Trek Madone or Specialized Ruby

Something to be said for developing a relationship with the local dealer instead of the dealer 150 miles away.

I demoed lots of road bikes last year before I bought - I though for SURE I would want cervelo since I love my TT bike so much.  But in road bikes the Cervelo did not fit me well.  While the Trek Madone was ok I knew as soon as I started riding it that the Specialized Ruby was the right bike for me. 

I have not regretted my decision at all.

Come visit and demo both!!!

Edited by TriToy 2009-11-24 1:57 PM

I agree, we've bought our last two bikes there. At this point I just want the better bike. I will have to order it no matter who I get it from. This is rural Idaho so even at the local shop there is very limited selection - like 9-10 new/used road bikes total.

I ride a Trek Madone 5.2 WSD and I love it.  I've raced a sprint triathlon and done 4-5 metric centuries on it.

It is comfortable and shifts sooo smooth. 

You mentioned the cadence sensor in the fork...my 5.2 doesn't have that.  The models above and below it do have it, so double check the model you are looking at. 

Not sure how far it would be for you, but Boise seems to have a decent bike shop. They carry Trek, Specialized, Serotta, Cervelo, etc....

http://georgescycles.com/

If it's not too far it might be worth the trip to ride a few bikes. Probably best to call and schedule the ride, so you can check their inventory and see if they have your size.

I test rode the Madone and Cervelo S2. Without doubt I preferred the Cervelo, so am waiting until the 2010 models are available. I did not ride the Specialized, although the bike shop where I rode the Cervelo carries them. The S2 and R3 with Ultegra cost the same (2010 models), and fit the same (same geometry), but with the S2 you have something different. Just my .02 cents.

Good luck deciding. You will likely love whatever you select.

John

If you aren't going to be doing your own maintainence, then this is the right answer.  I have a Madone that I love; mrs gearboy has a Specialized that we got from a dealer in the next county.  The dealer was great, but I do pretty much all my own bike work, so distance was not an issue.

Probably not the answer that you're looking for, but getting a test ride of each in some way would be the best option.

Last spring I was in the market and it came down to a Madone 5.5, Madone 4.7, Specialized Roubaix, and Felt (I forget the model). The Roubaix was very smooth but the position was completely wrong. Both Treks and the Felt had the right body position/geometry, but the 4.7 and the Felt had so much vibration I felt like I had just come from the dentist. The 5.5 was the perfect match.

My DH is going to seriously roll his eyes when I tell him I want to drive 2.5 hours to try a bike

Can you really tell if you like a bike based on a ride around a neighborhood? I deal with some serious chip seal all around me and doubt if I could find the same awful roads to try a bike out on in the city since you have all the fancy bike trails and such

Now I have to come up with something he needs in Boise so I can justify a trip there!

When I did my test rides, I spent at least 30-45 minutes on each bike. That gave me about 2.5 hours worth of test rides that day. I think I ended up with about 40 miles or so. I found a road behind the LBS that was cobble-stones, rode a very steep (albeit short) hill, a nice flat spot on a reasonable road for a speed/brake test, a very steep descent, and then around the park on bike paths. If you can scout out the area a little before hand you can probably find some good places. Contact the bike shop before you go and tell them that you want to take some considerable test rides. They may be able to give you ideas of where to test out the bad road, hills, etc. If they have any problem with spending that amount of time on the test, I would go to a different shop. Easier said than done, sometimes.


Regarding the chip-seal issue, there's a road that I often ride to work that is half chip-seal and half nice smooth asphalt. On my old bike (aluminum) I was always looking forward to the nice smooth asphalt section as my butt was getting beaten by the chip-seal. The first time out on the Madone 5.5 and I didn't even realize I was on the chip-seal until a while after I was on the asphalt. Once I realized it, I was impressed.



Edited by KirkD 2009-11-24 6:05 PM

I did the same with my old Specialized Allez and turned it into a tri specific bike. For new bike, I tested Trek Madone, Specialized Tarmac and Specialized Roubaix. Ended up with the Roubaix. LOVE the bike. It doesn't corner as tight as the Tarmac or Madone b/c of longer wheelbase, but it is very lively ride without all of the road chatter and is great for long rides. I'm 5'6 with shorter torso and it worked well for me with stock stem.
But....I would say the best thing is to try anything before you shell out the dough! It may be "measured" to fit you, but you may not like the ride!

I'm with KirkD. Take a reasonably long test ride. Ride the bikes under consideration one after the other, same route. I suggest minimum of 30 minutes each. If only testing two bikes, test longer each. Really find out how the bike rides. Also justifies 2.5 hour drive to Boise.

Edited by johnrsims 2009-11-25 11:03 AM

Personally, I like the ride of a trek better. It just seems to fit me well. I also prefer regular geometry over compact. I don't MIND specialized (and in fact, actually own one)...but as far as their road bikes go, I seem to need a bit more tweaking to fit on either a 52 or a 54.

But both are good bikes, and have great resale value. The madone 5 and ups have the competition/race type geometry; the lower #s are more relaxed, as is the ruby/roubaix.

Really, at your height, you don't NEED a wsd bike. I am 5'9.5", with a 33.5 inseam and I ride a 54 Trek, straight up for the van, so if you couldn't find a WSD model...

I am 5'9", 33 inseam too. I tried the Ruby and it seemed okay, but not as good as the boy version, the Roubaix. The main thing I didn't like on the Ruby was the handlebar setup. Because the Ruby is made for chicks who mostly have smaller hands than guys, there is less room between the drops and the brake grips. While this can be good for smaller chicks, for me, my knuckles rubbed and I felt all squinched in. It just didn't feel as good as the Roubaix to me. I also would have needed a different stem too. I ended up with the Roubaix - I think the 54cm. I can look when I get home if that would help.

The Roubaix seat wasn't as comfortable as I wanted/needed so I did a sit test where they sit you on a pad and measure the distance between the dents your sit bones make. I bought the Ruby seat in my size (which I can't remember). Fits great.

Sometimes I think that LBS can steer us tall women toward a chick specific bike too quickly. At 5'9" I'm pretty much the same size as most guys, especially cyclists. The geometry built into a women's specific bike is for average-sized women. Isn't that 5'4" or something? 

You might try some of the bikes that they suggest you NOT get. (Too aggressive, too whatever.) Feeling how something is wrong can sometimes help you feel what 'right' feels like more easily. I found it sortof difficult to evaluate two or three "these will probably work for you" bikes when I wasn't really sure what exactly I was looking for or what I should be feeling. Especially if I had to wait a day or two between test rides.

Good luck!!

I will check into the Roubaix as well since I am tall. My husband would rather me buy locally so I don't get shunned I'm still working on finding demo rides. Even though I can get the Ruby/Roubaix locally they still have to order them which means I'd have to buy it.

like I said, come visit Boston....you can demo both!!! Landry's has the trek Madone's as high end rentals and since I was buying a bike they let me demo all sorts of things.....

I ride a specialized ruby comp and love it! Defiantly recommend testing one out.

I understand your pain (and your husband's concern). However, you local shop is not really set up to support you. I even guess they would understand if you purchased elsewhere, unless they are willing to bring in several bikes for you to test - on the basis of you purchasing only one.