I spent Sunday (9/28) test-riding some bikes at 2 different shops. In the morning I went out and did 18 miles as fast as I could to kind of wear myself out a little so I could feel how the bikes would be when I was not so fresh. All rides were done with my pedals and shoes.
Biowheels
First I went out to Biowheels in Madeira. This is a small shop that seems to know their stuff. They're a Jamis dealer, and I had decided I wanted to try out the Jamis Ventura Race bike, the Aluminum/carbon hybrid frame. After talking with Clinton for a few minutes, he said he wanted me to try the Jamis Quest, their steel frame bike, so I rode that one first. They didn't have a pre-defined route, but John had a suggestion for a short 2 mile route that included a nice hill or two.
2008 Jamis Quest, 54 cm MSRP:$1400
My first impression of this bike was to be impressed with how light a steel bike can be. It only weighs a little more than the Aluminum/Carbon hybrid frame. The 105 shifers take a little getting used to, but they make a lot of sense to me. The bike comes up to (my slow) speed quickly and handles well. I had no problem holding the white like, even while shifting, checking my "6", whatever. The gearing is a much wider range than my own bike, so I only got up into the high gears on a downhill, but when you do it flies quite nicely.
Climbing, the low gear, which is lower than what I've got on my bike, came in handy, although it is ALLLLMOST too low... I'd almost be inclined to walk the bike if I were to stay in it for a while. The light weight of the bike let me stay in a higher gear almost the whole time... this bike clinched the deal that a compact front chainring is a perfectly viable option for me.
The ride on the Quest is very nice... there's a huge difference between my old, heavy steel bike and this thing, and it isn't even adjusted for me yet (except the saddle, of course). It really seemed to soak up the bumps and cracks.
The only things that might not be so nice about this bike are the price and the toe overlap... I noticed that at low speed, I bumped my toe against the front tire in turns a few times. This won't be nearly so nice when I put my SKS fenders on it... but it only happened a few times and it never happened at any speed.
As a nice bonus, this bike has the braze-ons for a trunk rack.
2008 Jamis Ventura Race, 56 cm MSRP:$1100
This bike is basically the aluminum/carbon version of the Quest, so almost all the above sections apply. The front derailer needed a little adjustment on this one, but that's just a tweak and not a flaw with the bike. The bike still accelerates nicely, is geared about right for me in my current state of fitness with some room to grow at the top.
The ride is quite different, and you can really feel much more of the road. I could see after 75 or 100 miles, being more fatigued just from the road noise, but it certainly isn't intolerable.
Montgomery
After these 2 bikes (I spent about 2 hours at Biowheels), I went to the Montgomery near my house. There I test rode 3 bikes. Unfortunately, they didn't want me to go too far, as the roads around the shopping center are quite busy, so I only got maybe half a mile to a mile in on each bike, with one hill (steep, maybe 13% grade, but not long).
Giant OCR A 1 Medium frame MSRP:$1395
This is the Aluminum/Carbon Fiber mix frame again, but it has more carbon than most frames of this type. It has the compact chainring as well.
Again, the acceleration and ride are quite nice. The bike handles somewhat aggressively and I needed to keep my eye on it to make sure it stayed where I wanted it, but as a side effect, when I wanted to turn I could put it where I wanted it RIGHT NOW, and with some confidence. The carbon dampened the little road noise I could find in the shopping complex fairly well, but it's hard to say how it would fare on the open road.
Giant OCR 2 Medium frame MSRP:$795
This is the pure aluminum frame with a triple chainring.
This bike had a similar geometry to the OCR A 1, but not quite as aggressive. Stayed put better, but didn't turn as fast either. The downside on this bike was the road noise. Even on the good pavement and concrete of the shopping center, I could feel a real difference. THIS would fatigue me after 75 miles, although I'm sure it would be fine for my commute.
The low gears here, with the triple, were almost too low... you had to really spin to keep the bike moving in the lowest gear. Great if I was carrying weight, but for normal stuff I don't think I'd use these gears often.
Bonus here for the rear rack braze-ons.
Specialized Roubaix Medium frame MSRP:$1495
Aluminum/Carbon Fiber mix, triple chainring as well.
This bike was somewhere between the OCR A 1 and the Jamis bikes, which sounds kind of weird to say. Comfortable, not as aggressive as the OCR A 1's steering but not as benign as the OCR 2. Same issue with the triple as on the OCR 2, I doubt I would want it too often.
Ride quality wasn't the defining characteristic of this bike, so much as the "no surprises" feel. No single aspect of this bike stood out as awesome, but none stood out as bad either.
Conclusion for Day 1
Well, at the end of one day of shopping, I have to give it to Clinton at Biowheels. The steel frame has my favorite locked up so far. The other Jamis bike is a close second, followed by the OCR A 1.
