following from recent threads I have narrowed it done to one of these 2. Keen to hear from those who have ridden either or ideally both. My ‘road bike’ experience to date has been the last 4 yrs with my Jake the Snake, so I am used to the slightly more upright position, and at the grand age of 45 with shonky knees and back, a flat out racy position is not going to suit. I wil be going this week to try them both but keen for views. And yes, I know there are lots of other alternatives out these, but I want one of these 2 😆

trek

[url=http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/bc/SBCProduct.jsp?spid=62093&scid=1101&scname=Road]spesh[/url]

price wise they are identical at the moment….

Out of them 2 it would be the Trek. its mostly Ultegra group swings it

The Trek (better kit,nicer frame).
But be aware the wheels are rubbish-see if you can chuck in a few extra £’s and get a wheel upgrade (aksium etc).
Its not just the ssr wheels,they are pretty poor across the range.

The Roubaix, every time. It is the most comfortable road bike out there, ever. Incredibly well thought out, great components, lifetime guarantee. I always think Spesh is way underrated considering their bikes have won Tour de France’s, Paris-Roubaix, etc. Seriously, do not hesitate, get the Roubaix!

Which one has the better wheelset?

Trek, but stick some rs80s on it or something.

I’ve had a Roubaix for a few years now, there’s only one thing I’d change on it which is the gap, or lack thereof between the front tyre the the fork bridge. Mine used to catch stones there all the time until I changed the rubber for a set of 23s and there are a number of cosmetic scars there. That may be something they’ve changed slightly on newer models but I’d take a look.

In your other thread you mentioned you ride on ‘poorish roads’, so do I. The vast majority of my road riding is done on a Tricross Comp, carbon fork and stays with the same ‘zertz’ gubbins in them. They are equally as comfortable, the tricross is slightly slower (less than 5 mins over a hilly 30 mile loop) but far more surefooted on poor roads.

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Maybe look at ..
this?

thanks guys, opinion seems as divided as my own mind at the moment ! Comfort probably has to come first..

Not ridden a Trek in years simply because the local dealer wasn’t up to much. I’d suspect there will be little difference in comfort between either and if it were me I’d be buying from the best local shop who can make sure it fits you properly.

The Saggy clothed one speaks sense.If comfort is a priority then stick some 25c’s on it,flip the stem ,double wrap/gel the bar tape and find a comfortable saddle.
Not to counter colin27 but Trek also has a lifetime warranty and if racing pedigree counts then they also had some bloke called Lance who won something a few times IIRC 😉

the most comfortable road bike out there, ever

also please add “IMHO based on <insert some sort of experience>”.It’ll make you look less like a fanboi….

Hard to tell much IMO from a test ride on a road bike. I’d be changing saddles, stems, pedals. Then I’d be changing bar height, seatpost height, hood and bar position, maybe even change the handlebars. Then it takes a few weeks to get used to any road bike I think. So a test ride on a stock bike isn’t brilliant.

Yeah, a road bike might feel comfy for a 15 minute test ride, but that doesn’t tell you it will be comfy for 5 hours into a headwind on the drops. Equally a road bike that doesn’t feel comfy for a 15 minute test ride might feel like home after a few weeks of getting used to it. It’s a tricky one really.

fanboi?! How you make me laugh! Point taken though. For my money I’d have the Spesh, it being the more comfortable bike in my opinion. Colin27 – 12 years road riding – currently own Scott CR1 but have ridden a Roubaix extensively. Am prejudiced against Trek but nobody is perfect.

Its ok,I’m prejudiced against specialized….I have to fix them.
But to compensate I get to ride quite a few different trek/cannondale/giant/cervelo/orbea/argon 18/parlee at dealer days 😀

You cant go far wrong with either to be fair. Ride both, and if you still cant decide, get the one from the nicest bloke/shop.

Wish these threads would stop doing my best to resist temptation

DT78 – I think my wife would agree with you…..

I think my ‘compromise’ here might be selling one of the other bikes to part justify this one 😆

I have a wee test on the Trek at Alpine bikes lined up for Wed, just need to speak to Dales about the Spesh tomorrow. Noticed that the Trek has mudguard mounts, which will be rather handy..

for comfort, it has to be the roubaix. geometry is much more suited for the middle aged gent (long head tube). even the pros have been seen riding them! this from a 44yo who rides a titanium bling machine head down (sometimes).

djaustin – I am tending to agree. Last thing I want is to be uncomfortable on longer rides, and I do think that the comfort will outweigh the slightly better componentry of the Trek.

that Giant Defy Composite Ultegra on Stevo’s thread is sneaking into my list now….

Yeah the Roubaix is far more suited to the middle aged gent , try telling Cancellara or Boonen , both of whom won Paris Roubaix on one in the last 5 years . Or tell the TDF riders who rode it in the cobble stages of the TDF 2 years ago .

Don’t confuse comfortable with slow .

Colin/Bagpuss – what size Roubaix you riding ? I am exactly 5ft 10, with short legs, long back and on the size charts right between a 54 and a 56. My Jake has an effective top tube of 55 and fits well with a 100mm stem.
The 54 Spesh is 548mm (so same as Kona) and the 56 is 565,so an extra 15mm length over cx bike. (the Spesh’s also have 100mm stems). Kona standover is just ok at 795, the bigger Spesh is 798 and the smaller 770. In summary the 54 Spesh is virtually same size as current cx bike in length, and a tad lower standover, whereas the 56 Spesh is a little longer and a whisker (baw hair !!) higher.

sorry for all the questions..

You really have to try them. I’m 5’9″ with longish legs to shorter torso and I fit the 54 best. Bear in mind also the Spesh comes with a stem that offers multiple angles which will also make a difference. I’d get to a dealer you trust and try both sizes if possible.

Out of the Spesh and the Trek, after closer inspection, i’d go for the Giant Defy 😉 looks a belter of a bike.

Rusty – i know…..off to Dales on wed who do Spesh and Giant….at the end of the day its going to come down to fit. the spesh abd trek are £200 less than the giant.

Difficult to compare as they are totally different bikes – roubaixs arent nice IMO the headtube is massive – the bars are really high. Madone will be faster geometry.

Speed or comfort you decide.

Defy is on par with roubaix – TCR on par with Trek above.

Checkout latest R57 Planet x – bit of a halfway house with great groupsets.

Iain, I’m 6’4″ on a 61cm (XL), when I picked it up I had a body fit session and it fits me like a glove. Having had a road bike before it with a lower front end I’m more than happy riding something with a massive headtube but I am 44 with a shonky back 😉

Thanks guys. reinforces the need to try in the flesh as could be 54 or 56. Carbon – the planet x is an amazing deal but withiut being able to try for size between 54 and 56 its too much of a risk 🙁

‘Out of the Spesh and the Trek, after closer inspection, i’d go for the Giant Defy looks a belter of a bike.’

I take that back, after looking at the Giant website, i’d get the TCR as it makes the Defy look like a bit of a shopper. Unless you’ve got a bad back, you might as well get a TCR or Tarmac and chuck a couple of spacers under the stem until you get used to bending over.

ok, update 😆

Been to try the Spesh and Trek – out of the 2 the Trek was a nicer feel and a better spec.

However, I ordered a Giant Defy Composite 1 😀

No M/L’s in stock, however tried an alloy Defy in that size, with same geometry and it felt good (as much as sitting in a shop can) for my 5ft 10 size with long torso/short legs and on paper it is 1cm longer than my Jake the Snake, with 9 mm lower standover than the Kona.

And, big ups to Dales in Glasgow who are dong it at the 5 day Christmas Sale deal with 20% off even though they have to order it in. The only negative is that there is up to 15 week wait on it, unless one comes into stock earlier

well after a bit of a wait this arrived today. set it up earlier and had a wee spin in the rain !

Hope it was worth the wait. If that’s the correct saddle height, you must be a bit of a short a… 😉

Nice but Rule #45 and #29 violations right there.

cheers rusty – long back, short legs so kinda ! 5’10 and a wee bit with 30.5 inside leg, so needed a medium/large for the reach…..

double post

Rule #29 / No European Posterior Man-Satchels.
Saddle bags have no place on a road bike, and are only acceptable on mountain bikes in extreme cases.

Rule #45 / Slam your stem down.
A maximum stack height of 2cm is allowed below the stem and a single 5mm spacer must always – always – be stacked above. A “slammed down” stack height is preferable; meaning that the stem is positioned directly on the top race of the headset.

aye, fair point – I hate filling my jersey pockets with stuff so went for smallest bag I could find…..and I ain’t touching the steerer till I’ve done a good few rides 🙂

Nah seriously very nice. I fancy an advanced SL non-isp frame next.

I use a little Leyzne caddy sack that fits jersey middle pockets, 2 tubes, 2 co2, £5 note and tiny one23 multitool and a tyre lever – all very neat and small the wife calls it my man bag.

I got a stone chip on the side above the BB on it’s first 15 minute ride 😥 I guess it’s broken in now !

Very nice and it will go faster now you’ve christened it with that chip. I liked the look of the spesh but couldn’t have bought it with those zertz things spoiling the lines.