My fiancé and my self are looking at buying some road bikes. I am a pretty serious MTBer and she is a pretty serious road runner. I am hoping we can meet in the middle on some new road bikes. We went looking today at LBS's and we think we like the Trek line of bikes due to the prices, comps., the Trek name, and the LBS guys. She is looking at the 1500 WSD and I am looking at the 1500.

Here are my questions:

1) What are your opinions of either of these bikes for those who have them?

2) I understand the 1500 WSD 51'' will have a smaller wheel size then some other bike brands with the same size frame. Any pros or cons of this set up?

3) I see there are big differences between the recreational class and performance class of Trek bikes. We plan to do weekend rides and want to due some sponsored/benefit rides/races in the near future. Want to ride for fitness and fun then anything else however we have some completive bones from time to time. Is the recreation class when we need to be looking or should we look at the performance class? I want to buy bikes up front that we will not want to trade in after some more experience. We do however like the prices of the 1500 bikes more then the prices of the 2200 series.

Thanks
Tyson
Austin TX

My fiancé and my self are looking at buying some road bikes. I am a pretty serious MTBer and she is a pretty serious road runner. I am hoping we can meet in the middle on some new road bikes. We went looking today at LBS's and we think we like the Trek line of bikes due to the prices, comps., the Trek name, and the LBS guys. She is looking at the 1500 WSD and I am looking at the 1500.

Here are my questions:

1) What are your opinions of either of these bikes for those who have them?

2) I understand the 1500 WSD 51'' will have a smaller wheel size then some other bike brands with the same size frame. Any pros or cons of this set up?

3) I see there are big differences between the recreational class and performance class of Trek bikes. We plan to do weekend rides and want to due some sponsored/benefit rides/races in the near future. Want to ride for fitness and fun then anything else however we have some completive bones from time to time. Is the recreation class when we need to be looking or should we look at the performance class? I want to buy bikes up front that we will not want to trade in after some more experience. We do however like the prices of the 1500 bikes more then the prices of the 2200 series.

Thanks
Tyson
Austin TX

I've had my Trek 1500 for a week or so now, and I've put about 50 miles on it. I'm a mountain biker too, but my interests have changed to where I'd rather be riding on the road now for speed and distance. I am very happy with the 1500. I checked other brands/models in the $1000 price range, and the 1500 seemed to have the best features for the money. I also think the charcoal/blue paint scheme looked really sharp. The only thing I've added is a set of Shimano M520 SPD pedals so I could use the same shoes/cleats as I do on my mountain bike.

The 1500 is very fast and stable. I couldn't believe how much easier climbing was on a road bike comapared to a mountain bike. It was also much easier to get up to high speed on the 1500. It's funny how Trek categorizes their bikes year after year - the 1500 is a "recreational" bike, but back in 2001, a similar bike with lesser quality components was categorized as a "Competition" bike. I think the categories are more of a marketing thing. The 1500, in my opinion, has the right level of components (105 shifters and Ultegra rear derailleur) to make it a road bike worthy for benefit rides and races. Some may argue that the Tiagra front derailleur may not be race ready, you may want to upgrade that to a 105 level or higher, but I haven't had any problems with mine.

My thoughts on smaller wheels for the WSD 1500: smaller frames will need smaller wheels to keep the geometry of the overall bike correct. One main problem I could see with larger wheels on a small frame is possibly hitting the pedals with the front wheel when turning. As far as cons go, smaller wheels may give a harsher ride. You may want to ask your bike shop folks if smaller wheels will make a rider work harder than someone on a bike with standard size wheels - it seems to me this would be the case.

I hope this helped...

I have been shopping for a second road bike and have settled on a Trek 1500. In that price range I liked it the best out of everything I rode, a Giant and Fuji. When we were doing test ride at the LBS they had a 2300 out and I took that for a ride just for fun, big difference from a $1000 bike to a $1800 dollar bike. The 2300 was much smoother and alot faster. I would recommend riding a 1500 and a better Trek in the same trip to really feel the difference.

Well should you upgrade to the next model Treks? With the 1500s you get a good bike but with the posibilty of outgrowning as you fall in love with the sport. If you think this will happen you may want to go a step or up in price rages.
But the 1500 will be a good work horse and you will get a lot of miles out of it.

As for the WSD. The smaler wheels I have found are only good if you are a shorter woman. If you are above 5'4 I would go for a 700cc sized frame and have the shop swap out for, sadle, smaller handelbars and stem if needed.