2021 Venge...is it round the corner?

Usually 40-60 miles with a 100 miler once per month or so

Roads here are pretty smooth, maybe 15% chip-seal, mostly asphalt

Right on cue:

1400g for the deep set
1284g for the climbing set

Not tubeless compatible though :frowning:

https://bikerumor.com/2020/06/03/new-roval-alpinist-clx-is-their-lightest-road-clincher-yet-rapide-clx-aims-for-fastest-all-around/

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Not as terrible as their SCS effup, but this is a mistake from the word ā€˜Goā€™.

Initial bad product that is behind the times, coupled with what we can expect is an eventual release of a TL compatible version sometime down the line (next year?), where some might expect backlash from buyers to learn their stuff is now ā€œoutdatedā€, (despite being outdated to begin with).

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Very doubtful theyā€™d get rid of the Venge.

There are no affordable versions of the bike. Itā€™s 100% a prestige line to compete with bikes like the Pinarello Dogma, it seems.

When a Bora or Quickstep rider sprints to the line for a win on the Venge it is a huge publicity boost. I think theyā€™ll keep the Venge. 10 watts may be nothing to most of us but at world tour sprint speeds it might be a bike length at the end of a sprint.

The fan boys in my club have both a Venge and a Tarmac. I think they keep both. They could do minor changes for 2021 or 2022 and it wouldnā€™t cost them much at all to produce a new Venge. They could just put fancier wheels on it and call it faster. The fanboys will eat it up.

I say no Venge. I think they will make the new Tarmac just as aero as the current Venge, but lighter, stiffer and more compliant.

I also think it will weigh the same (or maybe less with these new wheels) than the current Tarmac.

From a business perspective, this will increase their margin a ton! They will cut their skus by half. It will be easier for bike shops to sell. You no longer have to ā€œcompromiseā€ on your bike.

They can say ā€œItā€™s as light as the light bikes and as aero as the aero bikes, why choose anything else?ā€. Pretty much the holy grail of bikes (except fo the price tag).

And for these new wheels, does anyone else feel like these are just for their WT teams? I suspect the teams didnā€™t want to go tubeless and they wanted some wheels for the flats and wheels for climbing that were light and disc.

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Donā€™t most world tour teamā€™s ride tubulars?

You already see limited riders using aero frames. Now the EVO, Tarmac, TCR are all with in minimal difference of the most aero bike, I feel that you are right, one bike will do it all.

Also the last iteration of aero bikes were not really more aero then the models that came out in 2016. Can they scrub 10W off the 2018 models, I doubt it.

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I think they will make just the one bike. Pinarello has been on this for a while. Just the Dogma to do it all.

Youā€™re right. It will be interesting to see if they ride these. I know there were discussions Iā€™ve heard where they were trying to get the pros to ride clinchers.

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Exactly. As another point of reference my XL tarmac with regular handle bars was 200 grams lighter than my venge with aero handle bars.

Seems like they can find those 200 grams somewhere and make them equal.

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I believe thereā€™s either a new Venge or a new set of colourways releasing end of July. I sent an email to specialized enquiring about them all being out of stock and simply asked id look at another model if they were discontinued.

I received an email back stating at the end of July there will be news regarding the Venge (they couldnā€™t say if it was a new model or not) but I guess we will find out soon.

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Check out this thread:
Tarmac SL7 Release date

Highlights:

  • No more venge; just aero Tarmac
  • Release July 21st or 28th.
  • Spy shots of new Tarmac are in that thread.
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Looks like the Specialized Australia website has removed options of purchasing complete Venge bike. Only frames left and I am guessing its part of the model phase out

How do you figure? Why do you expect the SL7 to be vastly better than the Teammachine?

New Teammachine tomorrow!!!

Update: starting to trickle out today:
https://us-en.bmc-switzerland.com/models/road/teammachine-slr-one.html

Another update with final link to the new models:
https://us-en.bmc-switzerland.com/models/road/teammachine-slr-disc.html

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Shouldnā€™t that be the other way aroundā€¦ 10 watts is everything (well more) to most of us with a 800 - 1000 watt sprint over pro with 1650 to >2000 watt sprint where 10 watts is nothing.

Except most of us arenā€™t winning a Tour de France stage by a couple of centimeters so we have less on the line.

I agree though that 10 watts may be 3-6% for most of us.

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Sexy as always. I have had BMC on my future shortlist but they have the worst warranty I know and this is pushing me off a little.