Mountain biker wanting a road bike

[assassin__x]

Okay, so I know what to look for in a mountain bike. I know the brands, I know the level of componants, I know what frames I like. But I'm ignorant on road bikes. I'm not too concerned on the fit, I generally know a good sized frame and I'll make sure that whatever shop I go to fits me to the bike, but what sould I be looking for otherwise on the bike.

I'm looking for an entry level road bike (~$800 CDN), so how do I get the most bang for my buck. What compant set should I be looking for. Is that price reasonable, or would I get a much better bike if I threw in an extra couple hundrad bucks (which I'm not sure if I can do). Let me know the best way to be a savvy consumer by sharing your knowledge or pointing me toward some good websites.

Thanks

[tinkerbell]

Well, I don't know how much this will help, but I like my KHS Flite 500. I don't hear too much about KHS bikes from other people on this site, but I have found it to be wonderful. I bought my first road bike last year and didn't want to spend a lot of money until I found out if I really liked riding (which I've found out I do!) I think I paid about $700 (if I remember right) for my Flite 500 last year. I like it because it has a good solid steel frame, carbon fork!, some very good components, and a triple chain ring up front (I'm a decent rider, but the hills of WI would have killed me on my 500 mile/5day ride without that handy little ring!) It does come with toe clips, but clipless pedals are easily added, as is a better bike seat (and those are easy to find deals on.) Oh yeah, one thing is that you can't shift from the drops, which seems ok to me-I'm not racing or anything. It was also one of Bicycle Magazine's best buys last year. Well, if nothing else check out the website and maybe introduce yourself to a new brand...good luck!

[Michele Lind]

I purchased a Specialized Sequoia Elite about two months ago and I love it. As a mountain biker you may be used to the more upright position that this bike allows. There are brakes on the drop and the tops and you can shift from tops or drops too. They have three price ranges. You can check them out on www.specialized.com in the road bike section.

[mitsuni]

My first road bike was a TREK 1000, and I have been nothing but happy with it. I now commute on it, and it still takes a major beating. In Hawaii a number of folks even raced their 1000's (as did I initially, and still will depending on the course). It is a good low end bike with Shimano components. You can get into it for $550-$600. Realistically you need to determine what you want to use it for (commuting, touring, racing), also where you will ride, flat sooth roads, mostly road some dirt, hill climbing, race courses, tri-athlons), then envision where you are now, and where you want to be in 2-3 years on your bike, don't jump in over your head on a racing bike you will never maximize, nor buy a low end model and expect to win races. Best of luck - give it lots of thought, do your research, as your abilities grow you may choose to upgrade or you may be happy where you are and that is fantastic too.