Originally Posted by
bjn74
Thanks for the quick reply. Yeah - it's been pretty much information overload for the last 3 weeks!
I do like the diverge, I just have friends saying 'you don't need front suspension for your needs and it's going to be more of a liability for the sealed road riding you'll do'. I have no experience to be able to refute or agree...
Katsup is right. I started off with a craigslist bike, that helped me define what I liked and what I needed. Then I could spend the $$$ on the right bike.
Our LBS has rentals – that is a good investment (I think they’ll take the rental off the purchase price if you buy one). As mentioned above any of the bikes you listed are good. If you can do a 20 mile ride on them to cement it, all the better.
As for compliance, bikes can be pretty plush in the rear (especially with a goo seat post). Most complaints are in the front.
I stopped by the trek and spec. store yesterday. Dang, that diverge has lots of tire clearance. I do think it is odd that the trek had the iso-decoupler in the rear, but not the front. I would put a (mini) suspension on the front rather than the rear (just like a mountain bike – ever hear of a rear suspension and ridged fork?).
Personally, I don’t put much weight on my front hands, so I don’t really notice my front stiff end (other than the precision when CX racing or threading a tight course). Still, if you are doing any rough road riding, it is a benefit. If you are doing a lot of pavement and out of the saddle accelerations – maybe not.
To some degree it is a passion decision. Specialized has some gorgeous paint jobs. I road an old diverge and didn’t like the super low bottom bracket. Seemed to accelerate slow, and I hate pedal strike. But it should be more stable. If your doing fast downhills on gravel, stability can be very important. If you like long gravel road rides, it can be nice. If you like CX, single track, or making your neighborhood commute feel like single track, agility and precision are a plus.