Hey all,
I've been looking for a bike for a while, and I'm still narrowing down exactly what I want. I'm only 24 so I'm really not prepared to shell out the big bucks for my ideal (carbon, full dura ace speed demon-esque) bike, but what I'm looking for is a full carbon bike within the $1900-$2300 range, preferably with Ultegra. I know there's a lot of entry level carbon bikes out there with 105, but I'm just not convinced that I'm going to be happy with 105 in the long run.
So, here's what I've currently got my eye on: an 09 Fuji Silhouette, which is a carbon bike (women's geometry) with Ultegra. I haven't found much in any recent threads about this bike, but I figure SOMEBODY's gotta be riding it, so if you've got one or have heard anything about them, I'd love to get more opinions. There's really not even much on other online bike review sites, so I'm having trouble getting enough confirmation that it is indeed a good bike. I've got a few questions about it, as compared to the good ol' Trek/Specialized bikes... it says it's full Ultegra, but what does that really mean? Because when I look on the web site at the full specs, http://www.fujibikes.com/Womens/Carb...ilhouette.aspx, that doesn't look like full ultegra to me. Just makes me nervous having some random brand of brakes, etc. that are NOT ultegra. And then there's the wheels. Not so hot, from what I've gathered. But does that really matter so much? I dunno. It weighs in at about 19 lbs (that's WITH the clunky showroom pedals), but sheesh, for full carbon, I was expecting a little lighter.
Oh, so here's the juicy pricing details: MSRP is $2500; current price is $1800. Makes it a little more tempting, for sure!
I guess I'd better also say that YES, I test rode it, and aaaahhhh, it was great! My current bike (try to restrain your laughter) is an aluminum Trek 1100 with downtube shifters, ugh, it's my dad's old bike. So far EVERY new (or newER) bike I've ridden has felt great in comparison, so it's difficult for me to distinguish between them because they're all so much smoother than what I've got now. My bike is a 52, and it's definitely got too long of a top tube (long rides in paceline = yowch!) so I test rode the Fuji in a size Small- SO MUCH BETTER! Anyway, comments? Opinions? Words of wisdom?