Looking for an Entry-Level Bike

Love my cannondale sport....good components, well made here in us, good wheels/tires, around 1000.00 and fits.
but bike buying is a very personal decision- need to try em out-max & machievelo can help you compare tho
just my 2 cents

Edited by isis54 2004-12-28 6:58 PM

I ride a Cannondale R600 sport and LOVE it! Got it with clipless pedals and everything for about $900. This is a good time of yeat to buy a 04 model because the 05's are out now...

I think you HAVE to love a hand made double butted aluminum bike built in the USA for under a grand.

This is what I ride. Highly recommend.
http://leaderbikeusa.com/products/frameStore.htm

I've just got a specilised allez sport triple '05 as my entry level bike and I love it. Good frame and components and it looks cool. I was torn between the Cannondale R500 and this but went for this in the end as it has slightly better components.

There are other threads on the site that talk about buying the right bike for you and the best thing to do is to test ride a few and find which is most comfortable - can't remeber what the threads are called but as I recall there is a couple of really good links to stuff about buying a first bike.

Its hard to answer that question without more info. Are you on a budget? If so how much are you looking to spend? "Entry" level is kind of a term without a whole lot of meaning. All of the major named manufacturers(Giant, Cannondale, Trek,) have bikes in the "entry" level price point...around $1000. Then there are smaller companies, less known companies that seem to offer more for less (Ironhorse, KHS,). Then there are internet companies that offer great deals (Leader and Ibex). But there are pluses and minus to all of it.

Ideally you should start with a budget in mind. Stick to your budget, it's very easy to get lured by all the shinny new bikes to something that is way,way out of your price range. You can literally find something from $500 up to $5,000.

Just as a note I picked up an Ibex online for $1000, full ultegra and I love it. But that was after a lot of visits to bike shops and a lot of research on the internet.

I am looking to spend around $1000. I have been looking the Felt S32. Do you have any suggestions?

Check out roadbikereview.com, see what others who have purchased it have to say. Generally people seem to really like Felt's products. But are you sure you want to go directly to a tri bike or is a road bike better suited to start out with? Another question you have to ask yourself.

Also if this is a bike that is at your local bike shop, ride it first se if you like it. It looks great, components are nice, good company, but if it doesn't feel right it's useless. After riding the Felt you may hate it, and end up in a Cannondale or a Fuji or a "whatever" brand.

There's lots of information on the internet, check it all out, and if at all possible ride it first.

I 2nd this.

I've logged about 5,000 miles on my Cannondale R300 and love it too. Some folks say it's a little rough on longer rides, but I don't know any better since I've only had alumnimum bikes anyway so it feels just fine to me!