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Specialized

News October 7, 2021

If it doesn’t have fender mounts, it’s not a real gravel bike

Sorry BIKERUMOR!, now matter how many times you say “gravel bike” when talking about the new Crux, it’s not a gravel bike. That’s not to say that it’s not a cool CX bike, in a time when gravel is the new black. Just that we need to be honest about what it is. Why pretend otherwise? As long as we’re being honest, maybe prioritizing the lightest “gravel” bike isn’t the smarted choice.…

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News September 13, 2021

Yeah, OK, Mike’s Bikes; Pon Group is technically a “family-owned company”

First off, just to be clear, I think it sucks. Really sucks. That Specialized canceled the pre-orders of everyone who bought one of their bikes from Mike’s Bikes. While they almost certainly were within the bounds of their contract with Mike’s Bikes, it’s not great for the 400+ people screwed over by this act, and perhaps more importantly, will cost Specialized goodwill to a much wider audience. FOR SHAME! But, what I…

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News August 24, 2020

Specialized does its CL thing to the Roval Alpinist

It won’t come as a surprise to anyone that a “CL” version of the Roval Alpinist was in the works. It Specialized’s MO to start with the CLX, and then drop the “X” for a significantly more budget friendly version. In this case you’re really not giving up that much either. The rim is same 21mm internal/ 26.3mm external / 33mm deep as the top end Alpinist, just moving to the bulletproof…

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Blog Featured August 10, 2020

Specialized S-Works Power Cranks Broken

It’s never great when something breaks, but when that thing is an expensive power meter, it really sucks… In this case, it’s the right side power meter – which while everything looks good in the Specialized Power Cranks app, just isn’t reporting any power. My “solution” so far has to been to remove the battery from the right crank, and just run one-sided, so at least the left-side doubles the power and…

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News July 28, 2020

SL7 Fratricide

As was rumored, the 2020 Specialized SL7 Tarmac has been announced, and with that, has euthanized the Venge. RIP… It’s a massive update, with Di-2 integration in the seatpost (?), a threaded BSA bottom bracket (why not T47?), disc only (duh) and two-piece integrated* headset. Still not a fan of that integrated headset due to 3rd party options, maintainability, and setup flexibility. But it’s hard to argue with the gains both in…

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News May 27, 2020

Rumor has it

If a Venge and a Tarmac did the dirty, chances are we’d get this. Which is rumored to be the new, SL7, Specialized Tarmac. Word on the street, er… Internets, is that the Venge is on the way out, and this hybrid will take it’s place. While I’m sure that’s great for some, I prefer the non-integrated stem setup on the SL6. Just makes it a much easier thing to work on.…

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News March 20, 2020

What if maximum stiffness isn’t the goal?

This video from PeakTorque is incredibly detailed in its explanation of why carbon fiber (CF), despite being an incredibly stiff material, isn’t nearly as stiff in the finished product as it may seem initially. But what if maximum stiffness isn’t the goal? It’s common knowledge that CF seat posts and handlebars are great because they incorporate stiffness in some directions and compliance in others. Less well known, but still true AFAIK, is…

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