Who told you that? Stop listening to them.

The brand/type of component group has zero bearing on if it is more suited for hilly or flat areas. If they were referring to the cassette and front chainring combination, I still wouldn't agree. 50/34 front is fine for most people. Unless you are in dead flat Florida, shouldn't be a big issue. The rear cassette could be changed if you find it is missing the "perfect" gear out back. I doubt that would be the case though.


The apex is an ok deal. Shimano 105 is typically seen as a better value when looking at that tier of group from the major manufactures. Also, if having the most recent component trends is important, Apex may not be the best investment.

However, as a good starting tri bike, I think that would be a great bike that you could upgrade over time if you so desire. Just make sure it fits. For the record: I wouldn't listen to whoever told you about the components on the size.

I have the exact bike you're looking at and like it a lot. It is a mixed groupset, i.e. the rear derailleur is Rival but most of it is Apex. I changed out my crank to a Force, otherwise I'm bone stock and race with an 808/404 FC wheelset. Love it no real complaints and just maintenance with new chains, etc. My minor gripes... the seat clamp isn't rock solid but that might be user error and I had to replace my rear brake assembly (under warranty) because a bolt seized due to corrosion. On the bottom of the bottom bracket is a sweat collector of sort and I'm a heavy sweater.

I live in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and have raced hilly to flat courses on it... the stock gearing (50/34 - 11/28) is fine on the bike. If you want a tighter cassette, cassettes are reasonably priced and easy to change.

I have that exact bike. The SRAM TT 500 rear shift lever wore out prematurely IMO. It began by shifting into a higher gear on its own when I hit a bump. No rebuild kit available from SRAM so I had to replace it with front and rear shifter kit.
Also, as another poster said the seat clamp bolt is bad. Many have already been replaced under warranty. My seat post slipped all the way down. The old bolt is stamped with a 5NM torque spec and the new one is higher 7 maybe.

Cool... I'll stop worrying about it then and try to get the replacement. Mine doesn't slip all the way but it will creep down, especially if I hit some good bumps with my rear firmly on the seat.