2009 Men's Road Bikes

Lance Armstrong, the cancer-fighting seven-time champion of the Tour de France, has inspired many men to take up road biking. Some for exercise, others for the hopes of one day winning the Tour de France themselves. Whatever the reason, road biking and racing is a great activity to partake and compete in. But first thing's first, you'll need a road bike.

You might ask what the difference is between a road bike and a mountain bike. Mountain bikes are made for off-road use. They have stronger shocks, more resilient frames, and single-pivot breaks. Road bikes are made for speed! They have thinner tires that require much more air pressure, integrated shift and break levers, and are made from more exotic materials. Oh yeah, they're a lot more expensive too!

Men's Mountain bikes range in the $300-$3,000 range, where as men's road bikes are in the $500-over $5,000 range. There are also roughly 75 brands that make road bikes. This article should hopefully give you an idea on what you should buy if you decide to take up the fast paced sport of road biking.

Our first look as at the best men's road bike there is. The 2009 Kestrel RT-800 was voted the "Bike of the Year" by Outside Magazine. This 16.1 lb speedster is made of an Enhanced Modulus Hybrid material, a mix of intermediate-modulus and high-modulus carbon which makes it strong for its light weight. It's channeled headtube makes it more aerodynamic and less front heavy. The price? Over $5,400!

After winning the "bike of the year" title, Kestrel decided they could do even better and made the 2009 Kestrel RT-900. This model uses a slightly different carbon blend material that allows it to be not only lighter than the RT-800, but the lightest bike Kestrel offers-a mere 15.2lbs. There's also a new H-shaped seat for added comfort. The price of this new bicycling marvel is just over $5,800.

An even lighter men's road bike that boasts high performance is the 13.66 lb Scott Addict R1. In fact, just the frame of this bike comes in at only 790 grams, making it the single lightest frame on the market in the world of road bikes. But even though it's light, it's a tough performer and was the bike of choice for the Pro Tour Team Saunier Duval. It's priced at $7,300!

With so many brands of men's road bikes and so many 2009 models for each brand, it'd be impossible to sit here and list bike after bike. For more options, great customer service, and to request a catalogue visit trisports.com.