7.6 FX vs Vita Pro vs Quick SL 2

[dodecahedron]

Sure questions like these have been asked hundreds of times on this forum but I am going to buy my first bike that serves more of a purpose of biking into downtown.

I started running over a year or so ago, just ran my first half marathon and felt some pain in my knee towards my last month of training. I also, unless perfectly socked, crush and callus and blister my pinky toes. I want to get a bike that can intermix some cycling into my training so I am not always running to keep my fitness levels up for the random 5k/10k/or maybe even half marathon. I guess bike 40 miles on some training days (once I can get to this point ).

Also, I live about 8 miles from work and would like to use this bike at least once, hopefully more times a week to get there. (That's where the commuter part comes in)

There are three bike speciality stores in town and they carry brand specific. I went to the Trek store and they go up to a 7.3 or 7.2, They say the 7.6 will only get awesome-r... but that I'd have to be dedicated to order it (money-down), probably none around to test drive.

I am going to check out the other two stores to hopefully get a chance to ride the others.

Any advice? What do owners of the particular bikes love about their bike/make that choice/anything left to desire on your purchase?

Thanks in advance!

[goldfinch]

These bikes are basically flat bar road bikes. For example, the tires are skinnier on the FX 7.6 than on the 7.3. Instead of triple chain rings the Trek and the Specialized have compact doubles. The Cannondale has a triple. The geometry of these three bikes differ somewhat. So, you will have to see what feels better to you. Even if you cant try out the higher end bikes you can compare the geometry by trying out the lower end bikes.

I have a lower end Quick, from a different line, that has a triple chain ring with mountain gearing and bigger tires than a flat bar road bike. I also have a Trek Madone, a carbon road bike with drop bars. Each has their benefits. For commuting I would prefer the upright Quick. For riding long distances the drop bar, light weight, skinny tire bike is better. The Quick is better on very steep hills with its mountain gearing and triple chain ring. The Madone is fine on rolling hills but if I was biking where there were more extreme hills I would want some lower gearing.

People talk about the advantages of drop bars for the increased number of hand positions. They have something of a point and you can get more aerodynamic on the drop bars. You can also ride with your hands on the hoods or on the top, giving you alternative positions. That said, this arthritic woman finds flat bars more comfortable provided that I have ergonomic grips on them. Depending on how my arthritis goes I may end up with a flat bar road bike, like the Vita Limited (the carbon version of the Vita).

FWIW

[Catrin]

The Trek 7.6 has a triple - at least the 2010 model did - I had one There are people totally sold on road drop bars, but I find flat bars with Ergon grips to be 'da bomb" - I can ride this all day long with no hand problems and I've arthritis in my hands (my longest ride so far as been 75 miles). Of course it matters that the bike is fit properly to you.

That being said, just as I can't ride road drop bars, there are some who cannot ride flat bars regardless of grips or how the bike is setup.

I can't speak about the other models, but the Trek is a nice flat-bar road bike and wouldn't be a bad choice if it fits you. You will want to see what model year it is since it sounds like newer versions are now compact doubles rather than a triple chain ring.

[goldfinch]

The Trek 7.6 has a triple - at least the 2010 model did - I had one There are people totally sold on road drop bars, but I find flat bars with Ergon grips to be 'da bomb" - I can ride this all day long with no hand problems and I've arthritis in my hands (my longest ride so far as been 75 miles). Of course it matters that the bike is fit properly to you.

That being said, just as I can't ride road drop bars, there are some who cannot ride flat bars regardless of grips or how the bike is setup.

I can't speak about the other models, but the Trek is a nice flat-bar road bike and wouldn't be a bad choice if it fits you. You will want to see what model year it is since it sounds like newer versions are now compact doubles rather than a triple chain ring.

They switched to a compact double--50/34, I don't know if it was 2012 or 2011.

[Catrin]

They switched to a compact double--50/34, I don't know if it was 2012 or 2011.

Thanks, I knew they did from your post. Personally I will have triples as long as I can get my little hands on them - but compact doubles do have a lot of proponents as well.

[goldfinch]

Thanks, I knew they did from your post. Personally I will have triples as long as I can get my little hands on them - but compact doubles do have a lot of proponents as well.

Yeah. I kind of want the Vita Limited, as it has a small size with shorter than par top tube and it is carbon, but I don't want another bike with a double.

[roo4]

Congratulations on the new bike! It sounds like you made the right decision.

I just bought a Quick 3. There weren't any Vita's in stock for me to try and the only FX in town was the base model from last year. It didn't feel good to me, but they wouldn't order a bike just for me to try. Anyway, I think you will have a blast on your Trek!