Help / advice.....2013 Venge Expert vs 2014 Tarmac???

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RichardSuncoast
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Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2014 11:08 am

by RichardSuncoast

Advice sought, have choice between a 2013 Venge Expert with Ultegra groupset and carbon crank vs a 2014 Tarmac Elite with 105 groupset.......Tarmac is $500 cheaper though

I do a mix of hills (which I love) and flats (love also)

Want to do a bit of low grade racing , mostly road race stuff, maybe the odd crit.

I am intermediate rider, have also in mind to do the odd triathlon in near future

Was also thinking about getting the tarmac for the all round ability and love of climbing and maybe a second hand Tri specific bike such as the alumiium Shiv or a Trinity

All advice welcome........love of hills vs Venge shape

Cheers

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djconnel
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Location: San Francisco, CA
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by djconnel

Sounds like the best approach is to get the Venge then use it for triathlon as well -- not as fast as a Shiv, but it depends on how much you care about saving a minute off your time. Venge will in theory be better for crits and most road races, neglecting fit, handling, etc. In any case I'd rather have Ultegra than 105.

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Chello
Posts: 45
Joined: Sun Apr 22, 2012 8:23 pm

by Chello

Are both bikes still 10 speed?

aaric
Posts: 430
Joined: Thu Jun 09, 2011 4:10 pm

by aaric

Try a Venge. Its definitely stiffer in the bottom bracket and seatpost. Some like that, some don't. You give up some comfort, but its definitely going to be faster aerodynamically.

Having previously owned a Venge Pro, and a tarmac SL3, I'd say go Venge. I liked my Venge more on climbs up to about 3 miles in length, because it was more responsive. I'd only pull the Tarmac out for long climbs, and more comfort on long rides with bad roads. You give up a little in the weight department with the venge, but that's probably going to be offset by the groupset difference, and the aero benefits are greater than the weight penalties.

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