have a 16 lb road bike that I only spent about $2100 for. My plan was to upgrade the frame last year, but I like this bike so much I'm holding off. It climbs like a dream and rides very nicely.

Nothing more elegant than being noticed for your riding as opposed to the brand pasted all over your bike.

Lee,

Over the weekend I just got my wife a spanking new FELT F85 (2003 model) for $320.00. Screaming deal. 7005 alum frame and 6061 alloy fork, with Shimano Sora and Tiagra mix, 24 speed.

The LBS and local FELT dealer had a promo - includes custom fit and 12 months of mech adjustments etc.

Wow. That's a deal! Just sent you a message -- can you send me the name/number of your LBS? Maybe they'll sell me one over the phone.

Lee

Was in a similar situation about 6 months ago. I was new to tri life and did not want to spend my life savings on a bike until I knew it was something I wanted to pursue more fully. On the suggestion of a trusted friend I picked up a Felt 85 for $649 ( have seen them as low as $579 since). Liked the ride but got more into the sport after a few months and wanted to upgrade to tiagra shifters. Went back to the store and upgraded to the Felt 75 for $799. Tiagra and 105 mix, nine speed rear end + carbon forks. I'm very happy. So is my wife, we are the same size and she now rides with me on the 85 and we are both very happy aout the choice.

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Dave Stark
dreamcatcher@astound.net
USAC & USAT level 2 certified coach