http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/new-specialized-tarmac-spotted-at-criterium-du-dauphine/
Thoughts? I’m guessing this will be a love it/hate it thing
No hate, but looks kind of plain.
I really like it, actually. It would be really great if it were more aero than the current tarmac, while also riding like an all around bike, without lots of annoying, proprietary parts.
I think it looks pretty slick with a few new aero features without being totally proprietary.
It could be a nice all around bike option!
Yeah I like it. Looks ok with the VIAS style rear triangle. I am sure the sloping top tube won’t be to everyone’s liking. Could be a good option especially for short course.
without lots of annoying, proprietary parts.I read elsewhere that the seat post was D shaped.
I don’t know much about road bike fit but why would that be a big negative? Is there a huge need to have an after-market seat post?
lots of folks like to angle the saddle to one side just a smidge. can’t when the post is not round. dealbreaker for me.
It’s a bit of a negative, but I don’t know how much. Part of it depends on the price of the OEM units. Proprietary posts can be a bit of a hassle if it comes with a different setback than you require, or if one breaks while traveling.
A 27.2mm unit can be found everywhere.
With the recent sub 900g mtb hardtail, I’m going to venture that this thing goes sub 750g in a 56cm… remember, they scooped up Peter Denk, the man behind the original Addict and all of the Supersix frames
And I love the direct mount brakes… but can’t wait to see the disc version (special fork like BMC and 3T recently did?)
I think the most interesting thing will be what they do with the wheels on the disc-version. I’ve wanted to upgrade my road bike for several seasons now and the whole cluster-f*** that Specialized introduced with the proprietary-SCS hub format made going for one of their disc-options a complete non-starter.
I think all of the new disc-models of the Roubaix, Crux and Diverge are running 12x 142mm thru-axles now, so that at least seems like a no-brainer especially given that Shimano committed to this format with the new Dura Ace 9100 wheels. Are they going to continue with the SCS wheel format? Is that necessary with the 12x 142mm rear hub? I find it hard enough keeping up with all the other standards out there let alone all this proprietary stuff on top.
I like Specialized bikes and gear so I hope this release conforms to something like an industry consensus on disc-wheel formats and we can all just move forwards!
Bikeradar did a report following Taipei bike show about the disc-wheel standards that were agreed to at meeting between the UCI and the major bike manufactures for use by neutral service at races. It is hard to believe any of the big companies will not accept this standard on road bikes moving forward even though accepting wheels from neutral service isn’t really even important for pro-racers.
That said all bets are off for anything not explicitly a ‘road race’ bike (Crux, diverge, etc) where I suspect we will see a lot more proprietary formats.
even though accepting wheels from neutral service isn’t really even important for pro-racers.
It isn’t? I’m not a pro, but in an amateur race I once double-flatted about 10 minutes into a road race (pot-hole). I started swearing, then a bright yellow Mavic neutral support car pulled up as if descending from heaven, swapped out my wheels in about 15 seconds. Then drafted me back up to the field. Felt so pro.
I think it’s definitely important for pros since the team cars are often following the break or the leaders. Or aren’t allowed on the course at all for lower-profile races.
Here’s Shimano neutral support:
That’s hot!
I don’t know much about road bike fit but why would that be a big negative? Is there a huge need to have an after-market seat post?
I have a 2017 tarmac. It’s a great bike. I wouldn’t mind racing it another year or two. There are only a handful of weaknesses in the old tarmac
- It doesn’t have direct mount brakes. I had direct mount brakes on my Emonda SLR and loved them. Sure, the standard DuraAce brakes on my tarmac are “good enough” but i think direct mount are better. The 2018 tarmac solves this
- It not very aero. I’m sure it’s not any worse than other bikes in the category, but always bugged me that the Allez Sprint looked more aero (and had way better paint jobs). This new tarmac looks more aero, and probably is.
- It’s not very light, compared to other bikes in the category. For a non-aero bike, it should weigh less IMO. My Emonda was way lighter. I haven’t read a weight of the 2018 tarmac yet.
- The S-Works seatpost that came with my bike had a single bolt clamp. It looks like the proprietary post on the 2018 has the same clamp. I’ve had it torqued at 14nm (like over 120 in/lb) and the nose of the saddle still dropped on large bumps. Even though i commented about the weight of the bike in #3, I would still prefer the option of adding a few grams to have a 2 bolt seat clamp rather than a single bolt. The design of the Thompson post is much better. A Thompson fits the 2017 tarmac, but I don’t know if there will be any aftermarket posts available for this 2018 bike.