Cervelo RS Road Bike

Bike Setup:
Full Dura Ace 7800 apart from an Ultegra cluster, DA or Kysrium wheels, Deda carbon post, Selle Italia Turbo 4 saddle (the best ever, now regrettably no longer made).

Favorite Ride:
Local Hills

Summary:
I bought this as a training frameset in 2009 (frame is 2008 and cost is for that alone in US dollars). What appealed was the reasonable cost, the stable geometry and promise of comfort for longer rides.

The RS has met all my expectations. It is laterally very stiff, particularly the chainstays and bottom bracket, yet horizontally compliant and so very comfortable.

The scary thin looking seatstays really do the job well. Compared with a Specialized Roubiaux that I previously owned it is a little less comfortable but has far better road feel – I could not really tell what was happening under the tyres of the Roubiaux but can with the RS – the Specialized was a little too remote from the road for my liking. The RS is reasonably light and is a fine climbing frame, a good descending frame (better than the rider!) and a great everyday riding bike. I have been riding and racing road bikes almost 30 years, and this is certainly the best training bike I have ever had. It can also handle rough roads and light gravel with no worries at all. If I had to limit myself to one road bike (perish the thought) this would be it.

This is not to say the bike is perfect. I have had chain suck a couple of times, which I have never had on another road bike and was not due to poorly adjusted mechs. Not a good feeling at the bottom of a steep hill. The 73 degree standard head and seat angles are a bit daft on a 61cm frame, particularly when the standard supplied seat post had zero setback. The frame is built to a budget, and the fit and finish show this a bit.

I also have a Specialized SL2 that I use as a race bike. This is no criticism of the Cervelo, but when I get on the SL2 after weeks on the RS, the relatively twitchy handling sure takes a bit of getting used to. But that’s my problem, and after a short time on the SL2, which is a great race bike but not an everday bike, all is ok with the world again.

Strengths:
Reasonably light yet laterally very stiff.
Excellent comfort combined with great road feel.
An excellent everyday bike that I look forward to riding.
Bang for the buck.
Generally sensible geometry.
Appears to be very robust for quite a light bike..

Weaknesses:
Occasional chain suck
Frame angles unchanged for different sizes.

Similar Products Used:
Pinarello Opera
Specialized Roubiaux
Trek 5200

(rbr)