Advise sought on new bike to purchase

I am an experienced rider (57 yr, 150#), getting back into consistent weekly 20mi rides with friends on paved walking/biking trails- been riding now for a year. I may take bike on vacations to ride in state parks but probably not much more than hard dirt paths or pine straw paths in parks for off road. Will do some bike trips with same girl friends. We are all in 55-65 age range, in good shape.

I am seeking recommendations to narrow the field of choices. All my friends bought Trek FX 7.2-7.5 versions from LBS. They like them, but i am used to riding a vintage '85 Raleigh Marathon 12 speed road bike (has >1000mi on org equip x tires. It has been fine for me, but a little tall frame so i have a hard time standing with the crossbar (no women's versions in those days). I am concerned with my aging agility it may be a safety concern down the road in a year or two. While I like the FX series, and fitness bikes in general - I hesitate to spend close to $1k when outfitted with kickstand,fenders, rear rack, and 2 water bottle racks for the fear I may outgrown the bike if we keep riding like we are.

Any opinions/experience are welcome: fitness hybrid vs road with straight bar, not drop; disc vs linear pull breaks, gear components to avoid, and saddles . We have an upcoming 35 mile charity ride later in the fall and I'd like to have the new bike broken in before I go if possible.

I am test riding from LBS on Giant, Specialized, Trek, and maybe Fuji(crosstown w's). Hope to find a good used one, but not limiting my selection. If I happen to find a good used, what discount from MSRP should I expect 1 year, 2 year, >3 years old?

thank you

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Originally Posted by AngelontheRoad

I am an experienced rider (57 yr, 150#), getting back into consistent weekly 20mi rides with friends on paved walking/biking trails- been riding now for a year. I may take bike on vacations to ride in state parks but probably not much more than hard dirt paths or pine straw paths in parks for off road. Will do some bike trips with same girl friends. We are all in 55-65 age range, in good shape.

I am seeking recommendations to narrow the field of choices. All my friends bought Trek FX 7.2-7.5 versions from LBS. They like them, but i am used to riding a vintage '85 Raleigh Marathon 12 speed road bike (has >1000mi on org equip x tires. It has been fine for me, but a little tall frame so i have a hard time standing with the crossbar (no women's versions in those days). I am concerned with my aging agility it may be a safety concern down the road in a year or two. While I like the FX series, and fitness bikes in general - I hesitate to spend close to $1k when outfitted with kickstand,fenders, rear rack, and 2 water bottle racks for the fear I may outgrown the bike if we keep riding like we are.

Any opinions/experience are welcome: fitness hybrid vs road with straight bar, not drop; disc vs linear pull breaks, gear components to avoid, and saddles . We have an upcoming 35 mile charity ride later in the fall and I'd like to have the new bike broken in before I go if possible.

I am test riding from LBS on Giant, Specialized, Trek, and maybe Fuji(crosstown w's). Hope to find a good used one, but not limiting my selection. If I happen to find a good used, what discount from MSRP should I expect 1 year, 2 year, >3 years old?

thank you

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Budget is $600-900 reluctantly - hopefully can up the quality through a used.

Some good suggestions above…Muirenn beat me to it as far as recommending Surly. Just be aware if you see yourself wanting to go on faster group rides that they are heavier bikes and you may find yourself having a harder time keeping up with those on the light road bikes that are usually brought on those kinds of rides (that said, this also depends on the "engine" so to speak and I know mine is NOT made for speed, so YMMV). Some other possibilities might be: Bianchi Volpe, Jamis Aurora/Bosanova/Quest/Ventura (the last two are more pure road bikes, so if you wanted to do a multi-day trip you would either need to pack light or use a trailer), Masi CX (if you're taller…toe overlap is horrible on the smaller sizes).

I was in a somewhat similar situation when I started cycling again a few years ago, and bought a hybrid off craigslist. As it turned out, it didn't fit me and was heavy, and I realized very quickly I really did want a road bike to be able to go further and faster. I sold the hybrid and got an aluminum road bike, and eventually replaced it with my current bike.

Give some serious thought to your "future self" and what you envision your riding habits to be a few months or a year. Lots of women in their 50's and 60's have no trouble whatsoever with a road bike frame. I also have a Surly which I bought for touring- it doesn't get enough use but I hope to ride it more. So far I've ridden it on one camping trip, some grocery runs and a few times when my road bike was in the shop or I just wanted a change. It's heavier and rides better with the panniers loaded up....

I have limited experience, but am a 51 going on 52 year old woman who got benched from running due to knee issues. I decided this summer, after my knee healed after surgery, to do some biking. I'd put some money away and wanted to buy a bike or bikes that would last. My husband has a hybrid bike, but mine is a comfort bike--a heavy Schwinn. Sturdy, but not easy or enjoyable to ride for fitness.

I bought a Lexa SL in July and I really love it. Its fast and enjoyable and comfortable, and I love so much that's its very light--but I also have some areas that I'd like to ride which are rocky or gravel roads and, with the weather turning here, I wanted something that I could ride at least three seasons. Last week, I purchased a Trek Lexa SL and it is also a great bike. I paid a little more to have hydraulic brakes. I find this bike to be a lot of fun, a bit easier to shift than the Lexa for whatever reason (experience, I'm sure), and I feel much safer in wet weather or going off the side of the road, etc.

I did try Specialized and Cannondales as well and did a bit of research. I was assured all three brands, as well as Surly (no dealer close by) were fine, and was told to buy the ones that felt the best to me. Riding, sitting and talking to people on forums like these helped a lot. Good luck, hope you find something you love.

Boy, tough question, one many of us have asked at various times. I thought I wanted to ride packed trails, gravel and scoot around the campground. I purchase a comfort bike, like the paved rails to trails so up graded to a Trek 7.5 (great bike but a bit too big), with the FX I discovered the road and again upgraded! I love my carbon rode bike!

Last month I added a hard tail mountain bike to the mix so I could ride a packed gravel trail on a vacation trip. The other day I actually rode it on a real mountain bike trail too. I look forward to scooting around the campground with it also.

I guess what I'm saying, this can be an evolving venture. When I started riding I could never have imagined I would one day ride long distances on busy roads. We used to load up the bikes and take them to the paved trails, now we ride to the trail. We've completed two STPs.

It's so hard to know where this journey will take you. Follow your heart and don't be too practical, all the upgrades can be expensive over time! Neither of my first two bikes turned out to be the "do everything" bikes I hoped the would be. And since DH and I ride together, all purchases have been Times Two!

As far as your advanced age, no worries! Your a young pup compared to many of the ladies here! Plus you already ride a road bike.

Sounds like you might like a "go fast", drop handle bar road bike for organized rides. I will say, we did ride 60 mile rides a few times on FXs, but the drop bars really are more comfortable.

Good luck and have fun!

From the dark side of 59!

Thank you all for your comments. They have been invaluable. I am pursuing currently a 2015 Specialized Vita Elite Carbon Disc for a sweet price NEW. If that does not fit/like for some very odd reason, I have reserved a Specialized Vita Elite as my back up. It was a bit of toss up between Trek 7.4, 7.5, or Specialized at the end. I prefer the presets for fender, rack, and better gearing on the Specialized than Trek. I have not written the checks yet, so opine if you will while the carbon is in route to be assembled for fit test. Thank you

Thank you for comments on carbon. I thought I asked that question when I was first checking out the bikes, and I know the literature says something to effect of "compatible with Specialized Plug & Play fender set". I presume this means you can, but your caution is heeded. In closeup pictures there appears to be a screw in the cross piece between back fork rails which I presume is where it would go. I will call again to be sure as I definitely need fenders and rear rack mounts. I really appreciate the Road ID wrist band you recommend. We always ride as a group, never leaving one single rider alone; but in an out of town ride, it is more important to know the tricks of the trade. Do you have a wrist band you recommend versus others. I'll get one for everyone in our group as a "treat" for our first group trip on the bikes.

Are there the ABCs for carbon bike care and maintenance. I essentially have had no maintenance of my existing Raleigh other than tires, tubes, periodic tune-up and check out, replace handlebar tape. Maybe there is a considering carbon 101 reading I should do first before buying to be certain I want this bike. It was an excellent ride and I love the lightweight frame- which is why I considered it when I heard the 25% off list price plus a little more after negotiating.

There are fenders that can be used with carbon frames. I have a version of the Race Blades for mine. I put them on before a ride if I expect rain and take them off afterwards.

http://www.rei.com/product/718392/sk...lade-xl-fender

I do have problems getting the front fender to fit on my WSD frame, so I'm actually looking for a different brand now. But there are options.

As for racks, as far as I know they are not an option for carbon frames. I make do with a large seat wedge, a top-tube bag and a handlebar bag that attaches to the handlebars with velcro strips.

As for caring for a carbon frame, I just clean it with some pink bike cleaner that I bought ages ago at the LBS. The main thing is to avoid any impact to the frame - be careful when you lean it against something, carry it, put it in or out of a car, etc.

The Kona Jake is pretty good value for money in the cyclocross category. It would probably do everything you need for that kind of riding. The only possible drawback is that the top tubes on Kona tend to be a bit on the long side.
http://www.konaworld.com/jake.cfm