Was wondering what brands and types of bikes you find appealing for the purpose of riding for exercise and toning up. I used to ride quite a bit years ago, and it occurred to me the other day that I should get into it again. I gave my bike away a few years ago to someone who needed it for transportation to and from work. I am considering this one, as local dealer is offering it for substantially lower than the MSRP shown on the page. It's amazing all the neat changes they have made to bikes over the years.
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Bottom line, it's either M-TEC or Andrews.
That looks like a pretty cool bike to me! you really can"t go wrong with a Trek. My Dad has 3 of them.
The only thing that concerns me is the handlebars. If you are going to be doing any really long rides (30 miles or so), you might want to find out what kind of upgrades you can do so you have more than one place to rest your hands. I'm sure you're careful as far as carpal tunnel goes in our line of work, but the handlebars on bikes only exacerbate the condition too. You need to be able to shift your hand position every 10 minutes or so.
road bike handlebars usually have 2-3 places you can put your hands.
Time trial handlebars also have various hand positions available.
You can also add on an "aero bar" to your handlebars. these are really cool in a straightaway where you're not expecting to brake anytime soon -- you can stretch out and put your elbows on the handlebar and grip the top of the aero bar with your hands. Stretches your back and your arms.
Some mountain bikes have pieces that come toward you on either end of the handlebar at a 90-degree angle.
There are several options. Talk to your bike shop representative and see what they recommend.
