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Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted
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Hi All,

I am looking for input from the collective brain trust on Slowtwitch.

I have qualified for 70.3 WC multiple times and chasing Kona so am focussed on speed and long distance comfort and at nearly 50 years old free speed is valuable as the muscles don't grow so fast.

I have a 2016 Felt IA10 that I love but have recently been offered a decent subsidised price on a new Trek Speed Concept (can custom order from project one with a subsidy from my local bike shop). I like my Felt IA10 and suspect that for less coin, I could upgrade it to be very nice, maybe better than a new Speed Concept???. I am thinking Tri Rig Alpha x or Alpha One or 51 Speedshop mono bar, Omega X front brake, possibly 1x drive train (I race courses without too much hills). These upgrades cold cost $2k to $3k where the new bike would still cost $5-7k depending on options without 1x drivetrain.

Would a new Speed Concept be much faster / comfortable than an upgraded IA10 to warrant the extra spend?

If suggesting upgrading the IA10, have I missed any critical upgrades I should look at?
Last edited by: AP1: Nov 27, 19 0:46
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Re: Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted [AP1] [ In reply to ]
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I have massively upgraded & tricked out Felt IA16. I love it. There are only three bikes I could consider if upgrading for speed: Cervélo P5 disc, PX-Series, and P3X.

My perception is that there are these three bikes, and two tiers of "everyone else" below them. Felt IA and Trek Speed Concept are in the top tier. Those are close but generally slower at low yaw and faster at higher yaw. My gut is that the IA and Speed Concept are about the same in the wind tunnel. (The second tier are bikes that are close-ish, but not faster at any yaw.)

Yes, if you upgraded your IA10 with an Alpha X and Omega X, it would likely be faster than a new Speed Concept. (And, don't forget the IA draft box. I think that speeds it up too.)

I would upgrade the crankset on the IA. Yours is OK, but a bit heavy (mine was awful). I put a SRAM Red crankset on mine. Or go with one of the really fancy light and aero TT cranksets.
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Re: Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted [exxxviii] [ In reply to ]
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exxxviii wrote:
My perception is that there are these three bikes, and two tiers of "everyone else" below them.

That list seems a bit arbitrary. A P5-6 with Alpha bars is likely faster than those three. As is (probably) a Cube Aerium.
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Re: Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted [AP1] [ In reply to ]
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SC is faster, especially if you leverage its ability to get longer and lower into a fast TT position.

Because: the longer the race (Ironman), the more aerodynamics is important, and the lower your intensity is as a % of FTP. If you're shooting for Kona your position, equipment, and clothing need to be A++

E

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Re: Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted [BigBoyND] [ In reply to ]
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BigBoyND wrote:
That list seems a bit arbitrary. A P5-6 with Alpha bars is likely faster than those three. As is (probably) a Cube Aerium.
Not entirely arbitrary. There is a dearth of recent competitive comparisons between bikes. But, those that have been published over the past few years seem to always have the (old) P5 fastest, with the two tiers of groupings I describe. I did not reference the P5-6 because that is discontinued.

I have never seen the Cube Aerium compared to any bike in a wind tunnel test, so maybe it is faster. Or not.
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Re: Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted [BigBoyND] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for this reply. What upgrades did you put on your IA16 and which if these would you suggest were your favourite for performance improvement?
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Re: Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted [exxxviii] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for the reply Eric. I have seen that the Speed Concept seems to be lower, is this due to a lower bottom bracket?)

Also, I feel have always felt a bit cramped up on the felt in terms of reach. Do you think the Alpha X or Alpha One or other bars would allow a slightly longer reach to lengthen my position or is this more to do with the frame?
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Re: Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted [AP1] [ In reply to ]
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AP1 wrote:
Thanks for this reply. What upgrades did you put on your IA16 and which if these would you suggest were your favourite for performance improvement?

I ride a P5-6 with Enve 7.8 and a bunch of TriRig, Profile Design, D2Z, etc. goodies. My wife rides an IA16 though. She has HED Jet Blacks on her bike and I honestly sometimes wish I would have gone with those for braking. They are just as fast in straights as any wheel you'll find out there (usually top 1 or 2 in comparisons) but will save you several seconds in corners because you can brake much later with them (compare that to 30 seconds over an IM by using a rear disc over a 90mm rear wheel).

If I had an IA16 frame and blank slate, this is what I would do, roughly in order of significance:
- Hed Jet Black 6/9 or 9/9 (6/9, 9/disc if you can get two sets)
- GP5000 tires and latex tubes
- Profile design Aeria Ultimate stem and bottle, assuming the stem clears on the IA16
- TriRig Alpha Classic, Look Aergo, or USE R1 aerobars
- 1x setup with 11-32 cassette and an aero crankset (Rotor Flow, Campy Bullet, Vision Metron, Vision NS Track, Miche Pistard Air)
- TriRig front brake and skewers
- DA or Ultegra rear brake
- Speedplay aero pedals
- D2Z or Aerocoach extensions if not going with the Aergo
- Otion grips instead of bar tape
- Jagwire Road Elite Link cabling
- Bontrager XXX brake levers for easy brake adjustments
- A high BTS system that won't interfere with the draft box opening
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Re: Felt IA10 Upgrade or New Speed Concept - Input wanted [AP1] [ In reply to ]
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AP1 wrote:
Do you think the Alpha X or Alpha One or other bars would allow a slightly longer reach to lengthen my position or is this more to do with the frame?
AP1 wrote:
What upgrades did you put on your IA16 and which if these would you suggest were your favourite for performance improvement?
Not sure how the Alpha X reach would compare to a traditional stem & extensions setup. That would be a more expert commentary.

In terms of upgrades, this is my IA16 current state. I have upgrade most parts more than once to get to this. I think my favorites are the Alpha X and Omega X, because they are both functional and performance. 2nd favorite is probably the HED Jet Black wheels for the same reason.
  • HED Jet Black 9/Disc wheels
  • Tririg Omega X front & rear brakes
  • Tririg Alpha X bars with tilt
  • Profile T1+ Carbon extensions
  • Cane Creek headset
  • Shimano R805 Di2 drivetrain
  • XLab Torpedo bottle & cage on the Alpha X BTA Bracket
  • Pwraddr's Garmin mount extension stick
  • Garmin Edge 530
  • Cobb 55 saddle with Cobb rear mount hydration system
  • SRAM Red 22 170mm 52/36 crankset
  • Assioma Duo pedals
  • Premier Ultra Optimized Chain (with Premier's chain lube)
  • Ultegra 11-25 cassette
  • Continental Attack & Force tires
  • Vittoria Latex tubes

Last edited by: exxxviii: Dec 1, 19 19:01
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