New to cycling...Looking to buy a road bike

Unless you wait until the fall and are prepared to do some shopping, for that kind of money all you'll get is low end 70's style components on a heavy, unbutted aluminum frame. Why not just scare up some derailleurs, shifters and freewheel?

I'll spend more than that then. I've seen fixies go for around there so I wasn't sure on the price of geared road bikes. Could I get anything for around $500-$700?

Maybe try Craigslist. For $500 to $700 you should be able to find a pretty decent bike. There seem to be mid-1980s steel bikes available for $350 and less.

6-700 would get you a pretty good new, entry level machine now, and 350 sounds a bit steep for any but a collectible or like-new craigslist bike from the eighties.

I have got a 2008 GT Nomad Comfort Bike from here, i am a a beginner just like you, and this bike is awsome. love it. And it's in your budget.

I'm also new to the sport and am looking for a great entry road bike. my limit is around $800-900. any recommendations I should look at specifically when I go to the local bike shop?

If there are any rental shops in your area, check out some of them - some will sell their rental fleet at discounted prices at the end of each season and buy new bikes for the next season. One rental shop near my area did just that last season - I had a chance to buy a Jamis Ventura Sport for under $500, I would have snatched it up in an instant if money was no object at the time (was unemployed at the time). And where it's a rental unit that you'll be buying, you know it will have been maintained properly and be in decent condition.

I think that with a little patience and monitoring Craigslist, you can find something that's perfectly good for what you need. I just recently bought my first bike, and I found a Specialized Allez Elite A1 Max from ~2003 or so in perfect working order with Shimano 105 components and upgraded tires for about $500. Certainly a far cry from the 80's steel road bikes people on here are talking about, although I consider myself fairly lucky.

I got my bike from bikesdirect.com, spent $500 on my Dawes Lightning 1500, shipped. You'll have to put it together yourself, but you can get a pretty good new bike for cheap.

I went this route because my LBS' cheapest bike was around $800, and craigslist San Antonio didn't yield any deals.

Dude, be sure not to listen to the "elitist-snob" crowd out there who believe that you can only get a good beginning road bike at around $700 dollars and then have to spend anywhere from $300 to $400 for accessories. There are good road bikes (drop handle-bars, 18+ spd) bikes, that I've road and still ride that cost anywhere from $169 to $429. And some of them have the full deal such as carbon fiber forks, nice integrated 'Shimano' shifters on the brakes, to comfortable seats.

Listen up here ya'll... go to A Bike Store : Quality Mountain Bikes Cruisers and Comfort Bicycles and check out the deals there. That's just one place, gotta leave some more of the internet hunt for you guys!😉

For some wick away shirts, such as under-armour. Go to ranger-joes.com there you'll find the basic "heat" under-armour t-shirt for only $10! Alas, they only come in black, OD green and light brown on this site, so wear a reflector when riding at dusk and dawn. Shoes, I'll leave that up to you, found a good pair for $40 bucks, only 8 ounces. Shorts, go to [censored] Sporting Goods or Dunhams and try stuff out, they aren't in the cycling elitist price range. Helmet, I took my helmet from [censored] ($35), and brought it to the LBS which sold those "elitist" helmets for $130. Mine weighed the same, had as many vents as the other, and was made from the same material. Of course, mine didn't have that "cool" design! :eek:

Remember, there's no need to have a bike and equipment that will break the bank. I've personally had more enjoyment out-cycling some douche on a SpecialTrekifiedGiantDale $1800+ bike. Yes, if you have the money and care to treat yourself to something a little lighter (all carbon fiber or titanium), and something that has slightly better welding and the components are tweaked just-so, then up the price ante. But this advice is for those new and just wanting to try out the sport, don't break the bank, besides, you'll want to grab a beer after the ride and have a laugh on how you past that light-walleted guy on the road! Best of luck!

chrosniakjb said:

Dude, be sure not to listen to the "elitist-snob" crowd out there who believe that you can only get a good beginning road bike at around $700 dollars and then have to spend anywhere from $300 to $400 for accessories. There are good road bikes (drop handle-bars, 18+ spd) bikes, that I've road and still ride that cost anywhere from $169 to $429. And some of them have the full deal such as carbon fiber forks, nice integrated 'Shimano' shifters on the brakes, to comfortable seats.

Listen up here ya'll... go to A Bike Store : Quality Mountain Bikes Cruisers and Comfort Bicycles and check out the deals there. That's just one place, gotta leave some more of the internet hunt for you guys!😉

For some wick away shirts, such as under-armour. Go to ranger-joes.com there you'll find the basic "heat" under-armour t-shirt for only $10! Alas, they only come in black, OD green and light brown on this site, so wear a reflector when riding at dusk and dawn. Shoes, I'll leave that up to you, found a good pair for $40 bucks, only 8 ounces. Shorts, go to [censored] Sporting Goods or Dunhams and try stuff out, they aren't in the cycling elitist price range. Helmet, I took my helmet from [censored] ($35), and brought it to the LBS which sold those "elitist" helmets for $130. Mine weighed the same, had as many vents as the other, and was made from the same material. Of course, mine didn't have that "cool" design! :eek:

Remember, there's no need to have a bike and equipment that will break the bank. I've personally had more enjoyment out-cycling some douche on a SpecialTrekifiedGiantDale $1800+ bike. Yes, if you have the money and care to treat yourself to something a little lighter (all carbon fiber or titanium), and something that has slightly better welding and the components are tweaked just-so, then up the price ante. But this advice is for those new and just wanting to try out the sport, don't break the bank, besides, you'll want to grab a beer after the ride and have a laugh on how you past that light-walleted guy on the road! Best of luck!

Thank you! That was the reply I was looking for.