# Venge Vias has landed...



## mile2424 (Jul 17, 2008)

Just picked it up. Sz. 56. Still need to get the fit dialed in and remove those "aero" pedals  Better pictures to come later but here's one for now.....


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## spdntrxi (Jul 25, 2013)

down periscope!....j/k

seriously nice rig... congrats! go fast!


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## tranzformer (Dec 27, 2007)

mile2424 said:


> *Just picked it up.* Sz. 56. Still need to get the fit dialed in and remove those "aero" pedals  Better pictures to come later but here's one for now.....



I thought you picked it up two days ago (Wednesday)?

Venge Vias has landed... - Weight Weenies

Anyways I look forward to seeing it all dialed in and hearing your review of it. More pictures when you have them.  




spdntrxi said:


> down periscope!....j/k


:thumbsup:


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## geomel108 (Dec 6, 2011)

Enjoy ur sick ride!! Congrats!!


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## Devastazione (Dec 8, 2011)

Holy hell you really need to do something asap about that stack of pancakes under the stem. I need a pepto now....

Either way congrats,it's a super looking machine,post us some ride reports.


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## NealH (May 2, 2004)

Agree, forget about those pedals and get the smokestack problem corrected first. Few things are more "unaero".


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## vic bastige (Jan 22, 2004)

It will be a great looking bike once the spacers are fixed. Also, and I know this is being picky, but post it with the chain on the big ring next time so I can have a nice dream bike shot to refer to.

Finally, and this is directed SQUARELY at Specialized, please, PLEASE take the world champ colors OFF the S-Work tires like they used to be. I just put my second set on (they are spectacular in almost every way) and needed to use a sharpie to reduce the Fredishness.


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## TricrossRich (Mar 26, 2014)

honest opinion on brakes.... good? adequate? sucky? what's the word?


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## mile2424 (Jul 17, 2008)

TricrossRich said:


> honest opinion on brakes.... good? adequate? sucky? what's the word?


So far I would say the brakes are quite good and seem very adequate. I haven't tried any good descents yet, but on rolling hills they seem very good so far. 

Also for those wondering about weight, currently mine is weighing in just over 17 lbs as pictured. Hopefully I can trim this done a little with proper pedals, and removing some of the spacers. I know they weren't focused on weight, but that does seem a little porky.


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## mile2424 (Jul 17, 2008)

Fit scheduled for later this week, until then....couple more pics...


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## spdntrxi (Jul 25, 2013)

no more pics... its not helping... that stack is killing me.. or lens distortion

remove the pinstripes


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## aqualelaki (Sep 5, 2011)

Hmmm.... At least you can change the pedal by yourself


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## Devastazione (Dec 8, 2011)

mile2424 said:


> Fit scheduled for later this week, until then....couple more pics...



Why are you posting this abomination again ? Whether one can justify the pre fitting thing about stem what is the point of having those pedals ? Have you actually rode the bike yet ?


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## MMsRepBike (Apr 1, 2014)

Sorry, this is the ugliest bike I've ever seen, I can't hold back anymore. Just plain disgusting. Makes me want to sell my Tarmac and disassociate with the brand.


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## Devastazione (Dec 8, 2011)

MMsRepBike said:


> Sorry, this is the ugliest bike I've ever seen, I can't hold back anymore. Just plain disgusting. Makes me want to sell my Tarmac and disassociate with the brand.


Yeah this actually makes me wonder if Specialized considered that very few people that will choose the Vias will probably have same age and flexibility as pro racers do. They kept showing the bike with a 20 something whippet guy on and zero spacers under the stem,to me just a couple of spacers are enough to ruin this bike..


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## Adim_X (Mar 7, 2011)

Couple of spacers..ha ..that's 3 inches. I'm surprised they let him take the bike out of the shop with that stack. Overall..the frame looks okay imo. I would consider it, but specialized proprietary parts have left me soured on my 2016 crux..not adding anything else for a while.


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## vic bastige (Jan 22, 2004)

What did that poor Venge do to you to deserve this? Get fitted, get some pedals, kill the straight outta Compton pinstripes and pink(?) bottle.

...then go ride that thing.


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## Devastazione (Dec 8, 2011)

vic bastige said:


> What did that poor Venge do to you to deserve this? Get fitted, get some pedals, kill the straight outta Compton pinstripes and pink(?) bottle.
> 
> ...then go ride that thing.


Crap,I did not even notice the stripes in first place. Maybe he's after some sort of Tron's style..


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## Adim_X (Mar 7, 2011)

Are the pinstripes a photoshop thing or for reals? Doesn't this defeat the purpose of the whole windtunnel..aero thing?


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## tranzformer (Dec 27, 2007)

Hopefully the OP will get rid of the 'dork disc' on the rear wheel, put some real pedals on and get his steer tube cut to a respectable length. That ought to help a lot with the visual side of things.


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## Adim_X (Mar 7, 2011)

Sorry..OP..we are coming across as haters. Hopefully you get the tweaks you need for the bike to work for you.


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## aaronpass (Apr 11, 2013)

I'm actually in the process of throwing up in my mouth.


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## mile2424 (Jul 17, 2008)

Ha lot's of love on here. It's ok, I agree with everyone's comments and like I mentioned once I have my fit hopefully that stack will get reduced. Yes, I have been riding the bike everyday to and from work, but haven't had time to get the fit and really take it out for a proper ride. That's why I haven't removed the pedals or cassette disk yet. New pedals were ordered and are arriving today. The pinstripe is just a very thin reflective black tape I was playing around with for fun, it's easily removable, eventually I'd like to do a custom paint graphic of some sort.


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## vic bastige (Jan 22, 2004)

Opinions are part of the deal with a public forum and anonymity. If your ride makes YOU happy, that's all that matters. If your ride makes YOU want to hop on and GO, that's all that matters. Good luck with the fit and final appearance. One thing for sure, this bike is a game changer in many ways that will likely cause lasting evolution to the industry.

That said, if you put pinstripes or custom colors on that thing, you're dead to me.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

To make everyone feel better lets look at this retro Venge instead.


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## robt57 (Jul 23, 2011)

To each his own and all, but better feeling is not the effect that has for me. Quite the opposite actually. Sorry for my the Thumper Doctrine rule breaking and all.. [see who gets that].


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## vertr (Aug 22, 2006)

carbonLORD said:


> To make everyone feel better lets look at this retro Venge instead.
> 
> View attachment 309022


Really... that thing doesn't even have a power meter.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

When I stop hitting the podium, _maybe_ I'll consider a power meter.


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## vertr (Aug 22, 2006)

carbonLORD said:


> When I stop hitting the podium, _maybe_ I'll consider a power meter.


Seems like you mostly gaze longingly at your bike.


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## tranzformer (Dec 27, 2007)

The old Venge just isn't very aero compared to its competitors. I'd rather ride a Tarmac if I had to race on a Specialized.


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## spdntrxi (Jul 25, 2013)

^ I think the old venge hold it's own compared to others of it's age... it loses to most of the new ones, which should be no big surprise...that's why there is a "new venge"

but I agree... I like the Tarmacs


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## tranzformer (Dec 27, 2007)

spdntrxi said:


> ^ I think the old venge hold it's own compared to others of it's age... it loses to most of the new ones, which should be no big surprise...that's why there is a "new venge"
> 
> but I agree... I like the Tarmacs


The old Venge doesn't really test that well aero wise for what it was touted to be. You can see this in the Tour test as well as the Bicycling aero test. It is middle of the pack and after the S5, Propel, TimeMachine...etc. of its time.


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## vertr (Aug 22, 2006)

tranzformer said:


> The old Venge doesn't really test that well aero wise for what it was touted to be. You can see this in the Tour test as well as the Bicycling aero test. It is middle of the pack and after the S5, Propel, TimeMachine...etc. of its time.


And yet, Sagan and Cav still chose it over the Tarmac and the new Venge for sprint finishes.


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## vic bastige (Jan 22, 2004)

vertr said:


> And yet, Sagan and Cav still chose it over the Tarmac and the new Venge for sprint finishes.


Yeah...they "chose".


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## vertr (Aug 22, 2006)

vic bastige said:


> Yeah...they "chose".


I don't follow.


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## taodemon (Mar 17, 2014)

tranzformer said:


> The old Venge doesn't really test that well aero wise for what it was touted to be. You can see this in the Tour test as well as the Bicycling aero test. It is middle of the pack and after the S5, Propel, TimeMachine...etc. of its time.


I might be looking at the wrong Tour testing but the venge was almost identical to the propel and only a bit off of the time machine, only the newer bikes like the S5, Aerorad, and AR FRD seem to be "significantly" better in terms of Aero.



vic bastige said:


> Yeah...they "chose".


Cav rides seems to ride the old venge over any other bike other than the few times he was on the new venge during the tour. He even rode it on the cobble stage over a roubaix so he must really like it or just be a little crazy.

Sagan on the other hand seems to switch bikes depending on the stage. I'm not sure what he rode for the cobbles during the tour but it wouldn't surprise me if it was a roubaix, and he uses a Tarmac for climbing stages. His stage 3 win for the vuelta was on the new venge but it seems he started the stage on a Tarmac. 

Maybe I haven't spent enough time riding tarmacs but I didn't notice anything about the ones I rode that would make me pick one over a venge. It is only my second year on a road bike so maybe I just need to ride more bikes or something.


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## vic bastige (Jan 22, 2004)

vertr said:


> I don't follow.


Meaning the sponsorship component limited their "choice". What a Pro chooses would only be meaningful to me if they were allowed to choose what they believed to be best from all comers, not just the stable of the brand their Team runs.


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## vertr (Aug 22, 2006)

vic bastige said:


> Meaning the sponsorship component limited their "choice". What a Pro chooses would only be meaningful to me if they were allowed to choose what they believed to be best from all comers, not just the stable of the brand their Team runs.


Either you misunderstood my point, or chose to interpret it another way, but this is way off. The point was that they chose the old Venge from their available options, so it must not be *that* slow. I don't care about other bikes they could have chosen in your imagination. Given the sponsor wanted them on the new Venge, this shows a lot.


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## vic bastige (Jan 22, 2004)

vertr said:


> Either you misunderstood my point, or chose to interpret it another way, but this is way off. The point was that they chose the old Venge from their available options, so it must not be *that* slow. I don't care about other bikes they could have chosen in your imagination. Given the sponsor wanted them on the new Venge, this shows a lot.


Thanks for doing a better job of proving my point than I ever could.


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## vertr (Aug 22, 2006)

vic bastige said:


> Thanks for doing a better job of proving my point than I ever could.


You are right, you did a poor job of expressing yourself.


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## mile2424 (Jul 17, 2008)

Luis with the colored version of the frame which looks nice!


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## vic bastige (Jan 22, 2004)

vertr said:


> You are right, you did a poor job of expressing yourself.


LAST edited at 9:31? How many tries did you give it? I wasn't trolling you, only offering a different perspective to which you were quickly defensive. Clearly you are irritated; I'm sorry and will withdraw from further comment here.


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## vertr (Aug 22, 2006)

vic bastige said:


> LAST edited at 9:31? How many tries did you give it? I wasn't trolling you, only offering a different perspective to which you were quickly defensive. Clearly you are irritated; I'm sorry and will withdraw from further comment here.


I chose to dial back the dickishness in my comment.


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## taodemon (Mar 17, 2014)

mile2424 said:


> Murray won on his this weekend, beating out Gomez.....the colored version of the frame looks nice!


Looks much better there than on the specialized website (typical for them).


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## Cinelli 82220 (Dec 2, 2010)

MMsRepBike said:


> Sorry, this is the ugliest bike I've ever seen, I can't hold back anymore. Just plain disgusting. Makes me want to sell my Tarmac and disassociate with the brand.


Agreed. The Edsel all over again.


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## Cinelli 82220 (Dec 2, 2010)

taodemon; said:


> Cav rides seems to ride the old venge over any other bike other than the few times he was on the new venge during the tour


Cav rides a Tarmac on most days if there is a lot of climbing. Sometimes he switches to his white Venge for the finish. 

I doubt he raced the Vias more than five times.


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## makeitso (Sep 20, 2008)

Cinelli 82220 said:


> Cav rides a Tarmac on most days if there is a lot of climbing. Sometimes he switches to his white Venge for the finish.
> 
> I doubt he raced the Vias more than five times.


Thought Cav rode the old Cavendish special edition Venge while Sagan rides his camo Tarmac most of the time? Either way, neither one rides the new ViaS when they have the choice. Both have been said that it's not very good in descents, but no idea if it's the brakes, geometry or other.


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## 11spd (Sep 3, 2015)

Devastazione said:


> Holy hell you really need to do something asap about that stack of pancakes under the stem. I need a pepto now....
> 
> Either way congrats,it's a super looking machine,post us some ride reports.


Yes...that stack of pancakes seems to belie the theme of the bike which is ride aero.
Sorry to be a hater of the headset/stem on the new Venge. To me, it looks awful. Sometimes aero isn't always pretty I suppose. The Look 795 which looks a bit sci-fi is so much cleaner if going off the reservation of tradition.


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## thumper8888 (Apr 7, 2009)

Man there is a lot of piling on here. The OP has a long history of demonstrated good taste... give the man a little time.
I think I've made it clear that I'm not a fan of the bike, and I won't be getting one under any circumstances, but it is breaking serious ground on lot of fronts.
And the aesthetics. OK, it just doesn't work visually for anyone needs moderate to serious up from "slammed."
And it seems like the larger the frame, the less attractive. But -- and this is just me probably -- it seems to have an unusually wide gulf in how homely and how good looking it can be.
A 54 with slammed stem to me is a really, really nice looking bike. and OK, I may be the only one. But it looks aggressive, modern etc. 
While anything approaching the initial photos here just looks soul-suckingly terrible.
Slammed stem and no pinstripes would go about 80 percent to fixing the problem though.
A more serious an issue is the notion of an S-works road race bike that weighs more than 17 pounds. My Allez smartweld is under 16, for godsakes. On alloy clinchers.
Plus there is the still unexplained problem of Cav and Sagan still avoiding the use of the bike.


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## Cinelli 82220 (Dec 2, 2010)

makeitso said:


> Thought Cav rode the old Cavendish special edition Venge


Yes that is what I meant.
He usually rides his white Venge with all Dura Ace 9070.
If the race is very hilly he uses a Tarmac.


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## taodemon (Mar 17, 2014)

Cinelli 82220 said:


> Yes that is what I meant.
> He usually rides his white Venge with all Dura Ace 9070.
> If the race is very hilly he uses a Tarmac.


I've never actually seen him on the Tarmac (not saying he doesn't ride it) but they don't exactly show him often on climbing stages. I remember him being on the white venge for the cobbles though which seemed odd.


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## mile2424 (Jul 17, 2008)

One of the first good shots I have seen of the pro version....sure makes that transition in the downtube look much more dramatic without the logo on there.


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## EastonZ16 (Aug 11, 2010)

mile2424 said:


> One of the first good shots I have seen of the pro version....sure makes that transition in the downtube look much more dramatic without the logo on there.


That seems like a lot of seat post...maybe the photo angle?


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## TricrossRich (Mar 26, 2014)

EastonZ16 said:


> That seems like a lot of seat post...maybe the photo angle?


That seat post hasn't been trimmed... Because of the aero shaping of the seat tube and the brake, the seat post can only go so far down. A Shop won't trim the seat post until they fit it to a customer.


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## EastonZ16 (Aug 11, 2010)

TricrossRich said:


> That seat post hasn't been trimmed... Because of the aero shaping of the seat tube and the brake, the seat post can only go so far down. A Shop won't trim the seat post until they fit it to a customer.


Totally get that. I thought it was someones bike but now looking at the picture looks like it is more of a shop photo.


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