Your friend wants a well made, well appointed bike that permits more energetic riding than a cruiser or a cheap mountain bike, and you don't want her to fall from this side of the spectrum into a discount racing bike. She likes high bars.
It has been so many years since I even thought of buying a new, off the shelf bike readily available on the market (which means that it will be made by a large company) that I can't personally recommend anything off the shelf, apart from Rivendells. But a very quick and desultory Google found these: http://surlybikes.com/bikes/straggler_650b http://www.rei.com/product/875003/novara-mazama-bike-2016 http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/road/touring/520/ A mishmash of non racing, non loaded touring, non cyclocross, non mountain bikes: http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/city/ Stevie's, where I occasionally work, has Linus and other Taiwanese brands that offer decent urban commuting bikes in aluminum (a +, for cheap bikes, IMO) with 1X7 drive trains, lights, fenders, rack, and chain guard for sub $500. http://www.linusbike.com/collections/bikes?gclid=CPafqsDE8McCFQiLaQodqF0I_A And for pure style with little substance (but it's steel! Lugged! Brooks! blah bah blah!) -- you can tell that the designers had rosy visions and little experience: http://bikeretrogrouch.blogspot.com/2015/09/vintage-snobbery-ted-baker-quella.html Really, she needs to go to a well stocked, well staffed shop like Fat Tire Bicycles 3 miles down the road from me, which carries everything from the latest Cervelo thru fat bikes to sensible city bikes and Surlys. The staff know their stuff and will happily order what they don't stock. I realize she's not going to fly out to ABQ to visit Fat Tire; I simply use it as an example of the kind of shop she should visit. They won't recommend a Madone as a matter of principle. On Fri, Sep 11, 2015 at 9:04 PM, Anne Paulson <anne.paul...@gmail.com> wrote: > She's not going to lurk here and wait for a Riv, because she hasn't > been converted. > > I don't even know what to recommend for her (other than a Sam, of > course). This is someone I casually correspond with on email, so I > don't really know her. I can't believe a Trek Madone is the right bike > for her, yet I have a sneaking feeling that's what she's going to end > up with, or something similar. She's willing to spend a chunk of > change, $2K, and I'm afraid she's not going to end up with a good > choice. > > On Fri, Sep 11, 2015 at 12:08 PM, Will <waller.will...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Too bad that little $1000 protovelo Appaloosa frame on the Riv > web-specials > > page disappeared. I think that would have built out for maybe $2200. > > > > My advice to your friend would be to get some fast, light, slicks, > perhaps > > one of those new Compass tires, and then lurk patiently here for > something > > used. > > > > > > > > > > On Friday, September 11, 2015 at 1:08:37 PM UTC-5, Anne Paulson wrote: > >> > >> I have an online friend who is currently riding an upright bike (some > >> Trek model, I don't know), riding 5 times a week, and wants to upgrade > >> to a faster bike. She's willing to spend a good chunk of money, $2000 > >> or so. I'm figuring a Sam might be a good choice (you can get a built > >> up Sam for $2K, right?). Anyone have a smaller sized Sam in the > >> Dallas area that they're willing to offer up for a test ride? > >> > >> As with most people we advise, she probably won't end up with a > >> Rivendell bike even though she'd be better off with one. But at least > >> I gave her the heads-up to make sure the bike she picks allows decent > >> width tires. So that's something. I was looking at bikes sold by > >> Richardson Bike Mart, which seems to be a good Dallas shop. There's > >> this Trek 7.7 FX, that's supposedly a hybrid bike that "rockets along > >> roads, cruises along bike paths, and even hits dirt roads." The thing > >> is shod with 25mm tires! Why? > >> > >> -- > >> -- Anne Paulson > >> > >> It isn't a contest. Enjoy the ride. > > > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > > > > -- > -- Anne Paulson > > It isn't a contest. Enjoy the ride. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- Resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, and letters that get interviews. By-the-hour resume and LinkedIn coaching. Other professional writing services. http://www.resumespecialties.com/ www.linkedin.com/in/patrickmooreresumespec/ Patrick Moore Alburquerque, Nouvelle Mexique, Vereinigte Staaten ************************************* *The point which is the pivot of the norm is the motionless center of a circumference on the rim of which all conditions, distinctions, and individualities revolve. *Chuang Tzu *Stat crux dum volvitur orbis.* Carthusian motto -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
