It's been over 5 years since I last bought a new bike, and the time has finally arrived to scratch that itch. Would love to get some views from CP's cyclists (and share some bike pron) before I make any decisions.
The task: replacing my 2010 Masi Speciale CX commuter bike (that's not it, but it's the same model/colour as the one pictured).
What I'm looking for: something a bit smaller (moving from a 56 to a 54), a bit more upright, a bit lighter, a bit (but not a lot) pricier, with disc brakes and the capacity for fatter wheels (currently running 700x35s) to go with fenders and a rack. I'm even contemplating something that can run 700c and 650b wheels so it can be like two bikes in one).
Candidate bikes:
First, the utterly gorgeous and therefore very thievable
Kona NRB ($2300):
Bike is pretty light (AL), pretty fun to ride, looks a lot like my current bike in dark cherry, and has most of the other features I'm looking for. It's pretty pricey though, and I'm not so sure about the 1x system for hilly commuting.
Next up, a steel Kona with similar features, the
Rove ST:
I should add that snow isn't a factor for me here in Vancouver, but rain and hills sure are.