Is there a better endurance road bike than the Specialized Roubaix?
12-31-14, 05:45 PM
#1
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Is there a better endurance road bike than the Specialized Roubaix?
If so, what gets your vote?
12-31-14, 06:05 PM
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Mondonico ELOS?
12-31-14, 06:08 PM
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You're actually asking whether anyone has a better bike than you own? Seriously?
12-31-14, 06:10 PM
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A Hi-Mod Cannondale Carbon Synapse would be pretty nice.
I've got a highly watered down version.
I've got a highly watered down version.
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"The older you do get, the more rules they're gonna try to get you to follow. You just gotta keep livin', man, L-I-V-I-N." - Wooderson
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"The older you do get, the more rules they're gonna try to get you to follow. You just gotta keep livin', man, L-I-V-I-N." - Wooderson
'14 carbon Synapse - '12 CAAD 10 5 - '99 Gary Fisher Big Sur
Last edited by dtrain; 12-31-14 at 06:15 PM.
12-31-14, 06:12 PM
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I like the Cannondale Synapse myself as well....since oh I don't know....I bought one. 
12-31-14, 06:17 PM
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Trek Domane is best endurance design I've seen yet. Take one for a test ride and see for yourself.
12-31-14, 06:22 PM
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My Reynolds steel Bianchi is comfy all day for sure...and it's very pedestrian compared to a Mondonico.
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"The older you do get, the more rules they're gonna try to get you to follow. You just gotta keep livin', man, L-I-V-I-N." - Wooderson
'14 carbon Synapse - '12 CAAD 10 5 - '99 Gary Fisher Big Sur
"The older you do get, the more rules they're gonna try to get you to follow. You just gotta keep livin', man, L-I-V-I-N." - Wooderson
'14 carbon Synapse - '12 CAAD 10 5 - '99 Gary Fisher Big Sur
12-31-14, 06:22 PM
#12
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I have been in the market for an endurance road bike for a while, and my personal force-rank right now is the Bianchi Infinito CV, followed by the Domane, then the Roubaix. The Volagi Liscio looks interesting, but I have not had the opportunity to see one in real life.
12-31-14, 06:27 PM
#13
~>~
853 Mercian Audax w/ 11 cog DI2 and full mudguards for improved cognitive dissonance.
Traditional high quality steel made-to-order framesets built to the owner's specification with modern drivetrains and components would excel at long distances at pace on secondary roads with modest loads as they have since the days of the British Clubman and French Randonneur designs.
Versatility is the hallmark of the design: One bike for fast paced 100-1,200KM self supported events in a wide variety of weather conditions or a leisurely weekend credit card tour.
-Bandera
Traditional high quality steel made-to-order framesets built to the owner's specification with modern drivetrains and components would excel at long distances at pace on secondary roads with modest loads as they have since the days of the British Clubman and French Randonneur designs.
Versatility is the hallmark of the design: One bike for fast paced 100-1,200KM self supported events in a wide variety of weather conditions or a leisurely weekend credit card tour.
-Bandera
Last edited by Bandera; 12-31-14 at 07:52 PM.
12-31-14, 07:20 PM
#15
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I test rode both the Domane, The Specialized Roubaix, a Jamis forgot-the-name and ended up with a Fuji Gran Fondo. I know it doesn't have the street creed as some of the other brands but the bike kicks ass specially after you considered that it cost me significantly less than the other bikes I tried.
12-31-14, 08:07 PM
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I rode around 15 bikes this summer.
The latest Roubaix I thought had a nice ride but I found the handling to twitchy.
I don't like the Domane personally - has a very "dead" ride feel.
The Trek Emonda is a very nice bike. It does a **really** nice job of both staying stable and isolating you from road vibration and bumps. When I test rode it I aimed it at various potholes until I got to something basketball sized and it will still - amazingly - good. This would be my choice for an endurance bike over the Domane in my opinion. It's drawbacks is that it doesn't have as much of a "connected to the road" feel as some other bikes. Let me make a comparison - on a 1-10 scale, a Tarmac gets a 10 but the ride feels relatively harsh. The Domane gets a 0 but is isolates you from most vibration. The Emonda gets a 5, with the same vibration absorbtion as the Domane.
I rode the steel Volagi, it was a fun ride, but steel didn't absorb vibration that great when hitting a pothole. The carbon version was fine but didn't wow me - I think the Emonda is clearly a more vibration absorbing bike.
The latest Roubaix I thought had a nice ride but I found the handling to twitchy.
I don't like the Domane personally - has a very "dead" ride feel.
The Trek Emonda is a very nice bike. It does a **really** nice job of both staying stable and isolating you from road vibration and bumps. When I test rode it I aimed it at various potholes until I got to something basketball sized and it will still - amazingly - good. This would be my choice for an endurance bike over the Domane in my opinion. It's drawbacks is that it doesn't have as much of a "connected to the road" feel as some other bikes. Let me make a comparison - on a 1-10 scale, a Tarmac gets a 10 but the ride feels relatively harsh. The Domane gets a 0 but is isolates you from most vibration. The Emonda gets a 5, with the same vibration absorbtion as the Domane.
I rode the steel Volagi, it was a fun ride, but steel didn't absorb vibration that great when hitting a pothole. The carbon version was fine but didn't wow me - I think the Emonda is clearly a more vibration absorbing bike.
12-31-14, 10:01 PM
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A couple of years ago the Roubaix was one of the popular choices. Now it seems that most prefer the Infinito or the Emonda.
01-01-15, 05:33 AM
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To me, the best endurance bike is the Roubaix but not the latest SL4 which has a very stiff rear triangle. It rides more like a Tarmac. So I like the SL3 Roubaix.
The big discriminator for me is the crappy seat posts that come on many bikes including the Domane and Cannondale. Specialized puts a std. 27.2 diameter post on their bikes other than the Venge which allows you to run the post you prefer which for me is a 2 bolt post with the setback I prefer.
I believe the SL5 Roubaix will be the bike to get as no doubt they will tame the rear triangle stiffness. Similarly, I suspect that Trek will resolve the front end harshness of the Domane by incorporating what they did with the Emonda which gives the bike what many describe as a magic carpet ride.
Btw, OP...a bike to consider if you are a speed guy is a S2 or S3 Cervelo. It has the ride of an endurance bike...or close to it, but is very aerodynamic and the geometry won't break your back. A great bike...but also has a crappy proprietary one bolt seat clamp which is also a shame.
PS: what Paul stated above about the Roubaix being twitchy is absurd. It is 'thee' most stable handling bike I have ever ridden including high speed descending. The bike handles like it is on rails and every test review says the same thing.
Spesh Engineer's review of the SL4 Roubaix...every inch of the bike is thoughtfully designed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YfP70Na6ws
Last edited by Campag4life; 01-01-15 at 06:31 AM.
01-01-15, 07:01 AM
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01-01-15, 07:16 AM
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853 Mercian Audax w/ 11 cog DI2 and full mudguards for improved cognitive dissonance.
Traditional high quality steel made-to-order framesets built to the owner's specification with modern drivetrains and components would excel at long distances at pace on secondary roads with modest loads as they have since the days of the British Clubman and French Randonneur designs.
Versatility is the hallmark of the design: One bike for fast paced 100-1,200KM self supported events in a wide variety of weather conditions or a leisurely weekend credit card tour.
-Bandera
Traditional high quality steel made-to-order framesets built to the owner's specification with modern drivetrains and components would excel at long distances at pace on secondary roads with modest loads as they have since the days of the British Clubman and French Randonneur designs.
Versatility is the hallmark of the design: One bike for fast paced 100-1,200KM self supported events in a wide variety of weather conditions or a leisurely weekend credit card tour.
-Bandera
Seriously, I really don't know how wonderful the Mercian is. I just know that those people have been building, comfortable, gorgeous steel bikes since the beginning of time. I have always wanted one, but just never gotten around to it. Shame on me.
Last edited by rpenmanparker; 01-01-15 at 07:38 AM.
01-01-15, 07:36 AM
#23
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I have a BMC GF01. It is really swell, it was a game-changer for me. First full year of cycling and I've ridden ten 100+ mile rides on it, including a double century. Lots of climbing type rides. Such a perfect bike for me that I call it the Magic Bike.
Downsides are that its expensive and there are limited BMC dealers, so for me I have an hour plus drive to get to a dealer (and BMC does not work directly with customers in any way, all goes through a deal, even small parts).
Downsides are that its expensive and there are limited BMC dealers, so for me I have an hour plus drive to get to a dealer (and BMC does not work directly with customers in any way, all goes through a deal, even small parts).
01-01-15, 08:03 AM
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No. The Domane has a split personality and not a very good design. This is my opinion. The bike is inordinantly harsh in front and soft and springy in back. It feels disconnected. OP, a better bike is the Emonda if you like Treks. I don't like the one bolt seat mast on any Trek and why I stay away.
To me, the best endurance bike is the Roubaix but not the latest SL4 which has a very stiff rear triangle. It rides more like a Tarmac. So I like the SL3 Roubaix.
The big discriminator for me is the crappy seat posts that come on many bikes including the Domane and Cannondale. Specialized puts a std. 27.2 diameter post on their bikes other than the Venge which allows you to run the post you prefer which for me is a 2 bolt post with the setback I prefer.
I believe the SL5 Roubaix will be the bike to get as no doubt they will tame the rear triangle stiffness. Similarly, I suspect that Trek will resolve the front end harshness of the Domane by incorporating what they did with the Emonda which gives the bike what many describe as a magic carpet ride.
Btw, OP...a bike to consider if you are a speed guy is a S2 or S3 Cervelo. It has the ride of an endurance bike...or close to it, but is very aerodynamic and the geometry won't break your back. A great bike...but also has a crappy proprietary one bolt seat clamp which is also a shame.
PS: what Paul stated above about the Roubaix being twitchy is absurd. It is 'thee' most stable handling bike I have ever ridden including high speed descending. The bike handles like it is on rails and every test review says the same thing.
Spesh Engineer's review of the SL4 Roubaix...every inch of the bike is thoughtfully designed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YfP70Na6ws
To me, the best endurance bike is the Roubaix but not the latest SL4 which has a very stiff rear triangle. It rides more like a Tarmac. So I like the SL3 Roubaix.
The big discriminator for me is the crappy seat posts that come on many bikes including the Domane and Cannondale. Specialized puts a std. 27.2 diameter post on their bikes other than the Venge which allows you to run the post you prefer which for me is a 2 bolt post with the setback I prefer.
I believe the SL5 Roubaix will be the bike to get as no doubt they will tame the rear triangle stiffness. Similarly, I suspect that Trek will resolve the front end harshness of the Domane by incorporating what they did with the Emonda which gives the bike what many describe as a magic carpet ride.
Btw, OP...a bike to consider if you are a speed guy is a S2 or S3 Cervelo. It has the ride of an endurance bike...or close to it, but is very aerodynamic and the geometry won't break your back. A great bike...but also has a crappy proprietary one bolt seat clamp which is also a shame.
PS: what Paul stated above about the Roubaix being twitchy is absurd. It is 'thee' most stable handling bike I have ever ridden including high speed descending. The bike handles like it is on rails and every test review says the same thing.
Spesh Engineer's review of the SL4 Roubaix...every inch of the bike is thoughtfully designed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YfP70Na6ws
01-01-15, 08:56 AM
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Each to his own, but the number of Domanes sold would say your opinion is minority by far. Domanes have outsold all other Endurance frames out there. I do agree with you on the Emonda it is also an excellent frame, I own both and you can't go wrong with either in my opinion. As for single bolt seat clamp, I have never owned a bike with more than one bolt seat clamp. At 6' 215 lbs I have never had a seat tube or mast move on me yet. Two nuts is preferable just above the seat mast/tube for sure.
