Looking for bike recommendations

You're going to find toe overlap on many bikes (possibly even on those you've listed), it's usually not a problem unless you are riding at parking lot speeds. But you're right if installing a fixed front fender it exacerbates the problem. The longer chainstays will add to comfort and may be needed for fenders although some fender setups like the SKS race blades don't need them.
Although I haven't ridden any of those bikes I'm digging that Surly, seen a couple in my neighborhood and I'm partial to horizontal top tubes. Did you look at the Pacer at all? It still has dropouts for panniers (but only one set so you'd need a fender solution like the Raceblades) and while geared more toward road riding with some stout tires (takes up to 32c) looks like it could handle some fire roads without skipping a beat.

I actually rode my race bike across England and France in high school converting it to a touring bike with temporary dropout eylelets for rear panniers and used a handlebar rack. All in all had about 50lbs of gear loaded up. Used my tubular wheels with some rugged tires and traversed a few dirt roads with nary a flat. How the heck I got that bike up some of those climbs with a low gear of 42/26 is completely beyond me. These days I'm all about the compact 😉

Thanks for the tips.

I'm looking for something to replace the Poprad I've been complaining about in the other thread. That one has more toe overlap by far than other bikes I've owned.

It seems that I have a long inseam and a short reach so I'd welcome suggestions of bikes with that kind of fit. About 28 inches from butt to handlebars seems to work for me with about a 35 inch inseam. I'm pretty much looking for a road bike with relaxed geometry, lots of tire clearance, and a little longer wheelbase.

I just got back from test riding the Volpe. The fit seemed about right except the reach was a little long and it just didn't feel right somehow. Maybe because it's a little higher and twitchier than what I had in mind? The cranks are the same size I'm used to but I felt like my legs were pumping through a really big range of motion.

I also looked at a Novara Verita in an XL and it felt really good. It doesn't have the tire clearance I was hoping for but it seems to have everything else.

The Surly Cross Check was highly recommended but I haven't found one in my size to test ride. The Pacer seems interesting but I'm a little concerned about the chain stay length and if I'll be kicking panniers with my size 14 feet. I haven't seen them available in the shops I've looked at either so I haven't been able to actually touch one.

Those are some big kicks! One thing I noticed about your pic with the Poprad was the number of spacers under that flipped stem.

An "endurance" style model (with a sloping top tube and featuring a taller head tube) may be worth looking at as well to facilitate less of a drop between saddle and bars, especially if looking for a shorter top tube (the geometry on these models is kinda the opposite of a horizontal top tube style that typically have a shallower head tube). So make sure to look at the head tube lengths on these geometry charts as well for comparison purposes. I also run a shorter stem than some folks and had one of my teammates constantly telling me I should go with a longer stem. I think he was really basing his judgement off photos of pro bikes, not the required parameters of the dude who actually needed to ride the bike.

Remember that with any bike stems can be swapped out and sometimes just 1cm shorter can make the needed difference. Occasionally the tendency is to over compensate and go too far in the opposite direction, just something to keep in mind.

Thanks, I'll look at some endurance models.

I seem to like high handlebars. Actually a little lower than the seat but, the higher the seat, the lower the relative handlebar height.

I'm hoping to have clearance for 32s with fenders but that doesn't seem easy to find outside of touring bikes or cyclocross. And I have no interest in flat handlebars or there would be a number of hybrids that might work.

I am also looking for a bike. Typically needs a bike to ride around town. I have 178 height and 77 weight. I found interesting models on the website bike4you.co.ukbike4you.co.ukOpen ↗, but do not really know what I pay attention so please give me tips on what I have to consider when choosing the right model.

Hey guys, I just read your comments about buying a new bike. I have an online bicycle store, and I thought I'd throw this out there, if that's ok. Once you have decided what type of bike you need or want, go to urbicycle.com. Check it out.