http://www.wiggle.co.uk/vitus-bikes-zx1-team-aero-disc-dura-ace-2018-road-bike/

See specialized it’s not hard 🙂

So buy that one, then?

Consumer-direct not-quite-superbike cheaper than traditional superbike?

While the Vitus is a lot of bike for the money, it’s just not in the same league.

It’s got cables. That’s no superbike!

It’s got cables. That’s no superbike!

And Conti Ultrasports.

https://shop.bikesandbuddies.co.uk/road-bikes/

Some good bargains to be had in the link above.

I recently needed a new centre stand for my Minute and our local (previously amazing) Kona dealer had closed. A quick Google search for another localish Kona dealer spat these guys up.

I have spent quite a bit of time on their site looking at the sale / ex demo / frame only deals, planning my next build.

Doesn’t have a powermeter either.

It’s got cables. That’s no superbike!

And you can see them!!!!

It’s nice enough I suppose but not even in the same league as the spesh Imo.

That’s certainly no superbike. A superbike for me is more that a sum of its parts. It has to have heritage and pedigree and be desirable. Only a few manufacturers can make a superbike. Plus it needs to be expensive and out of reach to most people. In the car world its like Vauxhall making a ferrari beater. Its still only a Vauxhall. Back to bikes I think the Giant TCR is a perfect example. Its a race winning bike that is arguably as good as any other bike out there and clad it with the worlds best parts its still only a Giant.

A Colnago C64 could have Ultegra bits on it and still be more of a superbike than a Giant TCR with Di2.

The position of those levers makes me sad.

Superbike my Rss .

A Colnago C64 could have Ultegra bits on it and still be more of a superbike than a Giant TCR with Di2.

That’s the point he’s making. A TCR with Lightweights and what not is still just a TCR.

I’d sooner have a good bike than one that’s got “heritage and pedigree and be desirable.” (I realise those are not mutually exclusive). Which is why I’ve got 2 Chinese bikes! 😆

I class a superbike as anything a pro is riding in competition. By that account, my Defy Advanced SL running DA9000 is a superbike, Precisely this model won Paris Roubaix under John Degenkolb (same size too), just to add to its superness. You can see the cables. Ditto my Propel, thanks Marcel. BTW the C40 was the first carbon bike to win Paris Roubaix.  I’d class the C64 in exactly the same boat – once it’s won a few races 😉 .

I’d put the TCR Advanced SL in the same boat, Tour stage winning frame (Mathews won the green jersey riding this instead of his Propel).

A superbike earlier…

Giant can’t make a superbike. I have 3 giants and am a massive fan of my tcr but even though it’s a top model with top parts and has been ridden to many victories it’s still just a giant. I had a 10 year old £500 bianchi in Celeste green with bottom end Campagnolo that got more attention than my top end giant.

If you are basing “superness” on attention, then my choice of ride to work this morning# trumps anything from Bianchi, Colnago, Giant… And yes, I have three Giants too. I class super by provenance, not appearance. My kiddyback tandem gets more attention than my road bikes. It’s not a superbike despite LX components and V brakes 😉

#I’ll give you a hint, it’s low and has three wheels 😉 .

I’m not basing a super bike purely on the attention it gains but it is a factor. I don’t think anyone’s dream/ultimate bike has ever been a giant. They end up buying a Giant because they couldn’t afford better and convinced them self that a giant is just as good which in reality it is. Same with other brands. As i said the TCR is as good as anything else out there but a superbike needs to have a wow factor that no giant will ever have.

No idea what you went to work in. Was it a Robin Reliant?

You want wow factor…

Mine’s the one on the left.

And somebody took a video of me out of the passenger window of their car this morning. That never happens on my other bikes. It happens quite often on this!

Vitus was a brand before specialized regardless of who’s pulling strings now. Think folk missing the point here. it’s £9250 for a nice road bike(specialized will never be a superbike either) or giant trek etc..

Vitus gives you nice bike too 🙂

That photo pretty much proves my point. You have gone out of your way to take a pic of your bike next to a supercar. Would you of gone out of your way to get a picture of it next to a lesser car that may on paper be as capable? I’m struggling to think of one though! Maybe a Honda NSX back in the day.

Nissan GTR? I took that photo to compare head heights, as everyone was worried I was too low. I have plenty of other shots without cars – If you don’t want attention don’t ride a recumbent trike 😉 .

Vitus do have a long and venerable history (like Holdsworth), but, as you say, it’s the quality of the frame – Handbuilt? sub 800g? Limited run etc… that matters. All the Giant SL frames are handbuilt by carbon artisans in a separate workshop just like Colnago’s C64 (and unlike their other carbon frames that are now made at contract). I have no idea who makes the Vitus – possibly Giant. Merida make the Specialised, but the S-Works may be done elsewhere.

Who made your bike?

For nice carbon, I’m actually a bigger fan of Look and Cyfac. Cyfac and the 795 really are superbikes.

Whilst not following traditional aerofoil profiles, as bikes are different to planes, the ZX1 utilises Kammtail tube profiles, where the trailing edge of the tube is squared off. 

They obviously don’t realise that Kammtail originated on cars .

 The position of those levers makes me sad.

HOLY HOOD ANGLES, BATMAN!

No idea why you would class a spesh as a superb bike but not a giant. I’d class the top of the range propel as a superbike without a doubt.

My qualifier would be..

Tour proven frame

Top of the range groupset

Ludicrously expensive wheels

No expense spared finishing kit

The op’s bike fails on at least 2 of those

#disappointed

thought this was about motorbikes

Not sure there is much left of the old vitus brand in the new stuff.

As for super bikes imo most large main brands can’t be as you see to many of them

bolting on some nice wheels and top group set does not make a super bike , it’s all about the little details.

HOLY HOOD ANGLES, BATMAN!

Aye,whatever,still looks like the bars on our paperboy’s bike.

😉

HOLY COCKPIT ODDITY BATMAN!

I have to admit when I read I was expecting to see something with an Italian badge rather than a Vitus…

While you will struggle to separate me from my hare shirt, I do think a true “super bike” needs all the conspicuous consumption boxes ticking including a “heritage” brand and these days, invisible cabling, leccy shifting and all teh aeroz…

That Vitus is just a posh Vitus at the end of the day, not really  super enough…

I’d say something like a Mason is a sensibly priced super bike. It’s a bike, that on paper is fairly normal, but you see it and without even recognising all the tiny neat details, you know that it is special.