So I have several triathlon bikes in my stable. My favorite thus far has been my 2015 Specialized Shiv. I just really like that bike, it feels like it was designed for me. And it's fast. Prior to that bike, I was riding a Ridley Cheetah. It's an older bike but decent enough, it just never really felt like it fit me well.

But a couple months ago I ran across a Craigslist ad for a Cervelo P2. The bike was listed as a parts bike because the girl that had it believed the CF handlebars were cracked. I looked at it and got it for a very reasonable price. I ended up buying it more on a lark than anything. I don't think the bars were cracked, but I replaced them anyway with a different set up. I also replaced the original front fork that had been cut super short with one that gave me another couple inches of stack.

So I'm finally getting this bike sorted out. I don't think it's totally there yet, but close. Yesterday I took it out for a ride. I took it on a known course I've ridden several times in the recent past. Conditions were near ideal. A little warmer than I prefer, but no wind. I've ridden this same route in similar conditions but my best average for this 36 mile route was 18.1mph. Until yesterday.

Yesterday I rode that same route at an average of 18.5mph. I was shocked. That is not an insignificant differential. Nearly a half mph difference. Extrapolate that out over the course of an Olympic distance triathlon and we're in the neighborhood of 4-5 minutes. At least for me, that's almost half a kilometer on the run.

As much as I like my Shiv, it now has serious competition. And the Cervelo is just a basic older CF frame with shallow alloy wheels and butyl tubes. I won't be doing a "comparo" any time soon, but maybe when it cools off in a couple months I'll do back-to-back rides between the two and get a more accurate comparison.