bit of a disapointment
Discussion
Following on from my "new road bike thoughts" thread I took out the Wilier Izoard Ultegra yesterday and am not that impressed. For a start it only weighs 0.7Kg less than my Scott S30 aluminium framed road bike. I thought it would be a lot less... I managed 30 odd miles on it doing a mixture of hills inc 14% one out of Severn Sisters near Seaford, downhills and flat riding.
The riding position didnt suit me at all, way too aggresive at the front end and also I did feel safe on it for some reason. The Ultegra hoods didnt appear to give much support for my hands and therefore made me rather nervous, especially going downhill. The frame did feel like it was soaking up more of the road bumps though. My god that has to be the most uncomfortable saddle I have ever had the misfortune to sit on. I know it can be changed but blimey!!
Hill climbing was but easier but not that much that the £2k price tag warrants. Maybe I am expecting too much but I thought the difference would be night and day. Hence I am now going back to the drawing board to see what else is out there and maybe wait till all manufacturers bring out the new models later this year.
The riding position didnt suit me at all, way too aggresive at the front end and also I did feel safe on it for some reason. The Ultegra hoods didnt appear to give much support for my hands and therefore made me rather nervous, especially going downhill. The frame did feel like it was soaking up more of the road bumps though. My god that has to be the most uncomfortable saddle I have ever had the misfortune to sit on. I know it can be changed but blimey!!
Hill climbing was but easier but not that much that the £2k price tag warrants. Maybe I am expecting too much but I thought the difference would be night and day. Hence I am now going back to the drawing board to see what else is out there and maybe wait till all manufacturers bring out the new models later this year.
Rocksteadyeddie said:
The position you can sort out with a decent fitting.
The saddle requires some meditation on Rule 5!
The saddle requires some meditation on Rule 5!
Saddles are definitely exempt from rule 5!
It doesn't matter how much you try, you're never going to change the shape of your arse bones! One man's supreme comfort can be another man's crack guillotine.
BPC7 said:
Following on from my "new road bike thoughts" thread I took out the Wilier Izoard Ultegra yesterday and am not that impressed. For a start it only weighs 0.7Kg less than my Scott S30 aluminium framed road bike. I thought it would be a lot less... I managed 30 odd miles on it doing a mixture of hills inc 14% one out of Severn Sisters near Seaford, downhills and flat riding.
The riding position didnt suit me at all, way too aggresive at the front end and also I did feel safe on it for some reason. The Ultegra hoods didnt appear to give much support for my hands and therefore made me rather nervous, especially going downhill. The frame did feel like it was soaking up more of the road bumps though. My god that has to be the most uncomfortable saddle I have ever had the misfortune to sit on. I know it can be changed but blimey!!
Hill climbing was but easier but not that much that the ?2k price tag warrants. Maybe I am expecting too much but I thought the difference would be night and day. Hence I am now going back to the drawing board to see what else is out there and maybe wait till all manufacturers bring out the new models later this year.
there are a few things to try to make it a bit more rideable though i suspect it may just take time to get used to it. Assuming it still has some steerer tube left, try some spacers underneath the stem to raise it a bit, if that doesnt work, try a new stem with a bit more rise than the current one. what width are the bars? if it feels twitchy they might be narrower than the Scott, some are measured centre-to-ecentre, others from the end caps which if the bars flare out (like 3T bars) can make a 44cm 3T bar feel like a regular 40cm bar. I know form experience narrower bars take a lot of getting used to. New bars and stem wil cost ?100, yes its ?100 on top of ?2k but if it makes the ?2k bike rideable its a small price to pay.The riding position didnt suit me at all, way too aggresive at the front end and also I did feel safe on it for some reason. The Ultegra hoods didnt appear to give much support for my hands and therefore made me rather nervous, especially going downhill. The frame did feel like it was soaking up more of the road bumps though. My god that has to be the most uncomfortable saddle I have ever had the misfortune to sit on. I know it can be changed but blimey!!
Hill climbing was but easier but not that much that the ?2k price tag warrants. Maybe I am expecting too much but I thought the difference would be night and day. Hence I am now going back to the drawing board to see what else is out there and maybe wait till all manufacturers bring out the new models later this year.
buy a charge spoon, the comfiest saddle know to mankind. yes it looks like a sofa comapred to a fizik arione but my god its comfy. try one, for ?25 from wiggle it could transform the bike.
sadly hills are something that money can not flatten, they are still the same gradient on a ?4k bike and I know people who can race up them on ?500 bikes that leave me standing at the bottom. its a lot more about technique and power than frame material and the cost of the bike but I note it has a compact chainset, did the Scott have a comapct or was it 53/39? this might be one reason the hills felt no easier.
i found ultegra hoods perfect, campag too small and steep and sram very similar to the ultegra, what gloves do you wear? that might have something to do with it?
hope it sorts out ok, a lot of the "problems" you state arent really problems per se, just normal issues associated with getting used to a new bike.
Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 23 July 08:52
Kermit power said:
Rocksteadyeddie said:
The position you can sort out with a decent fitting.
The saddle requires some meditation on Rule 5!
The saddle requires some meditation on Rule 5!
Saddles are definitely exempt from rule 5!
It doesn't matter how much you try, you're never going to change the shape of your arse bones! One man's supreme comfort can be another man's crack guillotine.
Classic timeless design
Not sure there is a lot of point discussing saddles as the OP's arse is probably not a carbon copy of ours, but I also found the old Flights saddles perfect on my mountain bikes, and I've recently got an Sella Italia SLR for my road bike and find it perfect.
Also OP, you mention you feel nervous decending on the hoods, I personally never descend on the hoods. I do find the 105 hoods very comfy however.
The geo of the bike might just be too aggressive for your comfortable riding position.
Also OP, you mention you feel nervous decending on the hoods, I personally never descend on the hoods. I do find the 105 hoods very comfy however.
The geo of the bike might just be too aggressive for your comfortable riding position.
Kermit power said:
ChrisMCoupe said:
Not sure there is a lot of point discussing saddles as the OP's arse is probably not a carbon copy of ours.
That's exactly why we are discussing them. Someone else suggested manning up and getting used to the saddle already on the bike.As mentioned above, I borrowed the bike before I laid out some serious cash.
My Scott is compact gearing so the same as the Wilier, only difference being mine has Tiagra and this has Ultegra.
I think you may be right about the bar length though as it certainly felt twitchy, especially at speed, and this is probably what made me uneasy riding it.
Are there any other carbon bikes that weigh a lot less?. I see the Boardman Air 9.2 only weighs in at 7.25kg according to this months cycling plus mag.
This is such a big decision and there are so many machines out there now it makes choosing very difficult
My Scott is compact gearing so the same as the Wilier, only difference being mine has Tiagra and this has Ultegra.
I think you may be right about the bar length though as it certainly felt twitchy, especially at speed, and this is probably what made me uneasy riding it.
Are there any other carbon bikes that weigh a lot less?. I see the Boardman Air 9.2 only weighs in at 7.25kg according to this months cycling plus mag.
This is such a big decision and there are so many machines out there now it makes choosing very difficult
Why are you so interested in just the weight ?
Carbon Vs Alu is not about weight as you can get each pretty close on that if your are that bothered, carbon's benefit has been partly due to weight but more down to bump and vibration absorbtion and stiffness in the right area's
If you just want to lose weight, keep your current frame and spend a load on wheels, bars stem etc to loose the weight that way.
Carbon Vs Alu is not about weight as you can get each pretty close on that if your are that bothered, carbon's benefit has been partly due to weight but more down to bump and vibration absorbtion and stiffness in the right area's
If you just want to lose weight, keep your current frame and spend a load on wheels, bars stem etc to loose the weight that way.
dont worry too much about weight as comparing bikes by weight is often a waste of time, of the few manufacturers who do state the weight of their bikes, it will often be the smallest size and without pedals.... go for the XL frame and slap some pedals on and you can easily add a pound and a half to the quoted weight...
...and thats before you add a saddle bag with a multi tool and a tube, bottle cages, fluid etc tc...
...and thats before you add a saddle bag with a multi tool and a tube, bottle cages, fluid etc tc...
Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 23 July 13:12
Must be because I am new to this road cycling lark, I was under the impression the lighter the bike the more your effort goes into moving the machine forwards, am obviously incorrect.
I have taken the Wilier back and explained to a most helpful LBS owner my findings and he suggested I bring in my Scott and he measures everything up and sets the new bike up, (whatever it may be), to these measurments.
He has been so obliging and helpful so choosing a new bike is now the only hard bit.
On the comment of using my existing frame and upgrading wheels etc, is this the better option?
I have taken the Wilier back and explained to a most helpful LBS owner my findings and he suggested I bring in my Scott and he measures everything up and sets the new bike up, (whatever it may be), to these measurments.
He has been so obliging and helpful so choosing a new bike is now the only hard bit.
On the comment of using my existing frame and upgrading wheels etc, is this the better option?
BPC7 said:
Must be because I am new to this road cycling lark, I was under the impression the lighter the bike the more your effort goes into moving the machine forwards, am obviously incorrect.
You're not incorrect; it's just that the difference isn't all that important.Assuming you're 80kgs, for sake of argument, and are looking at two bikes, one of which weighs 7kg and the other 9kg, that 2kg difference represents 2.3% of the total weight.
Given the potential for different tyres delivering different amounts of drag, your position on the bike being slightly different, the amount of friction in the various bearings and a whole host of other factors to impact on your speed for any given amount of effort you put in, then for all but the very best riders, you're just not going to really notice that difference anything like as much as you might expect.
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