2010 Felt Z4 – At $2999 with a full 2010 Ultegra 6700 group and Felt’s UHM (Ultra High Modulus) carbon frame, the Felt Z4 comes out hundreds of dollars less than many of its direct competitors.  Many people also think it is one of the best looking bikes in its category as well…   If you are looking for an Ultegra bike with a nice full carbon frame and fork, a more versatile road fit than average, all in a super looking package, check out the Felt Z4.

2010 Cervelo R3 SL – Not only is this bike stunning to look at this year, it remains one of Cervelo’s most balanced and lightest bikes.  The R3 SL is stiff in the drivetrain because of the Squoval designed downtube and oversize chainstays while the bent thin seatstays help keep it one of Cervelo’s most comfortable platforms.  At just 825 grams for a frame and 1220 grams for the frameset, this 54cm frame almost needs an anchor to keep it on the display rack.   On a related note, it will be interesting to see what Cervelo’s new engineering facility in CA is able to come up with in the future.  Rumor has it that we’ll be seeing a R3 based frame available that weighs under 750 grams for 2011 without degrading ride quality.  Rumor also says the made in U.S.A. frameset could run close to $10,000 and at $4000, the 2010 R3 SL is not much heavier, available now, and significantly lower in price.   We also stock Cervelo’s ready to ride bike models like the S1 road bike at $2200 and the P2 TT/Tri bike at $2800 as well as the RS, S2, P4 and P3 models too.

2010 Guru Photon – As the scale shows, this mid-sized Guru Photon we received was competitively weighted as a frame at 1200 grams.  However, as the image next to it shows, we were not weighing the frame, 1200 grams is the weight of the frame, fork, headset and seatmast!   Sub 800 grams on the frame alone makes this one of the lightest frames we have weighed (the 2010 Parlee Z5 is another very light production frame…).   The good news is that in order to achieve this very light weight Guru did not unnecessarily compromise ride quality or fit and frame geometry – the Photon is a finalist (winner has yet to be announced) of Bicycle Magazine’s “Dream Bike of the Year Award”.  The Photon uses oversize carbon tubing and rides firmly, but not harshly, and provides the same no charge custom geometry options of every other Guru model!     To make things even better, Guru is still making all their frames in North America (Montreal, Canada) and you can take 10% off any Photon frameset ordered before April 15th.

Serotta MeiVici AE – Unlike some of the other frames profiled, the Serotta MeiVici is not designed to be the lightweight king.  However, the 100% made in the U.S.A. Serotta MeiVici AE is designed to be the most tunable, durable, balanced, best fitting and smoothest riding aero shaped carbon bicycle money can buy and it does a great job of achieving these goals.   Available in road or TT geometry, the AE addresses aerodynamics head-on and the new fully tunable super oversized F4 fork demonstrates exceptional lateral rigidity while still being very smooth and aero.  Oh, the AE is also available in a number of finish options, all of which are painted in house, and thus the MeiVici AE can be made to look as nice as it rides.

• About the Author

About Ian

From first time riders to Olympians, Ian has helped thousands of athletes achieve their cycling and triathlon goals. Ian develops much of the Fit Werx fitting and analysis protocols and is responsible for technology training and development. He is regarded as one of the industry leaders in bicycle fitting, cycling biomechanics and bicycle geometry and design. He is dedicated to making sure the Fit Werx differences are delivered daily and provides Fit Werx with corporate direction and is responsible for uniting our staff and initiatives.

Find out more about Ian Here