Best Aero Road Bike for Tri's?

Triathlon Forum
1

I apologize if this is a repeat post, probably a common topic, if there’s is something I missed in my search feel free to point me there!

I’m in the market for a new bike, I do 2-4 half iron tri’s a year, maybe working up to a full IM, and ride in centuries, group rides, etc. I’m looking at the aero road market for a bike that primarily does well for road, but can be converted to a decent tri bike with a saddle adjustment to get a tri seatube angle (reversible post, forward clamp position, etc) and clamp-on aerobars. I’ve pretty much narrowed it down to three: Cervelo S3, Felt AR2, Giant Propel. Here’s what I’ve learned about each:

Cervelo S3: From reviews and data, sounds like a great road bike with stiffness and sprinting advantages over the more aero S5 (and I like to paint scheme better). The stock seatpost only has one clamp position (20mm offset), but I can swap it out with the S5 post that gives me 40mm and 0mm offset clamp positions. Main question with this bike is how close to a 76-78deg seat tube angle will I get using the fwd clamp position (zero offset) and a tri saddle set forward in the clamp? Seat tube angle is road typical 73deg with the stock post at 20mm offset.

Felt AR2: Aero road bike designed to be easily converted for tri’s, 2014 model has a reversible “Varimount” seat post that takes the 73deg seat tube angle to 78deg, looks like the easiest bike to get both road and tri positions optimized.

Giant Propel: From what I’ve seen online, the “Vector” seatpost can be adjusted from 25mm to -5mm offset. Similar to Cervelo, not sure what the actual seatpost angle will be in the 5mm forward offset position with a tri saddle.

I’m leaning torward Di2 to allow me to put on the aero bars and easily add bar-end shifters, or even swap out the handlebar with tri bars with easy Di2 connection and reconnecting brake cables.

Just thought I’d see if anyone has tried this with these bikes, done something similar on another bike, or knows any technical details that would help me determine a solid road bike that can hold it’s own in a tri…or any other info/suggestion! I know fit is the most important, this week I’ll be visiting dealers and hopefully getting a Guru fit and a ride on each of these bikes, which may narrow things down. I’ve learned alot from visiting bike shops and online research, but sometimes fellow cyclists have the most experience. Thanks!
Mike

2

All 3 are top shelf bikes. You can make any of them work; it’s if the geometry can work for you. So I’d choose on which one best meets your fit requirements and if a few models can meet them well, then the one you are most “drawn” to if you can test ride them.

With that simple 2 step method, I think you’ll be the happiest if you plan to keep the bike for awhile.

J

3

Felt AR2 looks like a great choice for waht you are looking for if you can get the front end low enough while you are at 78deg.

4

Own two bikes. One road, one tri.

5

If only money wasn’t a factor! :slight_smile: Basically, I can go for a really nice road bike that still does well for tri’s, or get two mediocre bikes that I’ll use half as much each and not love either bike. I’m not high enough in the triathlon rankings for a dedicated tri bike…at least not yet!

Own two bikes. One road, one tri.

6

then just get a caad 10, or similar.

If only money wasn’t a factor! :slight_smile: Basically, I can go for a really nice road bike that still does well for tri’s, or get two mediocre bikes that I’ll use half as much each and not love either bike. I’m not high enough in the triathlon rankings for a dedicated tri bike…at least not yet!

Own two bikes. One road, one tri.

7

If only money wasn’t a factor! :slight_smile: Basically, I can go for a really nice road bike that still does well for tri’s, or get two mediocre bikes that I’ll use half as much each and not love either bike. I’m not high enough in the triathlon rankings for a dedicated tri bike…at least not yet!

Own two bikes. One road, one tri.

Conversely, you get one bike to do both triathlon racing and road bike riding, and it’s not tremendously great for either task. I’d rather have 2 “mediocre” bikes specific to the task than 1 “in the middle” bike that could do either. But more specific to your question, all of those listed are sweet bikes. I’d probably go S5, but only in the new matte black finish.

8

I did the road bike for everything one season.
It was a pain to switch between tri and road setups.
I had to switch to a drop stem, clip on the aero bars, and reverse my seat post (which required taking the seat off of course).
You have to measure everything carefully to get the same position each time.

Road bikes are always a compromise for tri… tough to move up the rankings when you are taking an aero penalty from drop bars and poor positioning.

Buy a cheap used road bike and a nicer dedicated TT bike. Upgrade the road bike later.

9

Thanks…I guess what I’m saying is not necessarily a bike that does OK at both, but a bike that is primarily road and is a great road bike (like all three of my suggestion I think are), but have some characteristics that make it better suited for a tri than most straight road bikes (aero, reversible/adjustable seat post, etc). I ride in groups, centuries, or solo about 75% of the time so don’t want to give up a good road bike.

10

Get the FELT with the electronics and see if you can pick up a nice aerobar or a drop bar like the 3T Zefiro which would allow you to just install the extentions and shifter. Plug in the shifters and switch the post around. You could use shorty extensions on your normal day to day riding and then use longer extensions and armrests for your triathlons.

There is a way to make it work but it is up to you to how you do it.

11

Thanks for the suggestion, an option I haven’t looked at yet. I’ll check it out. About to go see these bikes in person!

12

I just checked and there are a few 3T Zefiro’s on Ebay for only $375 which is a good price. You can set them up to do what you need with minimal tinkering.

13

If you are on a budget don’t over look the Kestrel Talon. Its been around a long time but was the first carbon aero road frame that could be converted for triathlon use with a dual position aero seat post. I’m sure it will do what the other bikes you’ve mentioned can do at less cost. I don’t do triathlons nowadays but back in the day I always had better bike splits on my Talon than any of my dedicated tri bikes.

http://kestrelbicycles.com/triathlon/talon-shimano-105-tri

14

Just took a look, haven’t seen these bars before, thanks! I’ll definitely look into it when I settle on the bike.

15

There is also another forum member doing the same thing but with an S5. Here is the thread. If you read through the thread you can sort out what you would need and get some great ideas.

http://forum.slowtwitch.com/gforum.cgi?post=5227368;search_string=;#5227368

16

Just took a look, haven’t seen these bars before, thanks! I’ll definitely look into it when I settle on the bike.

The Zefiro’s are on sale on 3T’s website right now:

http://store.3tcycling.com/en/49-zefiro

17

I’m of the opinion that you ruin a good road bike when you try to make it something it isn’t. All of those bikes are great and you’ll enjoy the heck out of them. If you take out the spacers, get the stem down into an aggressive position, you’re reducing a fair amount of the aero penalty (assuming you can still be comfortable). Sure, you’re still giving up time (especially at the half and full distance), but at least you’re staying true to the bike and not giving up style points.

18

Redshift Switch System and a cheap adjustable stem?

http://www.redshiftsports.com

Otherwise, I would echo the praise of the Kestrel Talon. $1300 at Bikes Direct seems a reasonable deal.

19

If only money wasn’t a factor!

With the model year closing out, you could walk into most bike shops right now and buy a lesser spec’d pair (i.e. P2 and S2) for the same price, or a few hundred dollars more, than any of those bikes you’ve mentioned. So, money isn’t the factor.

20

Sorry for bringing up an old thread. What did you go for in the end COTriBiker?

I was thinking about doing the same thing and found this forum when researching. I figure that at my level a modified Giant Propel can’t be that much slower that say a Giant Trinity composite. Did you find out what the seat angle can be adjusted to?