In January when I started training for Ride the Rockies, I was on a friend's old (1994) Fuji. The bike weighed 24 pounds, the frame was steel and it was a dog to ride.
In Feb. I went to Bicycle Village in Colorado Springs and bought a good beginner bike (Trek 1.5). Overall, it is a good bike if you're starting out, but as my riding volume increased (started at 30 miles per wee and am now up to 150 miles per week), I quickly ran into things I wanted to change on the bike to improve ride quality, comfort, responsiveness and performance. Of course, this meant repeated trips to the bike store to give the guys updates, and buy a series of new components (Headset, Saddle, Rear Cassette, etc...) and adjust the fit and riding position.
Last week, as I was getting the rear-derailleur tweaked for buttery smooth shifting, the Gm of the store was incredibly kind and offered to credit me the cost of my Trek 1.5 and apply it towards the purchase of a higher-quality bike. This is a standard 30-day satisfaction guarantee that they offer, which they extended by a few weeks. Something I appreciate more than words can say.
So...today, I test rode a few models (Cervelo S1, Specialized Tarmac, Scott C1, Gary Fisher) and decided on the Cervelo - it's an incredible bike. It's fast, responsive, solid at speed, - everything I was looking for, and something I'll surely need to live up to. Kind of like purchasing a Ferrari and needing to increase your driving skills to be able to get the most out of the car.
I'll be picking it up on Tuesday/Wednesday of this week.
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