New road bike options

Dawn Cass

many years ago I owned a road bike...back in the day when I couldn't really cycle well, knew nothing of triathlon let alone what FTP stood for!

would like to get a new road bike and looking for opinions. Main goal is to have an alternative to have fun out on the roads...no real plans on racing with it in the near future but who knows.  I love my TT bikes...Cervelo are fantastic. I have a Specialized mountain bike and love it just the same. 

I am am leaning towards Trek or Cervelo....and more so Cervelo just because I love the TT fit. Thinking the R3.

anyone have an R3....what do you think vs the S3. Any Trek lovers out there?

scott dinhofer

I just went through this wanting to do something special. There are so many options and ruminations. I was looking at top end bikes, so that drove the conversation differently. I ended up building something which I am about to ride for the first time this week! Still have to work out the cockpit setup. 

the BEST thing you can do here is go to a good fitter FIRST. One with the guru or similar machine. Get your fit dialed in and then you can give them a list of specific bikes, where they can look at the geometry and tell you what fits best..

Lastly, I priced with a non local shop that I knew would give me a deal, then got the price from my LBS and they were within $100, so no argument there, I got a good deal from guys that take amazing care of me. Already seeing the value as they arranged a demo from Merckx (the US distributor is 4 miles away) so I didn't have to take my new bike out on a spring, wet, partially dirt ride this past weekend. Can't shout loudly enough about the importance of a good LBS.

Brian Smith

Agree with Scott, get a good fit to see how you should be set up on a road bike.  

As a long time roadie, I have ridden everything from a Cannonade, to Specialized, Trek, Bianchi and Cervelo, etc.  I purchased a Cervelo S5 Team in 2012 and have not looked back since.  Changed a few parts, saddle, and wheels over the years.  Although I like the R3 and many other models out there, the S5 is hands down my favorite to ride, it is just overall comfortable, great handling and fun, not too aggressive either.  

Regardless of what you choose, there are a lot of brands out there that will likely fit within your perimeters and budget, and don't be afraid to buy last years' or two year old models, many times you will see that only the color has changed, i.e. many of the trek and specialized bikes...let us know what you decide.

PS: Test ride as many as possible, that is also the fun part!