Quote Originally Posted by indysteel View Post
My guess is that ride quality, rather than weight, is the biggest "pro" for carbon over aluminum. I'm speaking in generalities, of course. I'm sure there are comfortable Al bikes on the market and uncomfortable carbon.
Agreed. I find my new carbon bike has a much smoother ride than the old aluminum one.

I don't know about other brands, but you can get a Trek carbon bike with good components for just over $2000.

But fit is most important. I got the new bike to get one that fit better. I was happy with the aluminum bike for years. Spending a bit more for carbon made sense for me because I'm on the bike for 4 hours at a time or more.