Guys,

I'm sure you get these questions a lot, but I've done some trolling and can't find an answer... I want to buy a bicycle for approx 800 pounds (leaving me a bit of money for locks, lights, pedals and boots) and I have to decide by next week (I'm getting it pre-tax through work :D)

I am 29, 5'9", 75kg. I'm used to mountain bikes, but adapt easily. I want to go fast! But will mostly be riding around London, with the occasional day trip in Europe.

I've found the following, but have no clue which is better. Some are more expensive, but they all seem to have similar specs. :mad2: Can you help me narrow it down to 2 or 3 and I'll go test ride them? Thanks!!! :)

Specialized Sirrus Pro - £850
http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=33593

Giant FCR Alliance - £999
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-GB/bikes/road/1400/28828/

Pinnacle eXpede Street 1.0 - £899
http://www.pinnacle-bikes.co.uk/Bike-Range/Hybrid-Commuter/eXpede/?contentId=1273

Ridgeback r25 - £899
http://www.ridgeback.co.uk/index.php?bikeID=55&seriesID=52&show_bike=TRUE

Genesis Day 03 2008 - £999
http://www.genesisbikes.co.uk/index.php?bikeID=6&show_bike=TRUE

Genesis Day 02 2008 - £799
http://www.genesisbikes.co.uk/index.php?bikeID=7&show_bike=TRUE

Trek 7.6 FX - £699
http://www.trekbikes.com/uk/en/bikes/2008/road/fx/76fxz/

Kona Ph D - £899
http://www.konabikes.co.uk/2008/phd/phd.php

Ridgeback and Genesis (nearly identical frames) are very nice.

I had a 2005 Ridgeback Genesis Day 02 for riding in Tokyo. It flies!!! I sold it to a needy friend last winter and have been regretting it ever since. The 2008 components on the Genesis Day range are great, very road spec. I am tempted to get another this year shipped over from the UK.

For 700 quid I noticed you can pick up a 2007 Day 03 (http://www.evanscycles.com/product.jsp?style=70425), carbon seat stays for extra comfort! The 54cm frame should fit you, mine was 56cm and I am 5'10". Still has great components too, also has a triple crankset on it. I prefer a double, but that's just because Tokyo is pretty flat, the granny gear never got used, but the UK is a bit more hilly.

I haven't ridden any of the other bikes, Specialized and Giant make good bikes and u get lifetime warranty on the frame.

I think the Sirrus has a more relaxed riding position. The Giant looks like a similar position to the Genesis, but is quite expensive.

Any one else have any thoughts?

You could say I'm in the same place as you, so I empathize. At least you're ready to spend 1,000 k. I've only begrudgingly came up to the 800 after extensively shopping around and realizing how expensive high technology can be. So I'm both needing advice and providing it to you.

My motive for buying was because I'm on my bike every day as a commuter, though not covering great distances. I do want to go fast and stop faster. Back home in the states the 700c (i.e. 29'er) wheels are the rage, as are disc brakes. These are the bikes I've tried so far:

Gary Fisher Mendota- This is a great bike, kind of a nice compromise with decent components across the board. Unfortunately it was the first hybrid I demoed, when I was back in the States, so I was clueless as to what I wanted and how much it would cost. In the Irish market they're overpriced and difficult to source.

Specialized Sirrus Pro- I liked this bike. It road nice and was fairly nimble, but maybe it wasn't quite as solid and smooth as the Trek 7.6. These are very very similar bikes, but the Sirrus Comp tips more heavily toward being a flatbar racer. However, I was put off by all the reviews of the Sirrus Comp from people complaining about the wheels and easily they fell apart.

Trek 7.6- I really enjoyed the way this bike road. Seemed very solid and, compared to the 7.5 it rode much smoother. I suspect it has to do with the carbon rear stay. Generally this is a great bike. What puts me off about this bike is that it doesn't have disc brakes. Plus they're ridiculously overpriced here, compared to the States. You pay too much for Trek name, especially in Ireland where we have to deal with an exclusive distributor taking his healthy markup. Plus there are rules that you can't import them from the UK, so as a result they're 20-30 percent dearer in Ireland, and about 60 percent dearer than the states.

Trek Soho- Didn't like it! Seems like a poser bike to me. I can't see why someone would buy this over the FX series. Those handlebars are pointless, other than fashion statement. And its very upright. On a positive note I did like the coffee mug! :-)

Canondale Bad Boy- Tempting but too much like a mountain bike, which I'm trying to get away from a bit. But certainly a bad ass urban assault vehicle. Jump curbs, slam potholes, no problem!

Through all my shopping I've become quite clear. I want a hybrid bike that ticks all the marks, but leans slightly toward a flat bar racer: lighter and more agile, yet able to withstand whatever is thrown its way. Plus I'm still stuck on the idea of disc brakes, thanks to friends back in the States telling me it'd be silly to buy a high end performance bike without them. It seems all market driven and the European market just hasn't yet come to demand and expect disc brakes on hybrid bikes.

Apparently the designers at Ridgeback see the merits, because they've gone and put them on their 25th anniversary model, the R25. This might be my new favorite, based upon all I've seen online. Has anyone ridden this bike? I'd love to try it out and am leaning heavily in that direction. Its about twice as much as I was willing to spend. But at this point I'm fed up! I want to stop shopping and start riding! Plus I just broke the frame on the mountain bike I was riding the last five years, so I'm now without a bike!

Let me know how you get on with your purchase. And if anyone else has any insights I'd love to hear them!

The R25 does look sweet. I do think that Disc brakes are pretty pointless on a road bike though. Good twin pivot brake calipers (as found on all the other ridgeback and flight series) are more than enough.

My old 2005 day 02 only had Tektro's (not shimano's) and they were powerful, I could do well controlled nose wheelies on it!!! Pretty sweet to pull up to traffic lights up on the front with the rear wheel high in the air. I have discs on my MTB, which I use for downhill. But when it comes to road riding, you want lightweight, which discs fail at because they add lots of weight. I think they are hydraulic as well, which weight even more too.

The Day 01 will be a great bike.
The Flight 03 will be awesome too. A lot of great bike, with great components for the money.

If you want to spend the extra, then go for the R25, but it'll be more about style than performance, which is fine, but 300 quid is a lot extra to spend.

Also, check ebay.co.uk, there are always ridgebacks popping up on there, u should be able to get a 1-2 year old bike, day 02 or above for around 300 quid.

Here is a day 03 currently up,
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290243253248&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:GB:1123
http://i2.ebayimg.com/02/i/000/fb/7d/9451_12.JPG
350 quid now, with buy it now for 450.