I’m looking for some advice on purchasing a dedicated road bike to train and complete my 5th Fondo on. Which is best suited for me and if these are fairly priced please?
I usually ride my giant revolt advanced 3 2021 with road tires on, but looking for something dedicated for road and lighter to help get me up the hills! I used to have a giant tcr alliance 2010 before moving to my revolt with two wheelsets.
$800 CAD – Specialized Roubaix Sport SL4 2016
105 groupset, axis brakes, pedals etc included
https://www.facebook.com/share/1AvQqUR26g/?mibextid=wwXIfr
$1400 CAD – Giant TCR Advanced Pro 1 2016
Ultegra groupset and brakes, pedals etc also included
by ElliotF123
1 Comment
The TCR is a race bike, while the Roubaix is more of an endurance bike. The TCR is considerably lighter than the Roubaix and is a lot better specced, but it costs a lot more.
How much is this upgrade worth it to you? I personally don’t think the Roubaix will be much of an upgrade to you as you’re already running a road wheel set and it shares similar geometry to your gravel bike. TCR would be faster I’d say, but again at a cost.
One thing to consider however, is gearing for climbing. Either road bike will have much smaller cassettes and higher gearing than your gravel bike. That TCR looks like it’s running short cage 6800, which means yours maybe squeezing an 11-30 cassette, but it looks like an 11-28 in the picture. I don’t know how strong you are, but a lighter bike won’t save you if you aren’t strong enough for the gearing.