I am curious as to the opinion on this forum about setting up a Specialized Venge as a tri-bike.
I currently ride an older 56 cm Trek OCLV with a Thomson “forward” seatpost and clip-on Syntace aerobars. I love that set-up but I am also starting to look for something newer.
What is the opinion about being able to get the seat far enough forward on the Venge to be comfortable (i.e., nose of the saddle over the bottom bracket).
Would it be advisable to go with a 54 cm Venge (instead of a 56) just in case I can’t get quite as far forward with the seat as I am currently – avoid being stretched out too far getting in the aerobars.
What’s the overall opinion of the Venge as a climber and tri bike?
Cervelo s5 base +trek sc7.0=$6500.
Cheapest specialized venge=$6100
Just sayin. That said if you slap a set of extensions on the bike it would work, but not as well as a dedicated tribike. I understand going that route when budget is tight. But if you are thinking about the venge budget isn’t a consideration.
Here is data fresh from Specialized that shows the Venge takes 20 more watts to overcome bike drag when the wind is head-on. Up to 30 watts at 25-degrees of yaw. So even though its a wicked awesome road bike, its way down the list as the best choice for when you can’t ride behind someone else. Its only the 5th-best bike from Specialized and they didnt even count the entry-level aluminum Shiv, which I’d wager is better than the Venge too… with the 54 you’ll have a ton of seatpost showing, it won’t handle as well being set up so far fwd, the list goes on.
I’ve got what I feel to be an ideal position on the Trek with Thomson seatpost (flipped backwards) and the Syntace bars… just thinking about some of the best choice for the “next” bike I go after… tri set-up that will also climb very well in seated or standing position.
So if your ideal position is somewhat upright, for whatever reason, and thus you want to use a road frame, I would suggest the Cervelo S5.
the frame is more aero than p3, and cheaper than the venge.
I’ve got what I feel to be an ideal position on the Trek with Thomson seatpost (flipped backwards) and the Syntace bars… just thinking about some of the best choice for the “next” bike I go after… tri set-up that will also climb very well in seated or standing position.
I rode a 54 Venge the other day. It was stiff, responsive and light, so it would make for a great road racer/ crit bike. Looking at it I just can’t imagine that it is as aero as the S3 or S5. Velonews is supposed to do another wind tunnel test with aero road biles. Can’t wait to see how the new bikes stack up.
I ride a lot of drop and only about 2 inches of setback and I would of had to flip the seat post into the forward position to get anything less than 2 inches of setback. This makes me think that you could barely get the tip of the saddle over the BB at the bike’s maximum range of adjustability.
