[1911]

hey all,
i am going to pick up some bikes for the family. i was looking at trek vs giant. i read some online stuff and took both out for test rides. i prefered the ride of the trek but wanted some real world experience from some head-fiers that are into biking...i will be doing more towing the kids in a trailer than going hardcore offroad although sometimes if riding solo will take the wilderness....thanks in advance

 

[discord]

Does trek have ANY road bikes that don't break the bank?

 

[1911]

Quote:

Originally Posted by discord Does trek have ANY road bikes that don't break the bank?

haha..yeah i am not looking at the 4000 bike that won the tour de france...the bike store has a real comfy hybrid mountain/cruiser for 480. i guess its kinda like the carsuv concept. the giant is around that price as well.

 

[Jahn]

Dude you live in suburbia on flat pavement with a family with 2 tots. Get a Schwinn cruiser for the MR and MRS and something like this for your 5 yr old, and a trailer for the other bike for your littlest one.

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html...sin=B0007PAQE8

 

[mrarroyo]

NO! you need a Litespeed, such as:

 

[aerius]

Depends on which part of the lineup we're talking about. For some bikes I prefer Trek, others Giant. To broadly generalize, Giant's comfort bikes work better for me while Trek's mountain bikes feel more in tune with my riding style. On road bikes I have a preference for Giant on the low-mid end models while the top models are about the same to me.

In terms of reliability and so forth, I find them to be about the same, both are fairly good.

 

[grandenigma1]

What is you budget?

When I was racing I was sponsered by Iron Horse (dont like them) and Klein (which I love and highly recommend). Trek does make some very nice higher end bikes now also.

 

[1911]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grandenigma1 What is you budget? When I was racing I was sponsered by Iron Horse (dont like them) and Klein (which I love and highly recommend). Trek does make some very nice higher end bikes now also.

well my wife and i went there and we placed an order for 2 navigator300. i was wrong..they are not actually hybrids but very comfy mountain bikes. they were 480 a piece and the trailer is 230ish and the various helmets water bottles etc will be i dunno 100-150ish...so maybe a grand or so..but i saw some awesome road bikes there that i couldnt believe were 4000+....that is some serious scratch...you better be in a sponsored race to buy that i suppose...the giants felt not as slick and smooth as the treks...there was a real big jump in refinement between the navigator100 and 300....so i felt ok getting this....but as i know nothing i may have just bought the bose of the mountain biking world

 

[1911]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrarroyo NO! you need a Litespeed, such as:

not to be obtuse..but is this a good bike? how mucho dinero?

 

[1911]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jahn Dude you live in suburbia on flat pavement with a family with 2 tots. Get a Schwinn cruiser for the MR and MRS and something like this for your 5 yr old, and a trailer for the other bike for your littlest one. http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html...sin=B0007PAQE8

man get out of here...i am through with cheap bikes...everytime i rode the marlboro bike i was fighting it and instead of a relaxing ride i went through ten rounds with that beast. naw, i live in beautiful mountain country..
if you visit me i will show you all the beauty that is redding

 

[stevesurf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1911 well my wife and i went there and we placed an order for 2 navigator300. i was wrong..they are not actually hybrids but very comfy mountain bikes. they were 480 a piece and the trailer is 230ish and the various helmets water bottles etc will be i dunno 100-150ish...so maybe a grand or so..but i saw some awesome road bikes there that i couldnt believe were 4000+....that is some serious scratch...you better be in a sponsored race to buy that i suppose...the giants felt not as slick and smooth as the treks...there was a real big jump in refinement between the navigator100 and 300....so i felt ok getting this....but as i know nothing i may have just bought the bose of the mountain biking world

No, Treks are not Bose LOL. Yes, the Treks should be an easy ride, even at that price range, although you are paying list, which is what Treks seem to get quite often, although the LBS (local bike shop) should at least be giving you an accessory discount. Anyway, you'll have a great time with them, especially that you're doing it as a family.

The road bikes you saw at that price level are actually in a "mid-to expensive" range for today's higher end road bikes. I was in a "designer" bike shop in Tucson and saw a few for $5 ~ $7K. You can actually get a great road bike these days for $2K, and the differences from there get slighter and slighter and ounces get shaved off and durability/reliability increases. I spent $4K for my Carbon Trek MTB in 1995 and absolutely love riding it today. I have a road bike that is almost 28 years old; still going strong (I paid about $2300 for it in 1978).

It's a great sport!

 

[mrarroyo]

It has been a while since I rode a Litespeed, I bought my first one in 1988 when I lived in Chattanooga, TN (the home of Litespeed). Back then they only made road racing bikes an mine was fantastic in both road manners and how confortable it was. Back in '88 a frame and fork sold for $1,100

 

[Salt Peanuts]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1911 not to be obtuse..but is this a good bike? how mucho dinero?

Depends on the components you stick on it, but it'll probably be around $3500 to $4500, if I'm not mistaken. I may be underestimating the cost here. I haven't really kept up with the bike stuff since I stopped biking several years ago (which resulted in my weight gain, but anyways).

 

[discord]

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevesurf No, Treks are not Bose LOL. Yes, the Treks should be an easy ride, even at that price range, although you are paying list, which is what Treks seem to get quite often, although the LBS (local bike shop) should at least be giving you an accessory discount. Anyway, you'll have a great time with them, especially that you're doing it as a family. The road bikes you saw at that price level are actually in a "mid-to expensive" range for today's higher end road bikes. I was in a "designer" bike shop in Tucson and saw a few for $5 ~ $7K. You can actually get a great road bike these days for $2K, and the differences from there get slighter and slighter and ounces get shaved off and durability/reliability increases. I spent $4K for my Carbon Trek MTB in 1995 and absolutely love riding it today. I have a road bike that is almost 28 years old; still going strong (I paid about $2300 for it in 1978). It's a great sport!

Does trek(or any other brand) have a decent road bike that is sub $1000?
It doesn't have to be tour de france material or something like that..

Does such a thing exist...

 

[aerius]

Quote:

Originally Posted by discord Does trek(or any other brand) have a decent road bike that is sub $1000? It doesn't have to be tour de france material or something like that.. Does such a thing exist...

Giant OCR1. That's a 2005 model so any bike shops that still have them should be clearing them out for under $1000 right now. Or if that's still a bit too close to $1000, get the OCR2. When I was working at the shop, the OCR2 was our best selling road bike for a good reason. I would've bought one myself if I wanted a road bike to cruise around on. Looks sharp, rides well, really good value.