The search for a new bicycle

A week ago, I returned home to find that I left the garage door open. To my horror, my Trek 5.0 road bike was missing. After the shock cleared, I decided that this was an opportunity in disguise. Over the following week, I researched and test rode several of the bikes in this class.

A few words about my cycling profile.

• 50+, 6″2″ and still loosing weight
• Year 3 of 4 year training program, cycling 3 – 5 times, avg 50 – 100 miles a week
• Commute to work via bike, 6 miles each way along residential and country roads
• Use a rear bike rack with pannier (side bag) for laptop and change of clothes
• Moderate distances, typically 20 – 50 miles with moderate hills, current long ride is 100 km or Metric.
• Nerve damage in left leg that prohibits standing while peddling, spending all the time in the saddle
• Long term goals
  • Cycle on the 6 continents
  • Cycle along the Tour de France route
  • Cycle one or more Centuries a year
  • Transition to 100% cycling, sailing and hiking based transportation
• My bike is a center of joy. It is an integral part of my overall health and well being

The new plush, comfort based, performance bicycles seem to be my target, they are built to minimize fatigue while still providing good performance over long distances and meet the rising popularity of Metrics and Centuries. The traditional road bike designs often have dampeners to help absorb road vibrations and longer head tubes for a more ergonomic riding position. Carbon Fiber is used in the high end models for its excellent strength to weight and ability to absorb vibrations. Depending on the components, these bikes run from $1,500 – $5,000, the bikes I rode were in the $2,000 – $3,000 range.

I got lucky and found some great articles on bicycling.com, my search ended up with 4 options. There may be other bikes out there that fit into the same class, but for one reason or the other they did not cross my radar.

1. Trek Pilot
2. Specialized Roubaix
3. Cannondale Synapse
4. Serotta Fierte

Trek Pilot

I have been riding Treks since the early 90s and counting bikes for my kids, my girlfriend and my girlfriend’s kid, have purchased almost a dozen Treks. My Pilot 5.0 was well suited to my riding style, but was always troubled by third gear. I have heard that triple chainrings inherently have more problems than double, but I need the wide gear range. I had swapped out the original cluster with a lower geared model and wondered if that was part of the problem. The Pilot 5.2 was very atractive with it’s all Shimano Ultergra componentry. The 5.0 has a Ultegra rear derailer but the remainder is 105.

The test ride on the Pilot was very satisfying, the bike is responsive and stiff but easy on the arms and hands. But my favorite part was the shifting. I had decided to leave the factory cluster on to avoid potential problems. I am quite a bit lighter than I was when I bought the 5.0, so I don;t need the extra advantage. The 5.2 shifted like a dream, each gear clicking into place withou hesitation. The only exception was that down shifting from the large front chainrail to the middle required a an extra firm push.

The Pilot 5.2 is 100% carbon Fiber frame with a drop down style headset with BzzzKill damper inserts that produce an overall smoth ride. The Pilot frame alows for an oversized wheel. I blew out the orginal rims on my Pilot 5.0 and replaced them with Maviks. Running Continental Gatorskins 700×28 (one size oversized) had almost eliminated “on the road” flats and increased comfort with out any noticable performance loss. The Pilot also includes eyelets or braizeons to mount a rear rack for my commuting requirements.

Specialized Roubaix

Specialized is a local company to the SF Bay Area, that sponers many cycling events in the area. I always like doing business with local companies, so I was very happy when I saw the article in bicycling.com talking about how the Roubaix Expert had launched the plush revolution and how Specialized had corrected early problems with makiing turns. The Roubaix is an 100% carbon fiber frame with Mertz dampners in the fork, seat tubes and stays. The Roubiax Expert has all Ultegra components.

The Roubaix Expert model is called the Gerolsteiner and is named after the Cycling Team that Specialized sponers. It is a silightly different frame than the lower Roubaix models Comp and Elite, with a curved top bar and a special paint job. This is a beautiful machine, but I was unable to ride after an exhausting search for a 58cm or 61cm frame. I did ride a Roubaix Comp and loved the ride, it was exceptionally smooooth. I did notice the lack of agility even in the new model that bicycling.com had mentioned. One glaring omission was any way to mount a rear rack.

Cannondale Synapse

The Cannondale Synapse wasn’t on my original list, but was introduced to it by a local bike shop. It is in the same class and price range as the Trek Pilot and Specialized Roubaix. It has a 100% carbon fiber frame but lacks the dampner inserts that Trek and Specialized features, but utilizes a unique curved frame design that “provides a pin-point balance of road vibration damping comfort and lateral efficiency” according to Cannondale.

This was my favorite ride, the Synapse was very responsive both in power and turning agility. The shifting seemed superior even thought the components were all Ultegra. I was able to quickly accelerate through the gears even in the residential neighborhood of the test ride. The frame design was amazing in abosrbing bumps but did little to offset rode vibrations. Again, a major shortcoming was the lack of any way to mount a rear rack, the bike store strongly recommended against any kind of rack mounting based on the frame construction.

Serotta Fierte

The Serotta Fierte is bicycling.com 2007 Editor’s Choice Plush Road Bike. It has a steel frame that uses a completely different approach to road comfort. Steel bicycles let you feel the road but take the edge off the bumps and vibratrions while being very stiff and responsive, making many owners croone “ahh … steeel”. I really wanted to ride one of these but my local bike shop did not have a 58 or 60cm. The downside of steel is that it is a bit heavier than carbon fiber and it is suseptible to corrosion. Since I need my bike to survive in a salt water environment, I don’t want to risk steel on a boat.

Observations

Bicycles reach their full potential when their owners can fully integrate them into their lifestyles. The balance of performance over short distances, comfort over long distances, agility while descending, utility by taking a load and the strength required to stand up to daily use requires a unique design. Each of the 4 manufacturers of the bikes described here have realized this marker to some degree. Although I have some very unique requirements, like no steel on my boat that eliminates the Serotta, but the ability to mount a rear rack seems much more common place.

Since my cycling journeys often take me in areas not always heavily used by bikes, the use of a good over sized tire is critical. The Continental 700×28 Gatorskins provide a more comfortable ride while greately reducing on the road flats with out any noticable performance loss. My expereinced may be bias by my size and weigth, but it’s an option well worth considering. I also am a firm believer in a cushy saddle, I spend a lot of time in the saddle and can’t find the relief of standing while peddling.

I have to say that I was also influenced in my decision by the availbility of models in my size. It appears that early June is not a good time to buy a bicycle as the manufacturer are gearing up for the next model year. But on the other hand I did get a “good deal” once I located a dealer. I ended up talkling to around 10 bike stores and am fortunate that I like in a very bike friendly area.

Comparisons

I am only comparing the Trek, Specialized and the Cannondale here since I did not ride the Serotta.

• Performance: Of the 3 bikes I rode, the Cannondale stood out to me. It was very responsive in aceleration and was very fun to ride. The Specialized and the Trek were comparable, although the Specialized seemed a little slugish.
• Comfort: The Specialized stood out as the smoothest ride. The extensive use of dampners make this biek seem to glide. The Cannondale was the best at obsorbing big bumps, but did little to hellp with handle bar buzz. The Trek has a nice feel and is easy on the upper body.
• Agility: The Cannondale Synapse again stood out in cornering and meanervuring. It seems like Trek has improved the agility of the Pilot 5.2 as compared to my 2005 Pilot 5.0 as did Specialzed in the same period. The Specialized Roubiax seemed a little sloppy in comparison.
• Utility: The eyelets for a rear rack on the Trek singled it out in this category.
• Strength: Getting comparable statistics on the carbon fiber maunufacturing tehniques is difficult to do. Based on the various manufuacturer’s descriptions, I believe that Trek has sacrificed a little weight to beef up the tube thickness. The Cannondale design is finely balanced with arches and seemed to be more suceptible to failure to the point that the bike store strongly recommended against any kind of racks.
• Appearence: The Specialized Roubiax Gerolstiener is a beautiful bike and has stunning lines and paint job. I wished I had a chance to ride this bike as I had to settle for a Roubaix Comp to see if the diefferent frame would make a difference. Altough I have to say that the Trek grey and black gives the impression of a high end auto.
• Overall: The ability to mount a rear rack made the Pilot an easy choice. Trek seemed to find the right balance of performance vs strength and comfort vs utility. I have to say that the Specialized was a close second due to the stunning appearence.

Cycling down the Road

A week after purchasing the Trek Pilot 5.2, I am in cycling heaven. The Ultegra components makes all the difference and easily justifies the increased cost. The only change outs were the wheel set to a 36 spoke Bontrager X-Lites with Continental 700-28 Gatorskins and a cushy seat as no additional cost. With a rear rack, I am able to easily commute to work and have riden nearly 150 miles.