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Road bikes are available for various purposes, such as road racing, touring, leisure and commuting. Road bikes for racing are lighter, faster and more responsive than equivalently priced mountain bikes. Road bikes have come a long way in recent years with new technology and materials available. Carbon fibre, aluminium and titanium are all used now as well as the more traditional steel tube sets. They all have their advantages: aluminium offers good performance at a reasonable price, steel offers comfort over performance and is a long term investment, titanium offers ultimate all round performance at a premium price while carbon fibre offers superb comfort and performance at intermediate cost. It is not uncommon for the materials to be mixed to give the benefits of all the materials in one frame - a carbon fibre rear end on an aluminium frame, for example. The technology hasn't stopped at the frame either, wheels have received a lot of attention along with the rest of the components, road bikes are becoming featherweight, responsive machines that are a sheer joy to ride over many miles.