newbie intro and first bike advice

[RoadBunner]

Hi, everyone! I've been lurking for a couple of weeks now and thought it was time to introduce myself and ask some questions.

I am just getting into cycling. I'm currently a runner who wants to get a bike for cross-training and getting into triathlons. I did some research and decided a road bike was definitely the way to go.

I've set my budget somewhere around $2K. I debated getting an entry-level bike and seeing how it goes, but I have a pretty strong feeling I'll too quickly regret not going with a slightly higher-level bike.

This weekend I finally got out to a LBS or two (or four!) and got on some bikes. The first place I went to is mainly a Trek dealer. I rode a '08 Pilot 2.1 WSD and a '08 Madone 4.5 WSD (both 47 cm) I was able to take the bike's out over a rough road and definitely preferred the carbon Madone to the Pilot. So between those two bikes, I'd go with the Madone but I knew I should go see other bikes.

Two days later I hit up a few more stores and got on 5 more bikes. They were:
'08 Specialized Ruby Comp (47 cm)
'08 Cannondale Synapse Feminine 3 (not sure of size but I think 50)
'08 Orbea Onix TDA (48 cm)
'07 Scott CR1 Pro Contessa (47 cm)
'07 Giant OCR C2 (XS)

The problem I had the second day of bike riding was that my seat bones were bruised from the Trek day and thus I had a harder time judging how the ride felt. I was pretty surprised at this because I felt the Treks were pretty comfy saddle-wise (I was also wearing jeans) but am now a little worried if just 20 min of bike riding left me feeling sore.

From the second group of bikes I liked the Orbea (want to go back and try the WSD version) and the Giant (not sure if I will make up my mind fast enough to snatch up the '07 deal).

Honestly though, I am a total newbie and am having a hard time with what feels right. The LBS that put me on the Cannondale and Ruby didn't really take measurements and sort of just threw me on the bikes with a little bit of a seat-height adjustment. I think that's why I didn't really like those bikes much. The Trek LBS and the third place I went to really took the time to tweak the bikes to make them just right for me.

At this point, I think I need to start with fresh seat bones and pick a day I can go back to both shops on the same day to make some decisions.

I guess I am open to any collective wisdom from everyone here on this process. I've read a lot about people just "knowing" when they found their bike but as a beginner I'm not sure what to look for. I've taken the bikes for spins around some short back roads by the store. Each LBS has offered to let me take it out for a longer ride, but since I'm new I'm not comfortable going out in traffic just yet.

One main difference between the treks and all the other bikes was that the Trek has a triple and the others all have compacts. One LBS (not the Trek one) told me that a triple would be the way to go but another guy seemed to think I could get everything I needed out of a compact. I live in the SF Bay area so we have a bit of hills. Most of the bikes have 105/Ultegra mixes but the Giant has full ultegra, I believe, and if I stretch the budget a little I could get Ultegra on the Orbea, too. Also, should I be concerned about the bruised feeling in my seat bones?

I'm planning on throwing some aero bars onto the bike if I get into longer-distance triathlons (right now I'm hoping to make a goal of a half-ironman someday). I was told by the Trek LBS that the Madone would be good for that because of the more aggressive geometry (a Lemond LBS even told me that the Lemond would not be good for that since it is better for touring).

If it helps, I'm 5'2" (and a half ). The measurements one LBS gave me are: Inseam 74.1, Torso 56.9, Arm 55.3, shoulders 40.5. The second LBS said I should shoot for a TT of 50.5-51.0.

Sorry this is so long-winded! I'm looking forward to participating on the forums and learning from everyone here! Thanks!

[mimitabby]

go back to the LBS that you like and tell them the saddle on that Trek was awful and see what happens after that.

I'd go for a triple in San Francisco!!!

Welcome to TE!

We have a whole section of this forum dedicated just to saddles, it is a highly individual and sensitive point here. You should be able to ride on a saddle for 20 minutes in jeans(without extreme pain), but there is SOME breaking in that should be expected.

[maillotpois]

I live and ride in the Bay Area and highly recommend the triple, regardless of what bike you go with.

Also, even for a test ride it would probably be a good idea to have some bike shorts on to really get a better feel for how the bike and the saddle are going to feel. (If you haven't yet been to Sports basement you should check it out. they have 3 locations in SF area: Marina, by Pac bell or whatever it is now park and somewhere in the South Bay. Anyway, they generally have some good deals on shorts and gear you will likely need to have with your new toy.)

I would recommend really getting a feel for the bike and how it handles, developing your skills well, before you toy with the idea of aero bars.

[tulip]

I would recommend really getting a feel for the bike and how it handles, developing your skills well, before you toy with the idea of aero bars.

Good idea to hold off on the aero bars for a while (at least). If you decide to start riding with a bike club (which I recommend to get comfortable riding with people and improving your skills), you may not be allowed to use aero bars in group rides. This is for a good reason, as aero bars can be dangerous in a crash. Also, with arms on the aero bars, it's harder to control the bike, and that's no good with a group of people going 15+ mph.

[RoadBunner]

Thanks, everyone for the suggestions. I am definitely not planning on aero bars anytime soon! It's just something I want to take into consideration when selecting a bike. The Lemond LBS got me thinking since he told me it would be harder to get into the aero position on the Lemond geometry.

A quick question re: saddles. When I was actually on the Trek the saddle felt very comfy even in jeans. Just the next day I felt sort of bruised in the seat-bone area. I wasn't sure if this was just something your body adapts to or if this means the saddle wasn't good for me. I also understand that I need some bike shorts to really simulate what it will be like, but even with the padding is a bruise-like feeling "normal" or unacceptable?

[mimitabby]

if you really haven't ridden for years, it could be your sit bones just need to be conditioned. 20 minutes making you sore just seems a bit extreme. If you really are planning on riding you probably ought to get some bike shorts anyway. And even with bike shorts you're going to get sore.