Road Bike Education, please?

Okay, I need, want, must have a road bike. I just don't know beans about them. I mean, I know the different grades of Shimano components, sorta. I have an LX front derailluer on my bike, and I know that even though it's not the absolute best, you can ride the daylights out of it. So that's the kinda stuff I wanna know.

And frame material, sheesh there are a lot of choices! HELP! Oh, and I can make this easy, the shop that's sponsoring our bike club sells Lemond and that's what I get a discount on. No Specialized for me, sniffle.

I really don't want anything more expensive than my mountain bike ($1100) because I'm really not that into road riding, just want the excercise, and the convenience of riding out my door. Don't wanna go too cheap though, I mean, I want something reasonably nice that will last a while. I just hate to buy something okay, when I can spend a little more and get something good, ya know? Probably the same price as my MTB.

love and cookies
-smurf

Hey, Smurf...I don't know much about road bikes, either, but have been doing some looking into them. What I ended up ordering (hasn't come in yet) is a cyclocross bike. You can take it on trails, and roads. If you want to use it just for road you can change out the tires. Also, depending on the manufacturer, some of the cyclocross bikes have fittings for panniers/racks for touring.

However, if you just want to do strictly road riding, I tried out a Giant OCR and found it was really a nice ride. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the way I'm hearing it, carbon is the best ride (lots of $$), steel is next (but weighs more), with aluminum being the stiffest.

Have you checked out any of the bike shops in Bend? The people at Century Cycles on Galveston are super nice, never mind answering lots of dumb questions, and are not EVER in the least bit snooty. I bought my mtn bike there and they are ordering my cyclocross as well.
Reviews:
http://www.roadbikereview.com/
http://www.epinions.com/bike-Bicycles-All

I gave a lot of thought to a cross bike, but I already have my pony, and so I've been told a lot of cross races are ridden on MTBs. I want something I can eventually convert for perhaps doing the Try a Tri in Bend. I'm definately buying at Pine Mountain, for my discount, and for the fact that those guys have been awesome to me. The owner probably spent a good hour trying different sides bikes with me. I went to Century, off Galveston, right? They weren't exactly the kind of place that made me stoked to buy a bike. The guy I worked with was cold, acted like I was beneath him and his bikes. Made it really hard to get all excited about spending hundreds more than I planned. Almost made me wanna quit shopping. :mad: If I don't buy from Pine Mountain, I'll probably go to Hutch's. Tara there was such a doll to me, I feel kind obligated. :D

love and cookies
-smurf

The most important thing is fit. If it hurts to ride, it doesn't matter if you have top of the line everything.

I have a steel bike. It might weigh a couple pounds more than carbon fiber. So what? I could lose a couple of pounds & be right there with my sisters! Steel is comfortable & if it breaks, you can get it fixed. Frame is important. Size & fit. Stay away from aluminum if you can. It is really stiff and can become tiring after awhile on rough roads. Steel has some give to it. Carbon fiber has more give.

Components can be upgraded. Get the best you can afford right now. If you're in love with your fit & frame, you can upgrade later. If you aren't in love with your fit & frame, at least you didn't pour a bunch of money into it! And -- you'll know exactly what you want next time.

If you can ride bikes with different components, do it. Ignore the bike's fit & concentrate on how easily it shifts for you.

Most important...

Report back to tell us what you found!

Thanks sooo much about the info on frame material. That's kind where I was confused. My MTB is aluminum, but with the rock gardens we have in Central Oregon, she needs to be tough! From there I know I'm not going any lower than 105 components, and it's really going to come down to price. This is probably gonna have to be a birthday present, which means not until Jan 26th, but I'll deal. I want it noooow! Especially since Timbuk2 came out with the new bags that have a window panel for stickers! I looooove stickers! So much I thought about putting one on my MTB, but now it's gonna have "The sweetest kittens have the sharpest claws painted on it." Erg! Wanna ride my bike to work, and the grocery store, and...and... aaaargh! After my accidental road ride today, I'm so fiending, don't mind me.

love and cookies
-smurf