Is she a member here? (she should be, she's only about 20 miles from the TE office.) Point her to TE, have her PM a few of us and we can start a conversation about what she can afford, what type of bike,... a road bike isn't for everyone and there are plenty of people who ride more miles on a Kona Dew than many roadies. We have a ton of bike shops out here and every brand you can name is sold in them. We also have a massive amount on craigs list. Just some thoughts.