Welcome to the obsession.
There are a lot of good bike companies out there
(Cervelo, Felt, QR, Specialized, Trek, etc
), all with bikes in your price range.
My suggestion to you is to go to a local bike shop
(LBS
) and have them fit you for your size on handful of different bikes, from different manufacturers. Each manufacturer has different geometry of their frames, so a 58cm on a Cervelo may not be the same dimensions for another manufacturer.
More than likely you will be on a 58cm - 61cm frame depending on your torso and your inseam, or L - XL frame for companies who size that way.
I will 100% guarantee you that they will try to sell you a new bike
(2014
) or a prior years' model
(2013
) that they couldn't move...don't get roped in. Buy your first tri bike used and save yourself a crap load of money.
I bought my first bike on this site and have since upgraded to a higher-end bike this year. Serious triathletes are obsessive with new gear and will upgrade at the drop of the hat, leaving a great opportunity for you to pick up a good used bike for a fraction of the cost.
The main thing you want to concern yourself with is the bike works for your dimensions and you get a comfortable fit to be in aero position for 2+ hours.
Another good site to go to is Slowtwitch.com Go to the Forums, then Classifieds.
Lastly, I recently upgraded my bike with Brian Richards from www.mybikeshop.com. Great guy to work with and he is reasonable, especially on an entry level bike.
Good luck to you and let me know if I can be of further assistance.
Jeff