It looks like I'll be going in to look at the Madones on Thursday, and I have a few questions for my wonderful team of advisors.

--My options are the 5.1 and 5.2. The 5.1 uses Trek's white OCLV carbon, whereas the 5.2 uses the black. Is it worth the extra cost to go with the higher-level carbon? Weight is not important (either bike will be a huge improvement over my current bike), but I am concerned about strength and durability.

--The bikes appear to only come with either a compact double or a triple (whereas I would prefer a standard double). Is it true that the triples don't shift as crisply as a double? Is that sufficient reason to prefer the compact double, despite my strong preference for a standard?

--The wheels! Sheldon informs me that the ideal setup would be 28 spokes up front and 36 in back. He really does not like the low-spoke wheels currently in vogue. The Trek store only has Bontrager wheels, and their highest spoke count is 24. The Mavic dealer has more options, but they are going to be pretty expensive. Bear in mind that I ride on fairly rough country roads. What kind of problems am I likely to have with the 16-spoke wheels? Should I upgrade immediately? If so, what do you recommend?

Thanks!