Quote Originally Posted by aschoenherr11 View Post
Hi there- new rider looking to purchase my first road bicycle and very excited to be joining this community!

I have my eye on two NEW bikes and would love feedback. The first is a 2011 Trek Madone 4.5 (WSD) Carbon with Shimano 105 components (in feminine colors). The second is a Women's 2012 Cannondale CAAD 10 3 (alloy/carbon) with Shimano Ultegra components (in slightly more masculine colors).

I like the way both of them ride. I also know I may not have this bicycle forever so also need to consider the resale value of both bikes.

Any feedback on the comparison of these two is welcome - specifically on whether the carbon vs components issue can--or should--take precedence, all things equal and giving consideration to which might hold its value better.

Thanks much!
I'm a newbie, but I will let you know of my bike buying thoughts when I was bike hunting.

Assuming that you feel equally comfortable on both bikes and that the salesperson that you are buying from is a certified bike fitter who is ethical enough to sell you a bike that he/she thinks will fit you well, I would think that the 2012 CAAD 10 would be more "resellable" due to the Ultegra components and the 2012 year instead of 2011. Plus, it seems that in general slightly masculine colors are acceptable to more biker women than very feminine colors.

Also, a lot of the Team Estrogen members seem to have had problems with the Trek company whenever there was a bike issue (you can read about previous TE threads about their complaints regarding Trek). Whereas, Cannondale and Specialized seem to be better at customer service.

Just my 2 cents as a newbie.
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2012 Specialized Amira Elite, upgraded carbon handle bars, Jett saddle 143mm switched to 145mm 2012 Selle Italia Max SLR Gel Flow saddle

2011 Specialized Ariel Sport,suspension post,Serfas Rx Women's Microfiber saddle