Newbie questioning type of bike to purchase

[baskingshark]

I was in your position just a few weeks ago - my heart/riding plans said road bike, my common sense/budget said hybrid. I was worried that a) I'd buy a road bike, have a few weeks of "honeymoon", then quit or b) buy a hybrid, fall in love with cycling and want to upgrade immediately.

I went to three different LBSs and said much the same thing (a little less ambitious than your plan) - road only riding, beginner, no racing, mainly fitness riding of 10-15 miles per ride, with an occasional weekend ride of 20-30m, budget of $500-$600.

In the end, all three shops suggested a Specialized Sirrus, which according to them, is like a road bike with flat bars (I'm not expert so I take their word for it). I tried it out, but one LBS also suggested a low-end road bike on sale for $50 more than the Sirrus. I tried it and even though the road bike is really low end (it's a K2 Whirlwind and I know there's not a lot of love for the brand on this site), it felt "right" in the way the Sirrus and other hybrid bikes didn't. I knew immediately that this cheap little road bike would make me happier than the nicest of hybrids.

[Bad JuJu]

And that's the key, Baskingshark--you have to ride some different bikes, and the one you buy has to feel good to you, regardless of what the LBS folks say. Which is not to say that they don't often provide some useful guidance, but in the end it's all a matter of how you feel on the machine on the road.

Having said that, I thought I'd post a quote from Bicycling's Interbike blog:

Raleigh and DB have entered the women’s bike field with a confidence-inspiring flat-bar road bike (DB Kalos, $550) and a selection of road bikes: the DB Zelos, $655, and the Raleigh Intrigue 1.0 ($655) and 2.0 ($980), all available in
November.

That flat-bar road bike sounds like it might be a player, if you've got a Raleigh dealer nearby.