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Specialized?

Hi,

I've been recommended a Specialized Allez 09 by a mate of mine.

This would be my first tri bike..my question is: Would it be a good purchase? Does anyone have one or know anything about them?

Thanks in advance

Comments

  • treefrogtreefrog Posts: 1,242
    In short Specialized are good - in fact great, but tyhere are much better tri-specific/race secific bikes available: Cervelo s1, soloist team, ( wwwslanecycles.co.uk ) and many others, look for stiffness, agressive geometry and up to date spec.

    ps Check out other bike threads on this forum

  • bennybenny Posts: 1,314
    agree with treefrog;specialized is great. Joerie Vansteelant lives a street away from me(he's WC duathlon) and rides specialized: awesome bling stuff!!!

    On the other hand there are other brands that are great(maybe even better) with on top:

    CERVELO[image]http://forum.220magazine.com/micons/m4.gif[/image]

    Got the Soloïst team 4 months ago, changed a lot for me(running of ths bike feels like easy-ish[:)]).

  • JulesJules Posts: 987
    The Cervelo looks very good but isn't it far more expensive than the Allez? The basic Allez is about £500.



    I've got an Allez and I like it, not that I have anything particularly to compare it to.





  • bennybenny Posts: 1,314
    Jules wrote:


    The Cervelo looks very good but isn't it far more expensive than the Allez? The basic Allez is about £500.



    The soloïst must be around 1500, so yes, more expensive.

    My previous bike was a Ridley, which was about 1200 new price.(great bike).

    So the difference in price is about 300, but it IS worth it.
  • jacjac Posts: 452
    Jules,



    How long have you had your Allez? £500 is my budget, really, so would like to stick to something around that mark.

    How do you find the gears on the Allez?

    It definitely kicks my mountain bike into touch, but is it worth it for a first purchase?
  • JulesJules Posts: 987
    I've only had it around three months. I like it, but I'm new to triathlons so I don't have much to compare too. It's a fair bit quicker than my old hybrid bike, that I do know!



    The gears are pretty good, smoother than my old bike. I can imagine gears could be smoother still though, but that's more money I guess.



    If you get really into tri you will undoubtably end up wanting a £2K carbon dream machine, but I'd say an Allez will do as a very good start.

  • jacjac Posts: 452
    Thanks Jules, I'm going to test ride one later today so fingers crossed!

    Not sure the wife would ever allow me to spend £2k on a carbon dream machine! (What she doesn't know won't hurt though!)

  • I have a specialized and a cervelo and each serves a purpose, but the carbon dream machine is definitely hot stuff - but wouldn't fancy riding through London streets to work on it.

    For entry level bike Allez has long been recommended as the best however check out the Boardman as for the same price it is also getting rave reviews.
  • I bought a Specialized Allez Sport for around £699 about 4 years ago. I use it for training and commuting and it’s still going strong. The Shimano Tiagra components have worked well, I’ve only needed to replace the rear brake and that’s about it. I bought a set of Fulcrum 7 wheels to jazz it up, however the standard wheels did fine.

    I would agree that you could probably get more for your money these days. There are plenty of bikes about on the market around the same price with a better mix of components and spec in general. Fix a budget and get reading bike reviews!!
  • boodogboodog Posts: 18
    Jac, Let me know how you get on with the specialized. I am in exactly the same boat as you at the moment and have narrowed my search down to either the Specialized Allez at £530, GT series 3 at £599, Giant Defy 2.5 at £595 or a Trek 1.5 compact at £650. I'd love to spend over a grand on a carbon road monster but I've got two off road bikes already and its not worth the hassle from the wife. If anyone else can give me a quick heads up on any of the above bikes it would be much appreciated. Cheers
  • Check out the reviews on Bikeradar.co.uk. A good source for tons of bike stuff.
  • jacjac Posts: 452
    I test rode the Specialized Allez and really liked it. Compared to my MTB it was lightning (not hard!). Tried a Scott Speedster too, which was good but seemed a bit heavier.

    Going to test ride it again - but think I'll go for it.

  • Hi guys. Don't want to muddy the waters, but do your employers run a Ride to Work scheme? Or if not, could they be persuaded to start one?



    Reason I ask is that I bought my Cannondale a couple of years ago through my employer's R2W and saved an absolute packet. Company buys bike and sells it to you via monthly instalments taken from your salary at source. Not paying VAT and saving on the income tax meant I could afford a bike that I couldn't, if you get what I mean.



    Plus, as it was coming out of my salary every month, the missus didn't find out how much I'd actually spent!!!



    Even if you don't have access to a R2W scheme, I'd recommend having a nosey through the sale stock on a website like Evans Cycles. I wouldn't touch Evans with a barge pole when it comes to servicing etc – most people on here would agree that they're a bunch of clowns. But their prices are hard to beat. If you know what brand/spec/size of bike you're after, it's well worth checking out.
  • boodogboodog Posts: 18
    Jac, thanks for the update on the specialized. I also test rode the specialized and a trek 1.5 over the last couple of days and liked the feel of both. However at the risk of being slated by some subscribers of this site, I happened to pop into my local bikehut (after someone mentioned the boardman bikes on this thread) to have a look. The staff appeared quite switched on and I ended up taking a 2008 and eight model for a quick spin. The bike was lighter, more responsive and equipped a whole lot better than the trek or the specialized, and as all the halfords group are currently trying to shift the 2008 stock prior to filling the stores with the 2009 bikes, i managed to negotiate a further £150 off the already discounted £999 bike. I basically got a Boardman Road Pro for £655! The list price when launched in the Autumn was £1300. Before you part with your hard earned try one out mate, might not be your cup of tea but i was impressed and I have owned pretty decent bikes for the past 15 years and never thought I'd buy from Halfords ever! PS Bike radar and 220 MAGAZINE gave the bike good reviews.
  • jacjac Posts: 452
    Thanks Boodog.

    Took the Allez out again today and still like it.

    Will try a Boardman out too to compare.

    It seems like a lot of cash to me at the mo so want to get it right!

  • starcherstarcher Posts: 126
    Jac

    I got a second hand 2006 allez comp off ebay for £500 last year full 105 carbon stays and forks etc, but basically the same bike ,and IMHO its great with clip on bars you can get a more or less full on arse up position and as i could only afford one bike its a perfect do anything machine.







    Mat









  • I have an 07 Allez Elite which I now use as a training bike - when I bought mine it was 105'd throughout with FACT stem and forks - an excellent piece of kit for a first season but when I weighed it (with a pair of Jammer GT bars on) it came in at 10.3kg, a little dissapointing. It now has an Ultegra triple on it and a 12-27 on the rear but it is still a great first bike.



    However when I got my (RED therefore must be faster) Trek Equinox 9.5 TTX which weighed just over 7kg things improved dramatically [:D][:D][:D]



    I would go for it



    I.
  • jacjac Posts: 452
    An update on my situation..I went to my local bikehut to have a look at the Boardman bikes. Unfortunately they wouldn't let me try one out - despite me explaining that I needed to make sure I was getting the right bike for the money.

    Even though they have had tremendous reviews I'm reluctant to buy one without trying it.

    Also the Allez, at 54, is perfect for me. The Boardmans are either smaller or about an inch and a half bigger.

    I'm thinking I'm going to go with the Allez, which I enjoyed riding. And according to reviews and guys in the shop it's easily upgradable.

  • BritspinBritspin Posts: 1,655
    Good call, if they won't let you try it..don't buy it. Would you buy new shoes without trying them on? Ever had new shoes that you did try but STILL cripple you? Imagine that mistake & how painful it would be on a bike, not to mention (unless buying Jimmy Choos) yer average bike costs a bit more than yer average pair of shoes.
  • RobRob Posts: 209
    jac, I've got the basic Allez (8spd) which I've had now for over three years. It's done me proud, doing every distance tri, & time trials. It's been completely reliable. I'd buy another tomorrow. Have heard good things about the Boardmans, but if you can't try it, forget it, or try another branch of Halfords. Whichever bike you get, see if you can get a bike fit as well.
  • jacjac Posts: 452
    Hi Rob,

    Thanks for that. Ended up buying the Allez at the end of last week and got some Gator skins put on for the winter riding!

    So far really enjoying it. It's light, it didn't break the bank and it's comfortable too!

    The shop gives it a service after six weeks, so overall I'm happy with my purchase.

    Thanks guys for all the advice.
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