A couple people asked me what kind of bike I ended up getting, so I figured I’d just answer en masse: A KHS Flite 220 road bike in the color of ‘blue steel’ (I kid you not, but I didn’t know that was the name of the color ’til just now).
I was specifically looking for a bike that would get me through the 2-mile trip from my new house to downtown on a regular basis because I hate, hate, hate having to park in our downtown garages. I could have gotten just about anything for that, but when I started getting into this whole triathlon bit, I decided I wanted to go ahead and get a nice, light, portable road bike, though I wanted a low-end one. While I’m pretty sure I want to make sprint triathlons a permanent part of my life, I don’t intend to do any major distances or get super-competitive about these races.
I trolled Craigslist for about a week and a half and found nothing that suited me. Bikes in Knoxville on Craigslist tend to be limited to hefty mountain bikes or bikes that needed some serious repair work. I made a round of the local bike shops and discovered one major limiting factor in bike selection: my 5-foot-3 frame. Most stores only had about two bikes apiece that fit pint-sized me.
I fell in love with the Flite the first block I made on it. (Keeping in mind I know very little about bikes,) the ride is solid, and it shifts so smoothly. I hardly feel like I’m working when I’m on it. And the price, though still more than I wanted to pay, wasn’t outrageous compared to the cost of most of the new road bikes I saw. The only thing I hate, of course, is the seat, so I’ll probably be searching for a seat cover this weekend. I think it’s also finally time to invest in some triathlon-specific shorts with the extra padding 🙂
Wow that bike is awesome. That will be perfect for summer. And Craigslist is tough to buy things like this on, you never know what you'll get.
Woo! You're going to be in such good shape, between the triathlons and the biking to work.
Hi, sorry yes a comment out of the blue… i just saw one of these bikes, locally this weekend, and was thinking it would be a great starter road bicycle for GF. Fairly inexpensive, but mainly i liked the tire clearance. It appears it could serve double duty as a road racer, a commutter, a trail-bike, and maybe even cycle-cross? What do you think ? The components, etc aren't that good (but of course can be updated as they wear), but then the price is really good. Also approx What is it's weight ?
John, I'm no bike expert, but I can say I love the bike. Don't know it's weight, but it's light enough that I can lift it and carry it (I'm a fairly small gal). It's not the fastest bike on the planet, but it does work as sort of a hybrid road bike and commuter. Wouldn't use it as a trail bike though.