point me in the right direction..

[csr1210]

Whats holding me back I quess is my LBS keeps directing me towards more of a hybrid style bike, they think it's gonna be too much of a transition from what I'm riding to a road bike.

Maybe I'm reading too much into that comment by the LBS, but it seems pretty condescending to me! How well do they know you? Unless you have a really good relationship with them, and they're saying that because they really know you and have some valid reason (I'm not sure what it'd be... ) to say that, I'd find somewhere else to spend my money. Of course it's an adjustment to change to a road bike, but it's not THAT big a deal in my opinion. When I switched from mountain bike to road bike, the main difficulty was figuring out what to buy because I didn't know what good fit was supposed to feel like.

If you want to be riding longer distances on the road, I reccomend a road bike. Just my two cents.

Edited to add: Good luck on your search for the new bike, and WELCOME!!!