# Pilot / 5.2SL / Zurich / C-dale ride comparisons.



## skygodmatt (May 24, 2005)

Well,

I was able to test ride these 2007 bikes. All in all, they felt great and had their own strong points. Here is what I found:

*Pilot: *
This is literally a bike you can ride all day. The comfort was incredible. This one had the most vibration dampening. It lacked a certain "snap" to the pedal stroke and handled mellow. However, It's the best big mileage bike I rode with a longer head tube than the Madone for comfort. The turns were stable wider archs. The wheelbase is longer than the rest to really soak up the vibes but the bike did not have a big bike feel. 

*Madone 5.2SL*:
This bike is race geometry and surprisingly very damped feeling. It does put the rider in an aggressive position. The seat angle is neutral and the front end was stiff but not twitchy. I have owned other race bikes that seemed way more sensitive. It does have a very short head tube which I didn't like. I rode it with the stem flipped up to achieve my 8cm saddle/bar drop. Some riders will need to go higher as this is still pretty low and can be a problem. The BB stiffness was pretty good. Among all bikes, this is the one I will most likely buy. The suge in acceleration was second only to the C-dale.

*07 Zurich*:
This is the new all carbon one. It has a perfect niche to fit in between the Pilot and Madone. This bike is making me think twice about buying a Madone. The Zurich has a longer head tube which is a real plus and also a slightly more relaxed seat angle. The handling is amazingly live ( almost that of Madone and C-dale ) and wheelbase is actually short so manuverability is high. It coordinates up nice. It is not quite as stiff in the BB or front end as a Madone but felt very close. The Zurich damps as well as a Madone and gives more comfort options. It's hard to find a bike with these attributes. 

*C-dale System 6*: 
This is one pure racer. It is the stiffest one in my ride test-- both in BB and front end. It has race geometry and handled like it's on rails. I know many guys that love this bike. As for me, I needed a tad more dampening for my body. For many racers, this feel is quite a nice compromise. It surged forward fast and coordinated up nice--definitely snappy. It is by far not a harsh ride. The only bumps that hit me hard were train tracks. The rest were nicely damped. 


Overall, what it comes down to is finding a frame to match your personality. I was told by some, that Treks felt dead and C-dales were harsh. None of this was true. If you ask different riders if they liked a particular bike, you'll get many answers. If you compare the bikes of today to the ones from only a few years ago, you'll find they have all come a long way. There is really no bad bike. Only ones that don't fit your needs.

Matt P.


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## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

I test rode the Pilot, 06 Lemond and Madone. It came down to my riding style and I chose the Pilot with the Lemond a close second. The geometry and short head tube was not for me on the Madone. I just switched from the Satellite fork to a Reynolds Ouzo. The difference in axle to crown height caused my headtube angle to change from 72.6 to 73.4. I have the best of both worlds now and can switch forks back and forth depending on what I want. Good luck.


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## harvestlaser (May 13, 2004)

get the lemond. i have owned all kinds of bikes 5200, madone 5.2SL, lemond steel spine, cannondale caad 8, waterford steel. my most recent is a Lemond Victoire nice and stiff but like you said a bit more comfort but really only if you need it, you can always lower your stem but on the c-dale, madone you can never raise it up much if you get a back injury or you just get old and less flexible. 

LEMOND= perfect blend of weight, comfort, stiffness, strong warrenty, and lets not forget price.


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## uzziefly (Jul 15, 2006)

This thread is useless without pictures.


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## kneejerk (Feb 2, 2007)

the Lemond geometry totally does it for me too!....... In the end that is what really matters most.


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