indygreg

+1 on the starbucks thing. They are the big dog in the market, which makes a lot of people hate them. Secondly they have their share of posers and that makes purists mad. 'real' coffee drinkers (the roast at home I am better than you types) hate seeing yuppies go in for 'coffee' and get something like a frap-a-whatever. So, they hate starbucks for doing this to their niche world.
Trek is similar . . . people with cash in hand and no knowledge might lean towards a trek (due to lance, or marketing, or whatever) so 'real' cyclists put the blame on Trek.
It is all silly of course.

+100 on the bose thing . . . they are similar but with really supbar products (in their price range)

BillyD

From what I understand Trek makes a good bike.. The reason I wouldn't buy one is because it's so popular --- EVERYBODY has one --- and you see them everywhere.

Same can be said of Giant and Cannondale I think --- too common. I prefer something a bit different.

But there's another reason I wouldn't buy a trek, or even let a loved one buy a Trek. Lots of Newbies buy Treks trying to be like Lance, and they top it off with a USP or Disco kit. And when I see that combination it just shouts "AMATEUR" to me, and yeeeeeuck . . . I could never. Just never!!

Don't get me wrong, I think Trek and Lance have been great for cycling and I welcome anything that will increase the presence of bikes. It can only benefit us all.

But for me . . . yeeeeeuck!!

Al1943

Madone is a mountain in southern France that Lance trained on repeatedly, used it as a baseline to test his conditioning.

ratebeer

1. Identify who is saying "Trek sucks"
2. Match this list against those providing fashionista warnings on the following
* CamelBaks
* cycling shorts (as opposed to bibs)
* "dork disks"
3. Place them on your "Ignore" list
4. ENJOY!

Al1943

A Trek WSD would be a good choice if it fits you. My wife really likes her WSD 5200.

My 1998 Trek 5500 has been a very good reliable frame. I've upgraded it with an Ouzo Pro fork, Deda handlebar, and custom wheels. What I don't like about it doesn't fit my body well, long legs, short torso. Trek's racing geometry means a short steep headtube with low steering trail and a relatively long top tube. To make it fit I use a 90mm stem. I prefer a shorter top tube, slacker head tube, and more steering trail (like my Colnago).
The WSD won't have these problems.

caloso

I can see that. I'm built the opposite, short legs and long torso, so the Trek geometry fits me really well. The 660 is 52cm c-t-c seat tube and 54.5 cm c-t-c top tube. Long, low, and fast. I think that if I ever had a custom frame built, I'd ask for a Trek geometry. I think some of the Carlton-built Raleighs had similar geometries.

Al1943

The 660 is a good frame but I'll bet the head tube angle is not as steep as their 5000 or Madone series frames. My 5500 seems pretty squirrely to me. Between the wife and I we've owned 6 Trek road bikes and I've never had an issue with Trek's quality. Their OCLV bikes just don't fit me right. And I REALLY don't like the looks of the 2008 Madone.

ChiefCatchacold

My Trek has served me well, for 5 years now I'll take function over fashion any day.

fifthcircle

Trek seems to let Gary Fisher and Lemond do what they want to with their bikes. They are differnt then Trek's bikes, and I own one of each. Love them. I rode Trek's in High School, and then in College I got a Specialized....went back to Trek as soon as possible. I'm very happy with Trek, but then again, I go to Walmart once in a while too.

okwhat

I find this attitude a real turnoff to road cycling. In all other sports fans wear the jerseys of the favorite teams... "Detroit Pistons" ,Cal Ripken's #8. So what if some old fart wants to wear the polkadot jersey?!

Growing up I participated in many sports: MtnBiking, skateboarding, kayaking, Rockclimbing etc... Other than triathletes, road bikers always seemed a prissy sort who took themselves way too seriously. I always suspected they went for road biking cause they couldn't hack it with the rough boys.

Anyhoo, with that said I just bought a Caad8...Because I am getting older and need to find a gentler sport

Indolent58

I don't think it's just that Trek has become "unfashionable", although there is some element of that. I own two Treks, but I have seen the brand slipping on value and design. There was a time when Trek's OCLVs were easily the best mass market road bikes out there. Not so recently. Trek did not respond to the sloping geometry trend until very very late, and Specialized has been able to capitalize on this. While Trek does offer a full range of price points it is rarely the best deal at a given price level. When I recently bought my son an entry level hardtail, I ended up with an Iron Horse based on weight and component quality.

In thinking about a new road bike for me, Trek has not been on my short list until just now. The new 2008 Madones are very intriguing, and they appear to have addressed many of the design issues that made the old OCLV line seem dated.

diko617

Trek Rules

GP

New Treks are fine but I really like the older lugged steel Treks. I saw an '86 a few weeks ago that looked like it had been stored since new.

theshoemaker

I'm extremely analytical and picky about quality and value. After much test riding and evaluation I ended up with a trek 2200 and a 2100WSD for the wife. The footwork has paid off. We LOVE our bikes. I'm temped by various competing bikes but I'd guess in the next round I'll end up with a madone.

benbaconlewis

I am sure there are plenty of people out there with more insight than I, but $2k for the 2007 Madone 5.2 looked to me like unbeatable value. I thought this compared very favourably with what other brands could offer at that budget. Was I wrong?

KevinF

I imagine "descise" is supposed to be "disguise"

GPB

https://www.cyclingnews.com/tech.php?...ures/trek_nike

Why Madone? Lance actually named the bike himself after the Col de la Madone in Menton, France, where Armstrong tested himself in training. "The Col de la Madone is a 12km climb that starts in the French village of Menton. It rises from close to sea level to 927 meters. Cyclists have long used it to test themselves. Having lived in Nice for four years, I rode it many times as well. The record of 31:30 stood for many years, until in 1999 when I broke it with a 30:47. For me, the Madone is the ultimate test. It always tells me if I'm ready - ready to ride fast and ultimately, win the Tour de France. It never fails."

Ain't google amazing!?

Trek_Racer

I could care less if every single cyclist in the world rode only Trek.

If I like the bike and it fits me well, I am going to ride it!

I don't get too hung up on what everyone else rides - I just care about what I ride.

beeballman

Love my Trek

jiggy

I've recently joined the Trek love fest with my 1500 and I'm in love.

ryanhulce

Trek's minimum is much less than alot of others I hear, any truth to this?

quanteleditor

I like Trek because of their Corporate Reputation. One of numerous examples was told in a recent article in a bicycling magazine. An American soldier in Iraq was the unfortunate victim of a Roadside Bomb. His fingers were fused together (among other injuries). Before his enlistment, this young man was a mountain bike enthusiast so his Mom wanted so much for him to ride again. She contacted Trek to see if they could help. Trek technicians modified his bike so he could ride with his injured hands (at no charge). Look on Trek's website and see if they're tooting their own horn like most Corporations would be doing.

benbaconlewis

I read the same article and was similarly impressed.

Trek's products might not be the "trendiest" but I have had no complaints about my Trek and have just bought another one. I could not find a better value bike that suited me so well.

smith5

Trek is not embraced by the hipsters that live in the Mission District of San Francisco, where every bike you see is Euro vintage, probably a single gear conversion. Trek is a major corporation, not a small artisan company, I mean they were, like 20 years ago, before Lance. Because of this, I was admittedly a little self-concious about buying an early 90s basic Trek 10 speed road bike, (single gear bikes are for kids going to coffee houses). Plus, my freind who, of course, lives in the Mission and has a vintage euro bike sort of had a limp reaction to me buying the Trek. But you know what, I love it. Bottom line, Trek is one of the highest quality bike companies, they didnt get where they are by making crap like Murray or Huffy. I cant wait to leave my friend, in his heavy vintage Italian frame, in the dust.

jiggy

When I was shopping for a new bike recently I compared the Trek 1500 I bought with 6 or 7 comparable bikes in other brands and did much research. I try to be a real savvy consumer and all those reasons that people list for why they don't like Trek is exactly why I bought one. The looks and color also added more than i'd like to admit to the equation too. In the end, it came down to the two finalists, a Giant OCR1 which actually had a tad bit more desireable components for added value (though it was about 150 bucks more). But I didnt like the way Giant's frame sizes run with their smal, medium and large thing. I fell between the cracks on Giant's frame sizing. Also, the Trek felt more rigid and racier in feel and geometry, if not a bit more squirrely feeling. But to be totally honest I liked both bikes equally well. In the end it was purely the color and looks of the trek that clinched my decision. I always wanted a red bike since I was a kid, so I finally got one at 48 years old.
I love the bike and have ridden it every day since I bought it 3 weeks ago. I feel like a kid again and can feel how fast I'm regaining my fitness too. What a kick! I'm so glad I got a trek. Also, going in, I was biased in favour of the Trek because of their solid reputation and the fact so many happy people have them. I am now another one of the happy people that has a Trek. And, now my wife has one too. My next bike? Who knows.....but right now I'm leaning toward the Madone, or possibly an Orbea carbon. I'd love to get my wife an Orbes Diva Carbon for Christmas...we'll see. It will be that or the trek 2100WSD - Go trek!