Canyon Aeroroad v Trek Madone Speed

anthonyjessup

Hi,

I am looking to update my Trek Madone which is over 10 years old, however I am a Triathlete and looking to compete my first Ironman this year. I want a disc aero bike that I can fit tri bars too so I have the best of both worlds - wife definitely won't allow two bikes!!!

Trek have released the Trek Madone SLR Speed (no-one has reviewed it yet) which includes the bars but then there is also the Canyon Aeroad CF SL Disc 8.0, which is Di2 and I can add tri bars (plus its £1500 cheaper).

Concerned though it is cheaper because the components aren't as good as the Trek? I don't want to be updating the bike anytime soon!

Looking for advice on which is a better bike? All help appreciated.

fenix

Road bike with tri bars is always a compromise I'm afraid. The TT bike puts you in the right position and you'll be struggling to get that on the road bike.

I'd look for a TT Bike for a grand or so and then spend 2 grand on the new road bike.
Use the other grand left over to bribe your wife into letting you have 2 bikes for the year.

We can worry about next year if you still want to do IM races then.

Good luck !

imposter2.0

anthonyjessup said:

Concerned though it is cheaper because the components aren't as good as the Trek?

Not sure which 'components' you mean - but generally speaking, the Canyon is a high quality bike. Trek's prices are absurd - Canyon's prices are a bit more realistic. That's the main difference.

mrb123

Do you know there is likely to be a new Aeroad coming out before too long...

philbar72

van der poels ad on zwift, shows a new aeroad. it will still undercut the madone by a way and be as good a bike as it ( as well as being lighter on the climbs). I see far more aeroads out on the roads, and as others say if you want to go fast in an ironman go for a TT rig and then get a cheaper road bike.

(maybe an aeroad SL rather than Slx)?

redvision

philbar72 said:

van der poels ad on zwift, shows a new aeroad. it will still undercut the madone by a way and be as good a bike as it ( as well as being lighter on the climbs). I see far more aeroads out on the roads, and as others say if you want to go fast in an ironman go for a TT rig and then get a cheaper road bike.

(maybe an aeroad SL rather than Slx)?

All the canyon sponsored teams have been photographed with the old model aeroad for this season prompting lots of speculation that the new version is delayed:
https://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=153280&start=705

w00dster

I had this dilemma 18 months ago. Need to be careful with regards to what bars come with the Aeroad, one of them takes tri bars the other doesn’t, mine doesn’t. I think it’s the H11 that doesn’t but the H36 does, but worth googling.
I was lucky enough to have a long period of testing both bikes. The Madone is a lovely ride, very smooth. The Aeroad doesn’t feel as nice, not rattly, but a few niggles that I wouldn’t have had with the Madone. I bought the Aeroad CF SXL 8.0, was £2.5k cheaper than the equivalent Madone and £3k cheaper than the Systemsix.
Niggles with the Aeroad in 18 months of ownership....seat post /saddle angle was wrong, pointing down at a fairly steep angle, but of a pig to resolve. Few vids on YouTube about how to take a hammer to the seatpost.....the Di2 charger is a minor faff, located under the stem and the Wahooo uses the same bolts. Lastly the wheels on mine (Reynolds slg) are a pig to change tyres on. I’m now running tubeless and take anchovies, but now at the point of should I flat where I need to put in a tube it’s a phone call to the missus for collection.
I do like the Aeroad, but because of the niggles I’ve had it took longer to appreciate it. I paid just under £3k for mine in a sale. A friend has just bought the Dura Ace Di2 CF SXL with better wheels than mine for £3800, that’s a proper bargain.
I had no niggles with the Madone. I probably should have purchased this in hindsight, it was hard to justify the additional spend. The Systemsix was good, but I couldn’t remove the spacers as it wasn’t mine. The position felt like I was sitting far too high, oh and the wheels really felt twitchy in the wind.
I wouldn’t worry about a new Aeroad coming out, the old / current model is still a top aero bike. I think the new bike will have neater cabling, but don’t think there will be a massive aero difference. I wouldn’t pay full retail price though, I’d be looking at what they have in the outlet store.

anthonyjessup

Thank you for all your tips and advice.....it’s been really helpful!

Am probably going to listen to you all in some way.....think the plan is to take advantage of the CycleScheme now being unlimited and treat myself to a Canyon Aeroad (no mad rush so might hold off to see if they do release a 2020 upgrade), Madone & Systemsix look great but value for money don’t think I can go wrong with the Aeroad.

With the money I save will also try and pick up a 2nd hand TT bike for the tris/Ironman as it makes sense to have one for the races - having a look on eBay seem to be quite a few between £750 - £1500! Never owned a TT bike so any tips/advice what to look for happy to listen???

Thanks again for all your help 👍🏻

gsk82

Make sure you try some tt bikes before you buy. Borrowing a friends is best. A lot of people end up going a size down to get the lower front end.

fenix

You really don't want to go too low. We aren't talking about 10 or 25 mile efforts.

Half Iron is 56 miles and you have to run off the back of it.

A bike fit for the TT bike would be good. You'd be amazed at the difference small changes can make.

zest28

I have seen plenty of people with road bikes + tri-bars at iron mans that I have been, so it should be fine.

I would go for the Canyon personally as Trek their pricing is insane now. The same bikes were much cheaper 1 year ago.

However try both of the bikes in real life and see which you like best. If you for example really like the extra comfort the Trek Madone offers and like the design visually more, then feel free to spend the extra amount of money ofcourse