Looking for Recommendations
Greetings and Salutations,
My brother Rick is 60 years old, I am 52, he invited me to take a bike tour with him from Wichita, Kansas to Castle Rock, Colorado, and the trip is about 600 miles. For each of the past two years Rick rode a Cannondale Adventure 400, and Cannondale Touring II bike from Wichita, Kansas alone to Winnipeg, Canada, a trip of about 1000 miles. The trips were an amazing journey and set in motion a love for touring the country.
As someone new to biking I was looking for recommendations on the best bike to accommodate a 6 ft frame of about 210 pounds. I am in good health and have always been a runner to maintain my weight and stamina. Our journey is set for June of 2009 and I need to purchase a bike to prepare for this adventure. My initial research started with the high end bikes like the Trek Madone 6.9 Pro 2008 at a discounted price of $5,499, if you can call that a discount or the Motobecane Century Team at $3,499. I understand the financial commitment will keep me riding until I push up daisies but what other options do you all recommend?
Any advice or recommendations will be greatly appreciated.