I am crazy about the new Specialized Tricross SS. It looks so sweet on their site but my local dealer still doesn't have one in. Anyone pick one up yet? Anyone have thoughts on the Tri vs. San Jose?

no but i wish i was.

i posted up here about it and some older members got their panties in a bunch because they didn't believe me.

I just got one, picked it up last night. I haven't ridden enough yet to comment much.
I'll be racing it Sunday.

Talked with an owner last cx race I was at. He said it's a good bike for the money. His other bike is a geared Hunter, so he has access to a very nice whip to judge it against.

Pics? This sounds like a good one.Still need to replace my CX.

I got a chance to race my singlecross today. The course was not very technical, having said that the bike handled well. I ran the bike completely stock, heavy wheels and tires and all without any problems. When I got home I noticed that the rear wheel was rubbing and needs to be trued. I wonder how long I was racing with the brake rubbing?

Here are some more random thoughts...

With some race wheels and tires the bike would be significantly lighter. I don't have another rear wheel with a singlespeed freewheel. I was gonna put on a different front wheel on to race but I was too lazy to mess with the brake last night so I decided to leave the stock front wheel on. Then I figured why change the rear tire either.

I weighed the front wheel, 1005g with rimstrip and without the skewer. The skewer was 94g and the tire was 437g. Just swapping the front wheel you could easily save more than 400g (almost one pound).

It's a solid bike, I'm happy with it. I talked to a couple of other guys with the same bike and they're happy with them. I noticed that they have swapped brakes and gearing. I'm not close to the fastest guy out there and the stock 42x18 gearing was a little tall for me. A 42x20 would have been better, especially on the last few laps.

Overrall I'd give it a thumbs up, though I'd like to get some lighter wheels.

so what's the deal with the fork? is it rubber through those little things or is there some sort of vibration reduction or suspension system? i really liked the look and feel of the bike when i saw it in a store.

here's a pic from specialized for those interested:

There's no suspension. Just some rubber wrapped around the fork where the canti mounts are.

hmm. interesting.

https://www.daviswheelworks.com/bikes...ized/allez.htm

https://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkM...sp?spid=32208f
under 'features'...

looks like they're Speed Zertz inserts... and i think it's supposed to dampen vibration.

i've been riding mine almost daily as a commuter for the last 2 months and i dig it.
it being my first drop bar 700c bike (coming from bmx and mtb) it feels plenty light for me.
the wheels and tires have been handling oakland streets and train tracks well enough.
the stock gearing is a good balance for around town, uphill and down.
the shaped toptube does make shouldering more comfortable.
the brakes are only okay; i'll probably swap to salmon pads soon.

in 2 months it's only needed a few bolts tightened here and there,
but that's any bike, so i'd say it's in fair shape and is staying solid.
the wheels may need truing in another month, but that's pretty good too.

reasons i got the tricross over the san jose:
i liked the carbon fork (cushy) and v-brakes (lower profile).
for an all-weather bike i'd rather use aluminum, even though i love steel.
i could keep the stock seat (i didn't dig the stock san jose seat).

overall very happy with the purchase.
definitely getting my money's worth.
highly recommended.

I've been wanting to get a single speed bike for years, but living in the mountains of Western PA going single gear wasn't an option.

A job transfer just took me down to Williamsburg, VA and wanted to start commuting to work. I have a place to keep the bike indoors, a shower and a locker room. I even have access to a washer and dryer at my office for those rainy mornings.

I was stuck between getting a San Jose or a Single Cross.

I chose the Single Cross for the following reasons:

• I needed a bike with larger tires. I commute on the colonial parkway which is pebbled concrete and skinny cyclocross tires just won't cut it. I tried my standard road bike on there and my brains got shook like a martini.
• More flexible if I wanted to ditch the messenger bag at somepoint and add a rack/panniers. (Specilaized even makes custom racks just for thier cross bikes.
• Service. There is a Bianchi dealer in town, but I liked the service at the Specialized place a little better.
• The breaks were more condusive to commuting in the rain/sleet vs. the roadie style breaks.

While I really wanted a steel bike, the reasons listed above pushed me towards the Specialized Single Cross.

I've had it for about a month now and have commuted every day with it. I have about a 25 mile round trip ride on the Colonial Parkway. In the mornings it's pretty quite and I only have 2-3 cars pass me, but in the afternoon it can get busy with tourists so I'll have 50 or 60 cars pass me.

I'm still getting used to the single speed and quite frequently I'll search for the shifters when climbing an overpass or descending down a grade, but I really enjoy the simplicity of the bike. It's quite, simple and the lack of gears allows me to enjoy the ride instead of searching for the right gear. I've also stopped blaming my bike when I'm having a hard time and started blaming my fitness level.

In the past month I've seen deer, osprey, turles, rabits, ducks, geese and snakes on my ride. I've said good morning to other cyclists, kyakers, hikers and dog walkers. All of which I would have missed if I were still commuting.

My complaints right now are my hands are still going numb around mile 7, but that could be my position on the bike or the road conditions. I also wish the bike had disc brakes, there have been a few times I've gotten caught in a thunderstorm and could have used something more reliable than the mtn style brakes.

In the fall I hope to race in the Iron Cross race, but am a bit intimidated using a single speed ride. It may take me a long time to finish that race, but I'm bound to do it.

I think this bike is amazing for anyone wanting to navagate the potholes, ride the concrete and utilize the dirt paths to get to work.

If anyone offer opinions on the specialized rack or style of panniers to get, I'm all ears. I'd like to try to switch out the messenger bag from time to time and carry more items to work.

Got more questions about the bike, chime in and I'll see if I can answer them.

i was looking at the tricross single as well, but the reason i got the san jose was because i could get it for cheaper, it was steel, and bianchi as a company has had extensive experience with ss/fg offerings. but the tricross single is a sexy bike and i especially liked the v-brakes. in fact on my san jose i took off the stock cantis and put on avid sd sl's. and just fyi i don't race or cc but i do commute and go on occasional urban group rides.

Is there really a cable stop on the downtube of the production models?

Is this available frame-only?

Not on my bike. There is a cable stop only on the toptube for the rear brake.

No, I don't believe it is which is too bad because I like the frame but not the components. When I looked at one in a store, it was quite light but the hubs were "Specialized" and everything else is pretty much proprietary as well. I would imagine that you could have a great bike if you got a better wheelset but the spacing in the rear is 130mm; not a big deal but it is something that may detract some buyers.

Does proprietary mean having someone else build a component for you and have them stamp your name on it during manufacturing?

yeah, many in the industry would say the parts are OEM. which isn't technically a correct use of the term OEM (original equiment manufacturer) but it's a common one.

Thanks, I was really beginning to wonder what Splzd was thinking, because there appears to be a downtube cable stop on the stock photo. I was racking it up to hearing the "special ed" joke one too many times.