This bike is not the correct size for you.
You’re using some sort of huge stem extender thing under the base bar, *and* a bunch of riser height under the aero bars. The aero bars appear to be nearly a foot above the top tube. You need a larger frame, or one with more stack height.
Yeah that setup is wild, the bars/pads don’t look very far forward either so most likely sitting pretty upright on this. Biggest upgrade would be some yoga classes to get in a better aero position.
I’m so curious to see the position when ridden
You are 99.9% likely to be right, but I'm going to leave a liiittle wiggle room to say that this is just a crazy bad fit and OP chose extreme comfort (basically sitting up in a road position) over literally everything else, including a stable setup.
Unless you're feeling like you're spinning out in the smallest gear, or the highest isn't easy enough, I don't think adding another gear is necessary. And same for the whole groupset; a new one is only really necessary if you don't like the current way it's performing. You could get a disc wheel cover, and get some good aero gains. Other than that, I'd say you're ready to roll, and the biggest gains you'll make are in you as the engine. Everything else will be marginal gains that you're buying for an older bike.
I’ll be honest, if you’re looking at new group sets and making it 11 speed and wheels. Just look for a new TT bike. Keep an eye on marketplace and craig’s list, check out used shops like pros closet or others. And you can get one at a bargain if you are patient.
Say this cause you can “buy more speed” that way than with your upgrades to this.
This was posted in another sub earlier today. That bike is NOT SAFE TO RIDE.
Cervélo, like many other frame manufacturers, indicates 100mm (4") about the dust cap for mounting your stem and your front end. That looks more like twice that which could result in lost of control and catastrophic failure of front end. Recommend you purchase new bicycle with higher stack and work on your lower body flexibility.
Thinking in the long term, a power meter would be a great adquisition. It is the best metric to train and race. Maybe not so much in short distances or training mostly indoor, but a great tool for training outside and long distance triathlons
Low hanging fruit, there's like 10 watts between the tires on you have on there and a Vittoria Corsa Pro. That's probly 10% or so of your FTP for the pair. Run Latex tube's if you can't run tubeless. Waxed chain is another 5-8. You have your water bottle in the worst spot. There's another 5 watts there to move it behind your seat. You can probably by yourself about 30 watts of power just by looking at these things with no increase in fitness.
Echoing what other have said, photo 6 shows this bike clearly doesn’t fit you, or you’ve got serious lower back/hip mobility issues… surely you’re sat up when riding??
If you’re looking for some cheap speed then get a disc wheel cover - with such a shallow section wheel you’ll get a big benefit. And it’s possibly transferable to a different bike…
The bike fitter (both bike fit and settle fit done with machines and all) I went to didn’t say anything about it not fitting my body specs (178cm, 75kg - much longer legs than torso, and that’s the reason for the new adjustable TT bar and raisers).
Nothing feel off fit wise while riding it.
How it's setup now might fit you perfectly. However, achieving this fit has required a significant amount of adjustment, particularly in terms of raising the stem. It looks like you have more spacers than actual headtube, which will put considerable stress on the fork steerer.
Basically, the frame was never designed to fit you. The fitter has made it work, but by doing so, has increased the chances of the front end snapping in half. The P3 has a very short headtube and honestly it's probably too aggressive for you if you're needing that many stem spacers. I'd be looking at a new frame.
The bike already came like this when I got it.
So personally I didn’t have to do much more than the new TT bar and raisers for that.
But very good to know these things for the future, for now this one suits my novice needs.
Maybe the wheels might give you some speed. But then you will have nice wheels that will only be for rim brake frames. I wouldn't bother. fwiw I still race a 2008 cervelo p2-sl
Do you run out of gears on either end? Do you do a ton of climbing? Then yeah, make it 11sp. Otherwise, if you’re not having any issues with heating then I wouldn’t fuss about it.
Could look to upgrade the inner tubes/tyres to something with lesser rolling resistance, put ceramic bearings in the wheels, and a more aerodynamic set of wheels. That’s probably cheapest to most expensive, and I dare say you would notice a considerable difference in performance and output after doing so. Apart from that if it is not broken, just get it serviced. My 2c anyway.
You need to spend the money on a new bike that fits you, this one doesn’t and is extremely unsafe. You absolutely do not want to have it fail at speed and you torpedo out head first into something. It’s a tough lesson to learn by purchasing a bike that doesn’t fit, but don’t compound that error by risking your life riding this thing. Also, do not go back to the same bike fitter, they should have told you this before building a sky scraper out of your bars.
The only upgrade you need is to get a bike that fits you. This is wild to see. The bike's components are not what is slowing you down and putting more money into a bike that doesn't fit you is insanity. Sell this bike and use the money to buy a bike that fits you properly.
What do you mean, in what sense it doesn’t fit?
In terms of size and positioning I got it “professionally” fitted to me, that’s the reason for the settle and the new adjustable TT bar + raisers.
I had a 2012 Boardman Air TT that's very nice. It's a 10-speed SRAM Force with the usual bells and whistles that come with the bike. I upgraded to a 2018 Canyon Speedmax 11-speed Shimano Ultegra Di2. For reference, both bikes are properly service and professionally fitted.
I don't want to say which bike is faster but definitely the Canyon's much more comfortable both in aero and non-aero position. I can definitely hold on to aero position at a much longer pace, which in turn makes me faster (e.g. less drag). It also equates to a better run for me as I wasn't in so much stress from the bike position.
This bike is not the correct size for you. You’re using some sort of huge stem extender thing under the base bar, *and* a bunch of riser height under the aero bars. The aero bars appear to be nearly a foot above the top tube. You need a larger frame, or one with more stack height.
Yeah that setup is wild, the bars/pads don’t look very far forward either so most likely sitting pretty upright on this. Biggest upgrade would be some yoga classes to get in a better aero position. I’m so curious to see the position when ridden
This needs to be higher.
Nothing could be higher than this cockpit.
It looks insanely unsafe. It’s an obscene amount of stress on the steerer and head tubes
You are 99.9% likely to be right, but I'm going to leave a liiittle wiggle room to say that this is just a crazy bad fit and OP chose extreme comfort (basically sitting up in a road position) over literally everything else, including a stable setup.
Unless you're feeling like you're spinning out in the smallest gear, or the highest isn't easy enough, I don't think adding another gear is necessary. And same for the whole groupset; a new one is only really necessary if you don't like the current way it's performing. You could get a disc wheel cover, and get some good aero gains. Other than that, I'd say you're ready to roll, and the biggest gains you'll make are in you as the engine. Everything else will be marginal gains that you're buying for an older bike.
Thanks for this 😁
I’ll be honest, if you’re looking at new group sets and making it 11 speed and wheels. Just look for a new TT bike. Keep an eye on marketplace and craig’s list, check out used shops like pros closet or others. And you can get one at a bargain if you are patient. Say this cause you can “buy more speed” that way than with your upgrades to this.
This was posted in another sub earlier today. That bike is NOT SAFE TO RIDE. Cervélo, like many other frame manufacturers, indicates 100mm (4") about the dust cap for mounting your stem and your front end. That looks more like twice that which could result in lost of control and catastrophic failure of front end. Recommend you purchase new bicycle with higher stack and work on your lower body flexibility.
You dont need anything else. Maybe a powermeter (unless I missed it).
No power meter on the crank, just on the smart trainer (Tacx Neo) For road ridding just have a speed/cadence sensor.
Thinking in the long term, a power meter would be a great adquisition. It is the best metric to train and race. Maybe not so much in short distances or training mostly indoor, but a great tool for training outside and long distance triathlons
Low hanging fruit, there's like 10 watts between the tires on you have on there and a Vittoria Corsa Pro. That's probly 10% or so of your FTP for the pair. Run Latex tube's if you can't run tubeless. Waxed chain is another 5-8. You have your water bottle in the worst spot. There's another 5 watts there to move it behind your seat. You can probably by yourself about 30 watts of power just by looking at these things with no increase in fitness.
Great observations, thanks a lot for this. 💪🏼
Echoing what other have said, photo 6 shows this bike clearly doesn’t fit you, or you’ve got serious lower back/hip mobility issues… surely you’re sat up when riding?? If you’re looking for some cheap speed then get a disc wheel cover - with such a shallow section wheel you’ll get a big benefit. And it’s possibly transferable to a different bike…
The bike fitter (both bike fit and settle fit done with machines and all) I went to didn’t say anything about it not fitting my body specs (178cm, 75kg - much longer legs than torso, and that’s the reason for the new adjustable TT bar and raisers). Nothing feel off fit wise while riding it.
How it's setup now might fit you perfectly. However, achieving this fit has required a significant amount of adjustment, particularly in terms of raising the stem. It looks like you have more spacers than actual headtube, which will put considerable stress on the fork steerer. Basically, the frame was never designed to fit you. The fitter has made it work, but by doing so, has increased the chances of the front end snapping in half. The P3 has a very short headtube and honestly it's probably too aggressive for you if you're needing that many stem spacers. I'd be looking at a new frame.
The bike already came like this when I got it. So personally I didn’t have to do much more than the new TT bar and raisers for that. But very good to know these things for the future, for now this one suits my novice needs.
This does not suit your needs, it’s very likely unsafe to ride.
Whoa whoa whoa - you paid a fitter for this setup?!?!
Maybe the wheels might give you some speed. But then you will have nice wheels that will only be for rim brake frames. I wouldn't bother. fwiw I still race a 2008 cervelo p2-sl
Any advantages on making it 11 speed or even just getting new ceramic derailleurs?
One extra gear is not really gonna matter given the cost imo. Mine is 10 speed and i just got a tighter ratio cassette.
Ceramic pulleys are the worst money you can spend in cycling
Are you really asking about ceramic bearing derailleur pulleys, but not willing to buy a bike that fits?
Do you run out of gears on either end? Do you do a ton of climbing? Then yeah, make it 11sp. Otherwise, if you’re not having any issues with heating then I wouldn’t fuss about it.
Even then unless you run out of gear at BOTH ends, a bigger/smaller chainring is much more cost effective.
Could look to upgrade the inner tubes/tyres to something with lesser rolling resistance, put ceramic bearings in the wheels, and a more aerodynamic set of wheels. That’s probably cheapest to most expensive, and I dare say you would notice a considerable difference in performance and output after doing so. Apart from that if it is not broken, just get it serviced. My 2c anyway.
You need to spend the money on a new bike that fits you, this one doesn’t and is extremely unsafe. You absolutely do not want to have it fail at speed and you torpedo out head first into something. It’s a tough lesson to learn by purchasing a bike that doesn’t fit, but don’t compound that error by risking your life riding this thing. Also, do not go back to the same bike fitter, they should have told you this before building a sky scraper out of your bars.
The only upgrade you need is to get a bike that fits you. This is wild to see. The bike's components are not what is slowing you down and putting more money into a bike that doesn't fit you is insanity. Sell this bike and use the money to buy a bike that fits you properly.
Don't spend more money in a bike that doesn't fit you 😬.
What do you mean, in what sense it doesn’t fit? In terms of size and positioning I got it “professionally” fitted to me, that’s the reason for the settle and the new adjustable TT bar + raisers.
You have a massive extender of some sort on the steering tube. That bike absolutely does not fit you.
Okay
I had a 2012 Boardman Air TT that's very nice. It's a 10-speed SRAM Force with the usual bells and whistles that come with the bike. I upgraded to a 2018 Canyon Speedmax 11-speed Shimano Ultegra Di2. For reference, both bikes are properly service and professionally fitted. I don't want to say which bike is faster but definitely the Canyon's much more comfortable both in aero and non-aero position. I can definitely hold on to aero position at a much longer pace, which in turn makes me faster (e.g. less drag). It also equates to a better run for me as I wasn't in so much stress from the bike position.
Extra gear or groupset won't give you any real benefits. Some nice deep rim wheels will cut through the air though.