I went to the bike shops today only got to try out a few bikes though. Woo-eee do road bikes feel different than my "comfort" hybrid! The first one was downright squirrely and I was like wait "can I do this?"

I really don't want a mountain bike because I like to do distance riding and there just aren't many places to rest my hands on them. The ramshorn bars, while they will take a lot of getting used to, afford lots of opportunity for moving my hands around (something my current bike sorely lacks). I've looked at used bikes, just haven't seen any in good enough shape to warrent fixing up.

Along with touring bikes (which are a lot cheaper than I remember them now!), a couple of shops also recommended cyclocross bikes. The two that are looking the most appealing right now are the Jamis Aurora, but there weren't any in stock for me to try, and the Bianchi Volpe, but again none for me to try out. Both of those were about $850 and I'd love to give them a whirl when they get them in, but I'll do some research on them in the meantime.