So I've decided to take up cycling as my knee can't take running any longer, and I have about $1,300 burning a hole in my pocket. The problem is that I can't decide between a road bike or a cyclocross bike.

A little background on me:

I love the stiffness/snappiness/lightness of serious road bikes. I would also wouldn't mind riding on fairly compact/groomed dirt a little, but I would mostly be riding on paved trails. I will primarily be using the bike for fitness and fun, and will not be using the bike as a commuter, or racing anytime in the near future.

I'm 25 years old, 160 lbs, and 5'9" and live in western Oregon.

2008 Road bikes I'm considering:
Cannondale Synapse Sport 5 w/105
Cannondale R5 w/105
Specialized Allez Elite w/105

2008 Cyclocross bikes I'm considering:
Kona Jake the Snake w/105
Specialized TriCross Sport Triple w/Tiagra
Trek XO w/Tiagra

I am completely frozen on my decision. I can't choose what I want because I'm worried I'll change my mind after it's too late. Given all my information, what advice do you guys have? The guys at my LBS are split 50/50.

I love the stiffness/snappiness/lightness of serious road bikes. I would also wouldn't mind riding on fairly compact/groomed dirt a little, but I would mostly be riding on paved trails.

Buying a cross bike for the occasional dirt trail ride makes little sense to me. People do, but it's usually because they vastly overestimate the difficullty of riding a road bike on dirt trails. If your road frame and brakes can accept larger tires (700 x 28 or, even better, 700 x 32) and you've developed some basic handling skills, you'll do fine on dirt trails. Many people have two sets of wheels, making the change from smaller to larger tires quick and painless. If the road bikes you listed can't accept tires larger than 700 x 25, look at other models or brands.

don't worry you'll probably choose one way and then regret it later. i didn't really know about cross when i bought my first real road bike and even if i did lbs didn't have any cross choices. now of course i wish i had just gotten a good cross bike and an extra set of nicer wheels for road rides. either way just pull the trigger so you can ride something!

In my opinion if I were in your situation I would most likely go with the cross bike. Mainly because a cross bike can make a very nice road bike but a road bike can not always accomodate the larger tires you might want on a cross bike. I know guys who ride cross bikes exclusively on the road with road tires of course. Good luck!

Personally, I really like riding off road. I feel a lot safer being away from cars.

I would rather have a cross bike than a straight up road bike if i was in your position. With the appropriate chainring choice, and road tires, a CX bike does pretty well on the road. It generally gives a more upright position, but flipping the stem can adjust the feel quite a bit.

Until you get riding for a while and find out what type of riding you like best, I'd suggest you cover more options with the CX bike so you can sample both types of riding.

How URBAN an area do you live in...?

I live in Indy and have VERY little reason to need a cyclocross bike unless I wanted to get into the local cross racing scene (which is basically a mix of roadies and the more aggressive mt. racers around here)...

If I lived in the mts. and knew that there were a ton of Forest Service Roads to explore, and the paved mt. roads were few and far between, I'd do the cross bike, with a second set of road wheels... (a road ride is great, but if you wanna do a loop and that's gonna be a minimum of like 60 miles... making a daily ride tough to do unless you always have about 3 hours... the ol' out-n-back will get boring)

FWIW... if you have versatile terrain, and less paved surface... go with the versatility...

I'm somewhat in the same boat. My last bike was a 1984 Miyata steel touring bike which I had for about 7 years, and really liked. It was heavy, but comfortable, and the steel took the bumps out.

When I started shopping again recently, I knew I wanted some kind of road bike (I like to go fast and glide, which you can't really do as much on a mountain bike). However, after trying some alumimum road bikes, I realized they were incredibly uncomfortable for me -- I could feel every bump, and the aluminum just wasn't comfortable. (Probably partly a function of age, but also reflecting the fact that aluminum is more stiff than steel.)

It wasn't until I tried a cyclocross that I really enjoyed the ride, and wanted to keep riding on it.

I later tried a full-carbon frame, and liked that as well, so for me it's come down to a cyclocross or a carbon-frame road bike. The carbon road bikes are obviously more expensive (with the best deals generally over $1300), so I'm thinking I'll get the more versatile cross for now, and just get a higher-end road bike down the road, when I have more cash. (That way, I can ensure I also get great components, etc.)

I see the cyclocross as a more cost-effective way to get a comfortable road-type bike, which can also be rode more easily on different surfaces. Even on my touring bike, I liked to take it on city streets, park trails at time, bumpy paved bike paths, etc. and I think the cyclocross would probably handle that kind of ride more easily than a pure road bike.

Bottom line: If I were you, I'd try test-riding each of the bikes listed, and just go with whichever one feels best, and is most fun to ride. You don't really need a pure road bike, and you don't really need a cyclocross, it's all about which one you enjoy riding most. If you choose a bike you really enjoy riding, you're unlikely to regret your choice.

I have all three bikes - a road bike, a CX bike and a mountain bike. If I had to choose just one it would be no contest - the CX bike would win. It's so versatile in that I can nip down any trail section or dirt road to make my rides both safer and more interesting.

If you really want the best of both worlds, get a set of road tires too even though my high-$ Challenge Grifo Dry tires are awful fast on the road and are light-years better than 23mm road tires when the pavement is less than perfect.

I am faced with the same decision that you are :idea: . I am going with a CX bike and another wheel set for the road rides. My decision was made due to the fact that the CX bike has a more 'relaxed' geometry and can accomodate several size tires more than the true road bike can. More versatility, more comfortable ride, and a easier intro to the realm of road biking. My question is whether to buy an aluminum or a carbon fiber CX bike.

Good luck with your choice!

Regards,

BWJ