Barrettscv 

I have a very comfortable steel framed bike that I use for everything from century rides to group rides to commuting. As a solo rider, I can maintain a 20 mph average for about 20 miles. However, the larger 28 size tires in non-aero wheels, combined with this bike, make any pace faster than this very challenging.

I'm considering a second bike that would be used for faster group rides and to help me optimize my century rides.

From all my research here, I find that very few reviews concerning century bikes optimized for speed.

These bikes have potential;

Specialized Roubaix
Fuji Roubaix
Giant OCR Composite
Jamis Eclipse
Felt Z15, Z25
Cervelo R3

Like most riders, I want a more comfortable position and better ride quality than any all-out race bike offers.

Are there faster bikes that make a good tool for century rides?

Michael

The Smokester

I often do Centuries on my Spec. Roubaix Expert with compact double. Changed out the saddle for a Brooks Professional and generally use DT Swiss R1.1 wheels although the originals are okay too. Have found that 25mm tires are more comfortable and also help protect the rims more. It's not as comfortable as my serious LD bike but a century is just no problem.

Shifty

You should add the Cannondale carbon Synapse to your list. Take one for a test ride.

northboundtrain

There are really only a couple of factors in the geometry of a bike that determine comfort. Most important are fore-aft saddle position and handle bar height.

On longer rides, your aren't applying as much torque to the pedals, so there is more weigh on your hands and butt. Moving the saddle backwards gets weight and pressure off your hands which helps alleviate numbness (you need a comfortable saddle of course). So a long distance bike should have the saddle further back, but for some reason very few manufacturers alter the seatpost angle from one model to the next -- even on touring specific frames. This makes no sense to me, but I suspect it streamlines manufacturing and most people don't really consider seatpost angle when buying a bike. For instance the Specialized Roubaix, Sequioa, and Tarmac all have the same 73.25 angle in the 56cm size. Each bike is made for a very different purpose ranging from racing to commuting/fitness. So with any bike, you should find a seatpost with as much offset as possible and slide the seat back as far as possible (you may eventually decide that's too far back and want to fine tune the position).

Handle bar height does vary widely from model to model, but you can change the height on any bike dramatically with your choice of stem and the number of headset spacers.

So my point is that regarding the two most critical factors, you can essentially make any racing bike as comfortable as any touring or "endurance" bike.

Front end geometry is another factor. Racing bikes have a steeper head tube angle, so they feel a little twitchier and ride a little harsher. This has an effect on perceived comfort, but I don't think it's all that significant.

The frame material and tire size noticeably effect road vibration and comfort on a long ride. My opinion is that you can't beat steel for a smooth ride, and there are some fairly lightweight steel frames out there from manufacturers like Waterford, Gunnar, Soma, Salsa, etc. 25c tires are a good compromise between comfort and speed.

I don't think I'd worry too much about aerodynamics. Whatever marginal benefit you get from something like aero wheels will probably be offset by their harsh ride and added weight depending on what alternative you choose. If you build up a bike from scratch, consider handbuilt 32 spoke wheels with Ultegra/Dura-Ace level hubs, some simple rims in the 400g range, and butted spokes. With D-A level hubs, you can build a nice pair of wheels that will compare favorably weight-wise with some of the higher end wheel sets. Plus they'll provide a smooth ride and be much easier to maintenance.

Lastly, you can't ignore fitness. It's certainly more important than anything bike related. If you are on a trajectory where you'll be improving your form significantly in the future, then centuries may eventually feel relatively easy and you'll have no comfort issues whatsoever even on a bike intended and set up for all out racing.

Road Fan

Northbound, thanks for sharing your experience and insights! I personally need a lot of work in the fitness area, but I'm working on it. I'm trying to plan out a comfy bike, too. I like long rides and want to go longer, maybe under the brevet structure, or maybe not. But the ridership comes first.

It sounds like a Rivendell road bike such as a Rambouillet would have all the characteristics you deem important. Because the designs are very similar, a Heron (the one for long distance riding) should fall into the same ballpark.

But, what about fore/aft weight distribution? Many articles on frame design and building say 45% of the bike weight should be on the front wheel. What do you think about that? I think that goal (if it is really a goal) would be helped by long chainstays.

Road Fan

Daveyboy

Specialized Roubaix comp (all CF)
Specialized alias saddle
changed bars to FSA wingpro (flat top bars)
DT Swiss RR 1.1 wheels
700 x 25 Conti GP 4000 tires

It's been very comfortable on my century rides (finished Flying Wheels in about 5 hours with it.) Have ridden a few double centuries on it as well.

Lately I've been eyeing the Cervelo RS (vs. the R3).

Bacciagalupe

I think it will be a good thing for you to have a second bike. However, I don't think changing the bike will significantly improve your performance.

In the context of a group ride, you're already drafting so the aero advantages of something like an R3 won't make much of a difference. Unless your rides are really fast or seriously hilly, it's also unlikely that the 1-2 pound frame weight difference of the newer bikes will make a difference.

If you're doing solo centuries, you might want to try aero bars; that's just about the only mechanical change you can make to improve your performance. Otherwise, things like an aero frame or aero wheels or a minor weight change are likely to reduce your century time only by a few minutes.

Another thing to consider is that any improvements due to a mechanical change to the bike is essentially a "one-shot." I.e. if somehow you manage to get a 5% improvement from switching bikes, then you've just gotten to a slightly higher plateau and you're done. In comparison, by training properly you will hopefully gain continual improvements....

northboundtrain

I think that's right. If you look at some of the "sport touring" models like the Gunnar Sport, Soma Smoothie ES, or Salsa Casseroll, the CS length is 425-430mm. The intent of slightly longer chainstays on these frames might also be for heal clearance if a rack and panniers is being used, but it does improve comfort/stability.

Richard Cranium

There are hundreds of bicycle models using dozens of combinations of materials. Using your current bike as a starting point, simply getting an identical bike with 700c wheels and outfitting it with high-performance tires and tubes is the logical choice.

Keep that in mind while amusing yourself about how some new bike frame is going to feel on some unknown century on some unknown roads with some unknown hills - well you get it......

ericm979

The R3 has a shorter head tube than say a Specialized Roubaix. If you want to have your bars relatively high compared to your saddle, it may not be the right choice for you. OTOH, having your bars high puts you into the wind and requires more power to maintain a given speed. The lower you can get your bars, the faster you'll go for the same power output. Obviously you don't want them lower than is comfortable.

The Cervelo RS is an R3 with a taller head tube, slightly longer chainstays, curved seat stays, and slightly cheaper and thus heavier carbon. The longer chainstays are not a bad thing, I wouldn't mind them on my R3.

A good road racing bike is a good century bike... lots of road races are roughly century distance. I have done plenty of long races and centuries or longer on my R3 and it's been fine for me.

late

Pretty much any road bike with relaxed (non-race) geometry.
My ride..

Gunnar Sport

There is a tradeoff between performance and comfort, and every company has a slightly different recipe.

Btw, randonneur bikes are made to go long and fast, and might be something to look into. Bike Quarterly recently gave a very positive review for the Boulder Bicyles Rando..
https://www.renehersebicycles.com/Randonneur%20bikes.htm

Barrettscv 

This is what I have been using for commuting, solo rides and the occasional century. It's been a great all around bike. It can be fast; today I rode 61 miles in 3 hours 21 minutes of riding time. I only had to get off the bike twice to refill my bottle and get a little food.

I worked with a professional fitter while selecting the frame. The Soma Double Cross in either a 58 or 60 frames size could be made to fit, but the 60 was closer to ideal. The fitting revealed that the 58 size would have required a well extended seatpost with rearward offset, this would have put my hips rearward of the ideal position to drive the crank. The solution was the 60cm frame size. The seatpost selected would have a zero offset to put the hips in the right place over the BB. The handlebars would be positioned by a 110mm stem positioned at a normal height above the tall Soma headtube.

I decided that Get a grip (my LBS) should build the bike. They disassembled the Felt doner bike, applied Framesaver the Soma, installed the BB & headset, finished the assembly and installed a computer for $150.

The result;




Below: Ridley 4ZA Zornyc carbon CX fork, Cane Creek headset, Felt 1.3 6061 Butted Alloy Bar, Felt 1.2cm 3D-Forged Stem, Shimano 105 brifters, Tektro Oryx brakes with Tektro RX bar-top levers, Mavic CXP-22 Double-Wall Rims and DT Doubled Butted Champion Spokes, Felt Precision Sealed-Bearing Hubs & 700x28 Continental Gatorback tires



Below: 175mm Sram S300 GXP CX compact double crank with a 46 X 38t ring pair, Shimano CX SPD pedals, Ultegra derailleur



Below: Ultegra derailleur, 105 12-25 cassette



I am still thinking of a second bike that will be faster.

Daveyboy's bike sound nearly perfect;

Specialized Roubaix comp (all CF)
Specialized alias saddle
changed bars to FSA wingpro (flat top bars)
DT Swiss RR 1.1 wheels
700 x 25 Conti GP 4000 tires

The Felt Z35 looks very good, but I would need to upgrade the wheels.

A Soma Smoothie ES with Campy 11 speed group would be an improvement also.

The Salsa Pistola looks good and is a good value.

For now, I can use the Double Cross to improve my fitness, but I dream of faster days.

Michael

longbeachgary

Sounds like you're doing great with the bike you have. You could buy another one EXACTLY the same.

Bacciagalupe

Again, I gotta say.... Unless you put some really heavy and/or slow wheels on your cross bike, I can't think of a mechanical reason why any of the bikes on your list will be noticeably faster.

You'd have to step up to a fairly aggressive racing bike, like a Specialized Tarmac, Giant TCR or a Cervelo S1/S2 to get any sort of improvement. That could backfire for longer rides, if the ride position and/or shock absorption is less comfortable. And again, any sort of improvement will be a tiny boost and you'll plateau right away.

You could even do a test: put the narrowest tires on the cross bike. If 28's are the narrowest possible, then get the slickest and highest-PSI tires you can find on the bike. I doubt you will be able to reliably quantify any performance change over numerous 50-mile rides.

These are bicycles, not motorcycles. Changing parts will not make the engine work any harder or more efficiently.

If you want to ride faster, then do the work and start training.

Barrettscv 

I'll consider your test. I'm changing wheels to Open Pro's and I'll put 700 x 25 Conti Grand Prix 4000 tires and give it a try. I'll also test ride some of the bikes listed and will record ride time over 60 miles.

You may be right.. I should try to find out for myself.

I will, without a doubt, accelerate more quickly on group rides. Longer rides might not see much benefit.

Michael

kaNUK

Not sure a second bike would help all that much. I just rode my longest ride in about 20 years (116 miles) on my Cannondale Six. It has "race" oriented geometry, with 23 mm tires and an Arione "racing" seat. The setup also has the bars about 10 cm lower than the seat. I felt surprisingly good at the end of it. Not because the bike is the best long distance specialist out there, but because I'm used to it, and it fits me perfectly. The only change I made was to run 100 psi in the tires (about 15 lower than normal) to accommodate the rough chip-seal road surface on this route.

Cheers,
kaNUK

PS - On the other hand: Maybe I was able to maintain the 20 mph average because it's a fast bike? Also you can never have enough bikes, so don't let me stop you!

The Smokester

A point to be made is that a lighter, racier bike is easier to keep in a pace line than a heavier bike. This can get one through a Century faster. So I think for this reason the OP is asking about bikes that are light and racy but also comfortable.

bmike

most bikes aren't fast without the rider.

at the dull end of the sport, its the rider that can offer the most potential for increase in performance (assuming reasonable comfort, good fit, etc.). at the sharp end i could see how the smallest changes could affect tiny % of performance increases... but at the upper end, where you are trying to squeeze out every tiny bit of speed and give up comfort, luggage, durability, etc. etc.


and when looking at long distance bikes... you might also consider what you plan to carry and how comfortable do you want to be in inclement weather. and consider the option to go to wider tires - wider than what most 'race' bikes will allow due to frame clearances.

bmike

narrow, high pressure tires aren't always the fastest... dig around for some back issues of bicycle quarterly and check out some of the randon. lists...

mattm

But how much heavier?

I think if anything the cross geometry of the OP's bike might be holding him back on the road, and just getting a road bike will speed up overall riding. Gunnar is a good start, along with the other choices listed by the OP.

But I don't think it's all about the weight. I don't really do "fast centuries" but Jan Heine does fast 1200k's (fastest North American PBP finisher '07) on a 22 lb bike from the 70's.

If you're doing solo centuries aero wheels may help you speed up over long distance. Something like Williams which aren't carbon so perhaps more durable for longer rides.

The Smokester

I agree with what you are saying here. I am just keeping in mind that the OP is asking about Centuries as distinguished from much longer rides. In my mind this makes a difference. I have a Gunnar Sport with 36-spoke Ultegra wheels (about 22 lb + bags+stuff) and it is very comfortable riding solo and for mileage beyond 100 miles. But, if I wanted to just do 100 miles drafting others at the fastest possible pace it would be on the lighter plastic Roubaix with the lighter (and stiffer) DT Swiss R1.1 wheels (about 18.5 lb and no bags and little stuff).

Barrettscv 

Yes, this is the usage I have in mind.

The existing Soma Double Cross would be set up for credit card touring, commuting or any event where some load capacity is needed. Most of these would be multi-day events. The Soma is comfortable, tough, can be re-geared at a modest cost and it can carry 20 lbs on racks, if needed.

The new bike would be oriented towards comfort over a 6 hour period, and would be used without panniers except maybe a seat bag for a few basic items. It would also be my weekday night group-ride-bike for 20-30 mph travel over 30 miles.

I'll try to test ride some bikes over this summer.

Michael

chewybrian 

Can you tell us more? What kind of bike; pics; links? I'm not disputing, just curious.

ilike3bikes

I have a Cervelo RS and I am very happy with it. I think the Cervelo R3 and Cannondale Super Six would also be good choices.

unterhausen

he had the fastest mixed tandem in the 2003 PBP on a restored 1946 Rene Herse tandem.