ENDURANCE BIKES ARE stable. Endurance bikes are comfortable. Endurance bikes are compliant. And even though I fancy myself an endurance rider, I often take my race-oriented bike to endurance-oriented events— because endurance bikes can also be a bit dull and slow, which, ironically, can make long, hard rides feel even lon-ger and harder. Cervélo, in unveiling its C-series, shows supreme understanding of the modern road enthu-siast’s needs, delivering a bike with a lively race pedi-gree that neither bucks nor bores, but rather serves up a hard-charging, smooth-sail-ing ride over every surface.
That special blend of spunk and stability is apparent the moment you hit the road. The C3 has a low center of grav-ity and elongated wheelbase, courtesy of a relaxed geom-etry, a tall (but not too tall) head tube, and a generous fork rake. You feel like you’re nestled in as part of the bike, rather than atop it, lending a planted feeling paired with superbalanced handling. Push the pedals and Cervélo’s rac-ing heritage becomes appar-ent. The bike pops to speed quickly, holding that veloc-ity with a soothing, stable quality that encourages you to settle in and go exploring.
And explore I did. The “Squoval” tubes (a hallmark Cervélo blend of oval and square shaping) absorbed knocks from big hits and calmed chatter on broken pavement, retaining just enough stiffness for a supremely smooth but never wet-blanket ride. I barely reg-istered cratered-out railroad tracks taken at speed. The bike also has clearance for 32mm tires, if you want to bump up from the stock 28mm Con-tinental Gran Sports and a bash guard on the down tube to deflect loose rocks that get tossed your way—and protect your investment.
It climbed admirably, if just a hair wobbly, when forced to a snail’s pace up the steep-est of pitches—a quality that evaporated with a punch of speed. And that speed! You’ll find yourself going out of your way to hit every climb, just to enjoy the thrill of descend-ing on the C3. Aesthetically, the C3 forgoes flashy paint and turns heads with its clas-sic style and clean lines.
Watch this related videos about CERVÉLO C3 ULTEGRA 8020
It’s for anyone who craves long, spirited days in the sad-dle and wants a bike that’s game for all the roads less taken.
No comments:
Post a Comment