It's been several years since I was active on the forum or biking in general. I'm a big guy, 6' and about 340#, 31 years old. I used to ride a CAAD9 several years ago when I was in good shape around 250-270#. I'm pretty out of shape now and sold the Cannondale last Fall since it didn't exactly fit my new "physique" and it had been sitting in the garage unused for a few years. I'm looking to get back on a bike again and have started researching/shopping.
I'd still like something a little "sporty" with drop bars, but stronger and more comfortable than my old C'dale. I noticed Specialized has a new model called the Awol (linked below). It looks nice, except for pushing the boundaries of my budget a bit. I'm going to check one out in the next day or so at my LBS to see if it's comfortable. Does anybody happen to own one yet? Is there anything that stands out as being potentially clyde friendly/unfriendly? 99% of my riding will be on smooth pavement.
Specialized Bicycle Components
I also may look at a couple CX bikes like this Fuji:
Fuji Cross 1.5 Cyclocross Bike - 2014 - Road Bikes