Road Bikes : advice

My college is about 10 miles away form my house and it includes one incline on the way with the rest down hill and the way back . . . i have to go back up that hill : P

I want to buy a bike, a road bike for the commute and am wondering from people who are experienced what I should be looking for. I am 5'11 with long leg and arms with a shorter abomen. I am basically looking for bikes through craigs list. Any advice on what I need? I'll be adding a rack to the bike to carry my books/back pack as well.

Well you need something that you can mount a rack to. Most older steel frames or touring frames will have the eyelets for it. Check out this link, it is a sticky on a sub forum that is dedicated to commuting: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=90 213

Also SD has a cycling team, try posting a listing there someone might have a bike for sale.

Sorry for short reply, it's late. :)

UD

You may need a men's bike. I'm only like 5'7" , maybe 5'8" and I needed the largest women's size, so at 5'11" you are probably in the men's range. If you are just riding to school and back you may want a cruiser, which will give you a MUCH comfier ride than a road bike. I definitely would not want to ride my bike 20 miles a day without a chamois (padding in the shorts) and I wouldn't want to walk around at college wearing one. You'll really need to go and ride any bike you find online to make sure it's the correct size. you can always take it to a bike shop later to be fitted to you, or if you are buying from a pretty experienced rider they may be able to help you out. Make sure you get it adjusted properly and try it out before going to school on it, if it's adjusted wrong you could have knee discomfort or some serious butt pain!

the day I bought my road bike I went on a 30 mile ride with my seat adjusted wrong. I was hurting pretty bad already by the half way mark when a nice older couple suggested it was because of the seat.

Oh and also make sure to practice riding with your books! It may throw off your balance a bit depending on how heavy they are.

I have a hybrid/commuter bike (Trek 7100) and I love it.  It's pretty fast, really comfortable and it's a fairly inexpensive bike.  I like that the tires are smooth enough for pavement but I've never had a problem with sliding around in gravel.  

I agree with haleymajayley that you should have the bike fitted to you.  I tried to ride before having it adjusted and ended up with very sore knees for a few days.  

Also, be sure to get a saddle you REALLY like for more than just a spin around the block. The big fluffy pillowtop saddles are deceptive, especially the ones with the shocks.

Since I'm a female, I have a Terry Liberator X Gel saddle with a female anatomical cutout. Set me back $60.00 but it normally retails for $89.99... and it's worth every penny. Your sit bones will hurt for a while until you get used to it. In conjunction with a chamois, it's great. Get to college a few minutes early to change out of your chamois and keep a change of underwear/pants in your panniers or backpack.

Be sure it's to the right height for your size. Down too low and you have to work your legs too hard, your knees will come up to high and possibly lead to injury (or eventually). Too high, and you can pull your hip adductors like I did on high cadence downward strokes. You can get fitted for your saddle and sit bone size at a good Local Bike Shop.

A great idea would be to get a folding bike depending on whether or not your campus has good bike security measures

Thank you so much for all the advice guys. I have a lot to consider and everyone made some really good points. I'll definately be purchasing a nice seat. And thanks for letting me know that steal frames are best for racks! I have mostly been checking out mens bikes since they are the only ones 58cm +. I don't really mind having the bar across the top. I also went to a bike shop and tested a few bikes as well. I just needed some more data for my bike research. I am definately checking out that link too.

Thanks guys!

I am 5'11" and I ride a 56 cm bike.  They were waffling back and forth between the 58 and 56...