Trek 2.1 Compact Road Bike Review

 The 2 series range from Trek is based around the same geometry as its top flight Madone. Unlike those all-carbon creations, the 2.1 is constructed with Trek’s 200 Series aluminium, and the frame’s quality is evident with nicely finished welds and a carbon fork plugged in up front.

The drivetrain is what we’d expect at this price, with Shimano 105 shifters and mechs and a lower spec R600 compact chainset, its 50/34 rings complementing an 11-28 cassette. This is gearing that will get you up and over most climbs. All the finishing components come from Trek stablemate Bontrager, with everything from the bar tape to the tyres bearing the name. The Bontrager SSR wheels have proved trouble-free, good, honest, budget items. Combined with steel beaded R1 tyres they’re no lightweights, and contribute a fair amount to the bike’s 9.2kg.

The ride of the 2.1 is good for its intended rider. Our 58cm test bike has a rider-friendly 57.3cm top-tube combined with a 7-degree rise, 100mm stem, creating a comfortable but not too sedate riding position. The handling is predictable and the ride reasonably smooth, and that comfortable position isn’t so upright that it compromises the out-of-the-saddle feel.

Climbing on a 9kg-plus bike could be a chore, but that’s not what we found; progress was a little slower than on the similar Cube Attempt and Boardman Race, but it never became a struggle. And we certainly enjoyed descending on the 2.1, its combination of smooth, vibration-free front end and weighty wheelset making for a very stable and predictable ride. We found we were pushing that bit harder on long descents as the 2.1 really does inspire confidence in its abilities.

As a choice for your first foray into serious road bikes the 2.1 has plenty to offer. The quality frame has a good, race-inspired position and comes with eyelets for mudguards, making it a great year-round ride and an ideal commuter. At this hugely competitive price point we’d still pick our £1000 bike of the year, Cube’s excellent Attempt, but that said, we like that Trek has kept the same fine geometry and handling traits of the brilliant Madonefor what is, essentially, its novice range. You can find this bike and similar on SlickBikes.

This article was originally published in Cycling Plus magazine.

How to Choose Your Road Bike

How to choose your road bike. Well the first question is how much do you want to spend? Another question to consider is how much time will you have to ride your bike? The answer to the first question can be a tricky one. While some younger people such as students and those without established careers may have no other option than to buy an entry or mid-level bike, others with established incomes may feel that they need to buy the lightest fastest bike money can buy. Those on a tight budget will want to find the best deal they can so they can get the best bike for the money. Doing your homework by comparison shopping will pay off big when its time to pull the trigger. Those with money to burn should still consider what their motivation is and how much time will be spent riding. Sure its nice to have a sweet ride, but if you only have time for a one hour ride each week or won’t be competing in races, is it really necessary to spend thousands? Whatever your situation is, it helps to explore all of your options first.

Entry Level Bikes

Entry level bikes typically cost $700 or less.  They will more than likely have an aluminum frame with Shimano Sora or Campagnolo Athena components or a variety of cheaper components. These bikes will ride fairly well,  but won't be very light. They will usually be an 8 speed (16 total speeds) and will have standard non-aero wheels. This is a good place to start. At this level you are just looking for a brand with a good reputation at a low price, but at the same time isn’t bottom of the barrel. For instance Schwinn or Giant is a much better choice than Huffy. If you want a slightly better entry level bike, look for an aluminum frame with carbon forks and carbon rear triangle. If you are working on a budget this can be tricky. Buying a bike from an online retailer can usually save you some money and allow for the carbon fork/rear triangle option.  A superb entry level road bike is the Schwinn RS 5.0. It has an aluminum frame with carbon forks, carbon rear triangle, aero wheels and Shimano Sora group-set. This bike can be found at a great price at: http://www.slickbikes.com/product/schwinn-rs-50-road-bike-700c-wheels-64764

Mid Level, Touring and Possibly Racing

Mid level road bike are typically in the $700-$1,200 range. These bikes will be a little bit lighter, stiffer and handle better than the typical entry level bike. The frames will  usually be either aluminum or aluminum/carbon mixed. Components will usually be in the Shimno Tiagra/105 range and are typically 9 speed (18 total speeds). The wheels will be a little nicer and may include alloy semi-deep dish rims. A good mid level road bike like the Focus Variado 3.0 with carbon forks and Shimano Tiagra groupset can be found at a great price at: http://www.slickbikes.com/product/focus-variado-30-road-bike-us-exclusive-899

Top Level Bike For Racing and Pleasure

Top level bikes are usually in the $1,200 - $2,000 range. The components for this level of bike will usally be Campagnolo Veloce/Chorus or Shimano Ultegra/105 and are usually 9 or 10 speed (18-20 total speeds). The components at this level can inlude some carbon, such as the stem and seatpost. These bikes have frames that sometimes can be full carbon (depending on the deal). Full carbon frames are the choice of many competitive pros and top level amateurs. The reason is that full carbon frame bikes combine lightness and stiffness. This combination makes for a very responsive ride while at the same time not beating you up on rough roads. Wheels at this level bike can be deep dish alloy with fewer spokes which make them more aerodynamic. At this level bike you are looking more for quality and performance. It is still a tricky level  because there can be a fairly big level of difference in quality depending on the deal you get. A very nice Fuji Altamira 3.0 racing bike with carbon tubing and campagnolo veloce components can be found at a good price at: http://www.slickbikes.com/product/2011-fuji-altamira-30-road-bike-224999

Professional Level Bikes

Professional level road bikes are typically $2,000 and up. When you have the money to spend and want the best quality you want to look for the best brands. Colnago, Trek, Giant, De Rosa, Pinarello, Battaglin and Cervelo are some of the brands you will find at this level. These are professional road bike so they will have top end components (Shimano-Dura Ace, Campagnolo Record, Sram Rival, etc.), and will be 10 and 11 speeds (20 and 22 total speeds). Depending on how much you spend you can get an almost all carbon bike inluding components and wheels. These bikes are extremely light and stiff and can weigh in the
13-17 lb range. However, if you are looking for this type of machine, expect to pay upwards of $7,000 or more.  A very nice top of the line racing bike like the carbon fiber De Rosa Avant with Sram Rival components can be found at a great price at: http://slickbikes.com/product/de-rosa-avant-road-bikes-2999.

The Best Bike You Can Afford

You do usually get what you pay for, so get the best bike you can afford. Do your homework and comparison shop at your local bike shops then go on the web. But be careful. If you snag a nice ride at a great price your riding mates could get jealous! You can find a wide selection of the types of bikes mentioned here at the best prices at: http://www.slickbikes.com/.

Shimano vs SRAM vs Campagnolo Groupsets

Shimano

Well they don’t get much bigger than the big S.  From road racing to touring, cyclocross to kids bikes, they have it covered with a great range of products to suit most budgets.  This makes it a little difficult to look at everything, so we’ll just focus on the road range.

The Ultegra chainset with hollow forged arms, and a hollow outer chainring which is trickledown from Dura-Ace.

The main Shimano road groupsets are headed up by the flagship Dura-Ace gruppo.  Hollow forged cranks (a feature which has trickled right down through to 105), hollow chain rings reinforced with a carbon fibre band (now available in Ultegra), titanium cassette sprockets and a further sprinkling of carbon fibre come together to produce a light, strong, smooth shifting and efficient drivetrain which is used by pros and enthusiasts alike.  If Dura-Ace is a bit out of your price range or a bit too bling, the great thing about Shimano is that the groupsets down the line, Ultegra and 105, offer fantastic shifting at an even better price.  You sacrifice some weight, but having spent a season riding 105 I can testify that they work very well indeed and are hard to fault for the money.

A Shimano 105 Groupset can be found at a great price at: http://slickbikes.com/product/shimano-105-10-speed-groupset-5603-73338.

The Di2 crank with the battery just visible on the downtube.

A key product (although you may not think so yet) in Shimano’s range is Di2, the electronicDura-Ace groupset.  Shifting is taken care of by small motors in the mechs and auto-trimming ensures that your chain always shifts perfectly and effortlessly.  The electronic shifting groupset, in theory, should appeal more to the enthusiast than the pro rider (where you’ll mostly see it) who has a mechanic to tune their gears and set up the bike, but it is expensive.  If Shimano (and other manufacturers for that matter) can bring the cost down, electronic shifting might well be the next big thing thanks to its maintenance free perfect shift.  There have been rumors about an Ultegra electronic groupsetand although this has been denied by Shimano, there’s no smoke without fire though….

A Shimano Ultegra groupset can be found at a great price at: http://slickbikes.com/product/shimano-ultegra-6700-10sp-double-groupset-86366.

The Ultegra brake/gear levers, both the secondary lever and the main brake lever are used to change gear. The Ultegra levers are carbon and have reach adjust like their Dura-Ace counterparts.

The other main difference between Shimano and other manufacturers is the shift itself.  Shimano road groupsets use a brake lever and a smaller secondary gear lever which are both used to change gear.  Shimano use their STI pull ratio; the pull ratio dictates how much cable movement is required to change gear.  The STI system uses a near 2:1 ratio, meaning the shifter pulls a smaller relative amount of cable for each gear change.  This leaves the system more susceptible to worn gear cables; because they move a smaller amount, any stiction from wear or corrosion will have a bigger impact.  As long as you keep your cables in good condition, or use some of my favorite Gore cables, they will be fine.

A Shimno Dura-Ace groupset can be found at a great price at: http://slickbikes.com/product/shimano-dura-ace-7900-road-groupset-800.

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SRAM

The SRAM Red special edition Yellow groupset, celebrating the Tour de France wins of Armstrong and Contador who used SRAM Red.

Look around the peloton and apart from Dura-Ace and a smattering of Campag, the groupsets you’ll see are SRAM RED.  SRAM were relatively late to the road scene, but they’ve made up for that with plenty of success, reflected in their celebratory (and rather lovely we think) SRAM Red Yellow groupset commemorating their Tour de France podium dominance by likes of Schleck, Sastre, Contador and Armstrong (who switched from Dura-Ace to Red).  The entire SRAM range offers great value, with many of the features found on the Red gruppo, the Force and Rival groupsets will do the job at a very reasonable price point as well.

Coming from the mountain bike world they brought several innovations with them which have proved significant.  The main one of these is Exact Actuation – this is the road version of SRAM’s famous 1:1 actuation ratio found on their off-road systems.  This means, unlike Shimano, that the cable moves the same amount as the derailleur.  The real world implications of this are that SRAM groupsets are less susceptible to dodgy cables (very useful in the off-road world) and Shimano/SRAM components are not interchangeable (except you can use a Shimano front mech on some SRAM systems, this is more popular in off-road groupsets).

The SRAM Red Double Tap shifter, all shifting is taken care of with the smaller gear lever leaving the brake lever completely free for braking.

When it comes to the shift, SRAM  utilise the Double Tap shift where up and down shifts are taken care of by a single gear lever leaving the brake lever solely for braking.  There is no major advantage or disadvantage to this, it just depends what you’re used to and what you like!  Inevitably, systems have their fans, but a bit like a new mobile phone, it’s easy enough to get used to a new system and after a few rides you won’t notice.  Honest!  Zero Loss is another highlight of the SRAM range.  Although it doesn’t sound exciting, Zero Loss removes any cable slack in the shift – so when you press the lever you get an instant change.  This is one of those features which when on the bike, makes a big difference to your ride.

Finally a quick word on SRAM chains. SRAM have built up a pretty devoted following with many running SRAM chains whatever make their groupset.  As long as the chain is the right speed, this should cause no problems, although we do recommend running aDura-Ace chain on a Dura-Ace groupset as Shimano chains are now directional and chamfered for optimal performance.  SRAM also have a rather useful joining system for their ten speed system called PowerLock.  Similar in look to the SRAM Powerlink system (used on 7-9 speeds) Power Lock is a quick and easy way of joining a chain, it can however only be used once (unlike Power Link which is multi-use) so make sure you have a couple spare in your seat pack.

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Campagnolo

The 2011 Campag Chorus groupset, not to be sniffed weighing in at around 2100g (Manufacturer claimed) for a complete gruppo.

Finally, in this review of the big three manufacturers we’re going to look at Campagnolo.  Campag components stand out for many thanks to their timeless Italian design and heritage.  One of the main differences between Campag and SRAM/Shimano is that Campag offer 11 speed groupsets.  Available in the Athena, Chorus, Record and range-topping Super Record (which weighs in under 1900g!) groupsets, 11 speed gives you an impressive gear range even when running a double front set-up.  Fears over longevity and shift quality have proven ill-founded, with features like more trimming options for the front mech making set-up and running as smooth as you’d expect.

The Ultra Torque system, bearings sit on either side of the axle and the two sides join in the middle via a splined interface which is secured with a single through bolt.

A key selling point for the Campagnolo range is the Ultra Torque/Power Torque BB/chainset design.  Introduced in 2007, Ultra Torque provides a very stiff, light and compact way of joining both sides of the crank together on high end Campag groupsets.  It also has a much narrower Q factor than existing BB designs, providing more ankle clearance.  Power Torque is a new system introduced for 2011 which provides many of the advantages of Ultra Torque like the narrow Q factor and the stiffness to weight ratio but at a more affordable price point.

Ultra Torque and Power Torque BB systems are available for standard external bottom bracket systems and also now

The cups for running a Campag chainset in a BB30 frame.

for integrated BB30 and BB86 type bottom brackets with these cups.  This means you can run the same Campag drivetrain whatever frame you have (or upgrade too), a useful feature given how long Campag components last!

If you’re after the ultimate bit of bling weight saving, check out the Super-Record Titanium Edition Chainset.  Titanium axles and joining bolt make this lighter, stronger and infinitely more lovely.  We had it sat on the desk for a few days just looking at it!

Interestingly Movistar are using an 11 speed electronic Campagnolo groupset this season – it will be interesting to see how it performs and whether it makes it to market for 2012/2013.  Initial rumours suggest it might use a single motor which moves the mechs via cables – it strikes us that this might remove the advantage of an electronic groupset if you reintroduce fragile cables back in to the system?!  Time will tell…

You can find DuraAce, SRAM and Campagnolo groupsets and components at great prices at: http://slickbikes.com/.

How to improve your sprint in cycling

If you have ever wondered how Tour de France riders such as Tyler Farrar and Mark Cavendish sprint so fast you're not alone. Sprinting is largely a natural talent. Many cyclists figure out early on if they have the genetic goods needed to beat other riders to the line. Everyone has some combination of fast and slow twitch muscle fibers. Natural sprinters typically have more of these fast twitch muscle fibers. Even if you don't have the genetic makeup of a natural sprinter, there are ways you can improve your sprinting speed.

Specific Workouts

Jumps: A good way to improve your explosive

power is to do 10 second sprints starting from a

relatively low speed. You can pick a landmark like a mailbox or road sign as your target. You just need to gauge the distance to your target to be about 200 meters. Begin with two sprints each in a small gear like 39 tooth small ring and 19 tooth rear cog. You will spin out of this gear quickly but just spin as fast as you can to the line. Allow for 1-2 minutes recovery between each sprint. Repeat two more sets of these sprints in 39 x 17 cog  and 39 x 15 cog respectively. Allow a few minutes recovery after these sets before repeating again in the big front ring with the same rear cog combinations (53 x 19, 53 x 17, 53 x 15). Varying the starting gear size of you sprint will help you to develop power and speed for different sprint senarios you will find in racing. You also need to keep your body steady and try to keep a straight line while spinning so fast. You will know that you are fast if you can do this on 53 x 11. This will take some time.

Motor Pacing

Perhaps one of the most effective ways to develop top-end speed and power is motor pacing. Motor pacing involves riding behind a car or scooter at speeds of 25-40 mph. Depending on your level, find a speed that is fast enough to make it a challenge to keep pace but slow enough to be able to sprint around the car or scooter. First warm up for about 30 minutes riding on your own. Then begin motor pacing at your desired speed. After 5 minutes or so of riding make a 10-15 second sprint around the car/scooter. Have your driver keep the speed steady and not slow down as you pass. Once you have cleared the car/scooter contiue sprinting until exhaustion. Recover by riding slowly for 4-5 minutes behind the car before repeating. 5-10 of these efforts will make for a great sprint workout. Please note that motor pacing can be very dangerous. Find a location like a business park that has very little traffic and find someone to drive who has experience in motor pacing.

Hill Sprints:

Finding a nice sized hill to practice sprints will help to develop overall power. Aim for four to eight efforts of 10-30 seconds (build to the top end as your fitness improves) of seated maximal efforts. These efforts should ideally be done in a bigger gear, and have 4-5 minutes of light riding for full recovery between each one. To allow for fitness development, find a hill where you’re able to have a fast rolling start. You can then progress to a slower start to the effort, or even a standing start.

It is good to try to incorperate one sprint workout/ride per week into your training program. For variety you can try a different type workout on your weekly sprint ride. Not too many of us will ever be able to sprint like the pros at the Tour de France. However, with some specific sprint workouts like the ones listed here you can improve your overall sprinting speed and power. Finding a fast bike doesn't hurt either. You can find a fast bike at a decent price at a website like http://www.slickbikes.com/.