+1... none of my bikes has the stock bartape on them. I change it out right away usually to Fizik Dual or Cinelli cork to get my desired bar feel and color coordination. :)

Congrats!

Great bike! Isn't it nice to be back on a bike? I did the same thing last year - bought a CAAD 10-4 after 22 years of not cycling. 17 months later I weigh less than I did 22 years ago and my resting heartrate is down to 45 bpm. Gotta love the bike.

longshot, but is anyone interested at all in trading a 50cm cannondale CX9 cyclocross frame for a 50cm caad9 road frame of similar vintage?

though, if you're on a 50cm caad9 you probably need a smaller than 50cm cx9... so.. there's that.

wrong forum sir

New CAAD!
 

Got it at last!

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=274235

2011 CAAD 10-3, 63cm (I'm 6'4''). Pretty happy with the deal I got @LBS, $1790 + tax. Got look keo 2 carbons and carbon shoes at discount as well to round out the package.

The downer? The maiden voyage today was marked by a pinch flat after only 4 miles :mad:. Going to have to spend more attention not hitting rocks, as that was never an issue with my cyclocross.

First upgrade should be tires. GP4000s if you're looking for a recommendation. Light and strong.

I have stated early on this thread i was getting a Caad, did not happen.Had a great year on the Synapse.Now once again i am longing for a Caad. My question is are the differences in the 10-3 vs. 10-5 a big enough difference to just go for the 10-3?

Groupset: The 10-3 comes with Ultegra, the 10-5 comes with 105. Ultegra's higher up the Shimano hierarchy.
Components: The 10-3 come with the C2 version of their stem and seatpost (more carbon, lighter). The 10-5 comes with the C3 version (carbon-wrapped alu).
Wheelset: The 10-3 comes with Mavic Aksium, the 10-5 with Shimano RS-10. The Aksium's a better wheel IMO.

I'd go with the 10-3 if both are priced the same - more value for your money.

Also the 10-3 comes with a FSA SL-K Light carbon crankset, which is way nicer (especially in terms of looks!) than the FSA Gossamer (Pro?) that comes with the 10-5.

If I was in the market for a caad10 I'd get the 10-2. For the extra $350 it's a nice package and I like the color better.

WOW.That is a very nice Caad,i guess i never looked at the sram ones and you are correct on the colors. My question is would i be happy with a 10-5 or should i figure out a way to go to the next level. Now that 10-2 looks great, but out the door is going to be over $ 3000.00

2013 CAADX Tiagra
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8321/8...21b78eff_n.jpg
IMG_2321.JPG by akozub, on Flickr
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8031/8...f842f010_n.jpg
IMG_2320.JPG by akozub, on Flickr

Sram and shimano shift and feel different. Ride both to see which you prefer. Personally, I like Sram and would go for the 10-4 before a 10-5. However, most people would be happy with a 10-5 - they'd just likely be more happy with a 4, 3, 2 or zero (or whatever they are calling that one).

thanks for your help....

Photo is private

Thanks, think I fixed it. Please let me know if it still doesn't work.

Very nice

Does anyone here ride 30-100 miles on their CAAD? I have been eye balling the CAAD 10 5 as my first road bike, but not sure the more "aggressive geometry" would let me do longer rides. I currently ride a hybrid and can comfortably do a 33 mile ride (1400+ feet) in 2 hours, but often ride 50+ mile rides on the weekend and on my days off. Should I buy the synapse instead? I plan on doing test rides on both bikes before I buy, but was wondering what the masses of CAAD cultists on here have to say about longer distances on the CAAD geometry.

Thanks in advance

My CAAD8 is comfortable to me for distances - I rode 55 miles yesterday. I think the CAAD8 is a more relaxed geometry than some CAAD frames, so that might make a difference to some.

To some folks here 50 miles is a warmup - but I'm working on general fitness and it's a very good workout.

I've been doing 50+ miles per ride twice a week for a while. I'm planning to ride the CAAD8 in a full century in October.

I do centuries and metric centuries w/no problems on my CAAD10, but we don't have the same body. I personally find the aggressive geometry more comfortable on my sit bones. Also it's nice to be low when it's windy outside.

I do 40-50 mile rides on my caad9 without issue but not when I first bought it. It took time to build up some flexibility. I have a synapse too which is supposed to be more comfort oriented but I really don't feel much difference from the more agressive position of the caad. I have a 40 mile loop with 2,000 feet of climbing and use the caad for about 1 of every 3 rides.

That said, if you are looking for a long distance bike the Synapse is probably the better option in general but you'll need a few rides in to know for sure. I bought a Synapse because I thought it would be better suited to longer rides but really it was just a good excuse to add another bike :)

I ride:
- Short-fast rides (e.g. 26 miles @ 21mph), as well as
- Very long distances (about 8 centuries at between 17 and 19mph this year, regularly ride 130 miles / 200 km brevets at 17mph, did 150 miles at 17.5 mph last month, and longest single ride this year = 230 miles)
... All on a CAAD - at age 55.

So I'd suggest that although a CAAD is best suited to the first kind of ride I listed, it's pretty good at longer distances too.

Unless you really drop your stem height the geometry of the Caad 10 is not that aggressive. Stock handlebar height is almost equal to the seat height. My setup is aggressive (10mm from slammed) and I've done several rides in excess of 150 miles, and many more centuries and I'd say your saddle choice is probably more important. If you need the upright position a hybrid provides, for your back or flexibility, I don't think any road bike would suit you. But both the Synapse and the Caad could be setup for the same position.

I've been doing some comparing between the caad 10 5 and 3. I have a couple of questions and where else better to ask them than here.

1. Why is it that the only 2013 caad 10 with a carbon seat post is the 3?

2. Weight aside, which crank do you think is better? The 5 has the FSB alloy crank and the 3 has the SLK carbon crank. I weigh about 175lbs and want the bike to be durable 1st and light weight 2nd.

Thanks in advance, David