If you come from a road background, fine tuning your suspension will be a new concept. Wheels are 32 mm deep Roval Terra CLXs. It is also only designed to smooth out rough roads and trails, reducing upper body fatigue, rather than taking big hits on rocky descents, like a mountain bike suspension fork. With that said, I did price out the S-Works model spec by spec. Finding your fit and ideal ride feel is a little different on the STR than any other gravel or road bike before it, and Specialized does recommend getting a bike fit if you haven't had one yet (or in recent years). 0% Finance; Cycle To Work; . I ran this wheelset tubeless with Trigger Pro 38 tires before changing to a different setup. The chainstay length has grown to a consistent 425mm across all sizes and models. The wheels were also tubeless-ready with a full rim strip. On the other hand rolling fast on bumpy back country gravel road is a pure pleasure. With northern New Mexico as my testing ground, I subjected my 57cm test model to a broad spectrum of riding conditions; mixed terrain exploratory day rides, alpine style climbs and descents, evening spins along baby-bottom-smooth blacktop, fast commutes around town (fun! Sure the tyres had been swapped out for the fatter Tracers, but the fore and aft of the post was massively noticeable. Like the S-Works, the Pro gets Easton EC70 AX Carbon 16-degree flare bars. Unique, hydraulically dampened suspension, Great tire clearance - 700c and 650B compatible, The fit and ride feel takes some time to set up. Part of the reason larger tires can now be accommodated is the advent on hydraulic brakes with drop handlebars. The top-of-the-line mish-mash of SRAMs top MTB and road groupsets worked faultlessly for me. Handlebars are Specializeds Adventure Gear Hover with a pleasing 12-degree flare. . Were personally going for aggressive performance. On the descends, this translated to confidence on the at-times loose terrain and new-to-me roads. It does, however, come with a two-year warranty and service period. Compared to the vanilla Diverge, the bike features a lower stack, a longer reach (roughly 30mm longer), a lower bottom bracket and a 70-degree head angle across all sizes. On those more traditional gravel roads that seem to go on for ever, the suspension will help you ride longer and go farther. Each issue features a collection of inspiring writing and beautiful photography. When I put down what power I have, the bike picked up speed with ease. The frame post itself is said to have an infinite lifespan and the whole system in general is protected from the usual gravel grime and should last a long time. Gravel continues to be a such fascinating category for bike manufacturers. The Specialized Diverge comes in a range of prices, from around $1300 for an entry-level bike to about $7500, depending on the features you want. Details of the Specialized DIVERGE COMP. A flat bar gravel bike with chunky tyres (a hybrid by any other name) is hardly as innovative as the hover bar, but its still going to be a totally divisive and intriguing bike, sure to make a splash. 42mm was the previous max tyre width on the last generation of the bike. - Check, check and check. Find out more about how we test. Would you like to receive offers, updates and events from BikeRadar and its publisher Our Media Ltd (an Immediate Group Company)? Published 2 March 23. An air shock dampener in the top tube is attached to the frame post by a sturdy aluminum piece called the tendon. The Diverge Evo is no different. Ive seen a Diverge set up with 38700 Specialized Trigger Pros. If you haven't tried a road bike with hydros, you're . Its priced at $3300. I rode the top-end S-Works and the beautiful "Satin Blaze" Pro model in September on some rather wet rides through Germany's Black Forest. It's not recommended that you mess with the rebound speed too much, but it can be adjusted with a hex key through a hole in the base of the top tube. The Elite ships with a GR400 groupset where the Base is decked out with a Shimano Claris groupset. Specialized says it decided to launch the bike after seeing a number of riders converting the previous-generation Diverge to flat bar. Wheelset: Roval C 38 Disc carbon tubeless-ready clincher Tyres: Specialized Turbo Pro 28mm stock, changed to Continental Grand Prix 5000 TL 32mm, then Schwalbe Pro One TLE 28mm Brakes: Shimano . We deliver! 4 interest-free payments of $9.24 with Klarna. These offer, in Specializeds words, aggressive tread for aggressive riding on aggressive trails, and that matches the suggested ethos of the EVO nicely. Indeed, Id claim we were venturing close to MTB territory in several parts of the ride. Racing down one of the longer descents in the area, it was immediately noticeable how much confidence they imbued in my riding, especially carving hard into corners. In fact, as someone who obsessively avoids paved roads, the Diverge reminded me about the pleasures of road touring. Front Tire. How it holds up for gravel remains to be seen. Neither road nor mountain, cycling's gravel category takes the best of both worlds . While $14K remains a hard-to-justify amount to spend on any bicycle, doing this bit of research does provide some perspective on how the price tag got to be so high. The new Diverge has plenty of options for racks and bottle cage mounts. We worked out flat bars are great for riding off-road years ago! 700 x 40 Tubeless Ready, up to 45 : Great Value gravel bike . DT Swiss G540 rim, 24mm internal width, tubeless ready, 24h, Specialized full sealed bearing thru axle hub, centerlock disc, DT Swiss Champion 14G stainless steel spokes, DT Swiss brass nipples . Always in search of the hippest new niche in cycling, Jack is a self-confessed gravel dork, fixie-botherer, tandem-evangelist and hill climb try hard. Das Specialized Diverge Comp Carbon Gravel Bike ist ausgestattet mit einer Future Shock 2.0 Starrgabel, . The new Specialized Diverge is here and theres a flat bar option that, The launch of the new Diverge comes off the back of the enormous and well-documented growth of, The headline news from this launch sees top-tier versions of the new Diverge adopt the same hydraulically-damped version of the Future Shock as, why Specialized opted for this system rather than a conventional telescopic fork. The Specialized Aethos Expert all-road bike in review. The new Diverge is available in nine different models, starting at 949 / $1,100 for the cheapest alloy version, and rising to a heady 8,899 / $10,000 for the top-flight S-Works model. We understood that suspension seatpost, that have the action on the top, have a lot of positive things, but a lot of drawbacks too. E-Road Gravel News Review Road . The Diverge STR unveiled today now features both front and rear Future Shock suspension. and Specialized tubeless ready tyres,hence the possession of a compressor.I would not contemplate tubes . BikeRadars take | Is the future of gravel bikes just a mountain bike? Sticking with comfort, the Future Shock 2.0 really is ideally suited to gravel. I'm not a big fan of the Hover riser bars, but that's a personal preference. With a near encyclopaedic knowledge of cycling tech, ranging from the most esoteric retro niche to the most cutting-edge modern kit, Jack takes pride in his ability to seek out stories that would otherwise go unreported. Specialized is also launching the Diverge Evo a stretched out, even slacker and generally more radical version of the Diverge designed for rowdier riding oh, and it ditches drop bars in favour of flat bars. Future Shock aside, the Diverge STR is spec'd with Specialized's and SRAM's best and proven offerings. With the suspension absorbing the bumps instead of your body, I found that the bike stayed planted and so did I. Specialized Terra Pro 2Bliss Gravel Tire. The tubeless-ready tyres were . As for its aero credentials, well yes, there are a few subtle aero advantage design tweaks but nothing to really write home about. Specialized Diverge Comp Carbon. Weight: 165 lbs Firstly, the gravel riding around Girona (where the launch was held) is mesmerising: get a trip booked if you can (once all this craziness is over, obviously). DT Swiss G540 rim, 24mm internal width, tubeless ready, 24h, Specialized full sealed bearing thru axle hub . Specialized says it decided to launch the bike after seeing a number of riders converting the previous-generation Diverge to flat bar. Theyre well-executed, clean and Im guessing theyll be an appreciated addition. The new 2021 Specialized Diverge gravel bike gets a comprehensive refresh, including Future Shock 2.0 suspension on select models. FRONT WHEEL DT Swiss G540 rim, 24mm internal width, tubeless ready, 24h, Specialized full sealed bearing thru axle hub, centerlock disc, DT Swiss Champion 14G stainless steel spokes . A new name and one significant new face made the headlines as Ian Boswell took the . The Bikepacking Journal is our biannual printed publication. Breaking down the numbers, the reach of the bike has grown by around 10mm across all sizes. One thing I appreciated is that Specialized hasnt skimped on all the necessary mounts. Specialized Diverge FACT 9r carbon, SWAT Door integration, Future Shock suspension, threaded BB, internal routing, 12x142mm thru-axle, flat-mount disc . Weve written at length about why Specialized opted for this system rather than a conventional telescopic fork but, in brief, it is a lighter overall setup that does not significantly affect handling. It's simply the fastest, most capable, and probably the most fun bike that Specialized has built. That 80 mm retains Diverges claim as one of the lowest in the gravel/adventure category, but at least now it wont be ridiculously low if run with 650B wheels or slimmer road tyres. Height: 61 Disques 160/ . The EVO range will only be available in three sizes: small, medium and large. Can it carve corners, descend confidently and respond to surges? Rear: 984 grams. Even if the bike is a total marketing coup, it doesnt mean that producing something like this isnt a risk. Over the two days of riding, we used two different sets of tyres. propos de ce deal. Change makes me angry!. To get that kind of rear tyre clearance, while still being able to take big chainrings and 2x cranksets AND have short chaintsays, Specialized's engineers got creative. Come the second day I was lucky enough to have the staff on hand swap out the dropper post for the new carbon post. - smoothly. The last three models of the drop bar flavour are built from Specializeds E5 alloy. A a complete 56cm S-Works Diverge STR has a claimed weight of 18.7lbs (8.5kg) set up tubeless out of the box. Specialized claims the new Diverge takes inspiration from the Epic cross-country mountain bike range. Uphill the lightweight build came into its own. This, in combination with the increased offset of the fork, should improve the overall stability of the bike. And more impressively, the same tyre clearance is provided with the more affordable alloy frames, too. To account for all the frame sizes and a variety of rider weights, Specialized has produced nine different frame posts, each with a different carbon layup for varying stiffness. Ive slowly come to realise though that a lot of that is down to where I live and the riding on offer. We can already hear the comments But we liked the positives of it, Specialized engineer Chris D'Aluisio said. The post is available in both a 20 mm offset and zero-degree, and the bike is dropper-post compatible too (such a thing comes standard on the S-Works). More often than not, I found myself simply cruising along in comfort. The new frameset has been redesigned with a new longer fork offset (55mm), a slacker head tube angle, a considerably longer overall wheelbase, a very slightly higher bottom bracket and increased reach on all sizes. The fact we were riding far more technical and challenging gravel sectors than the day before safely balanced things out. The Future Shock 2.0 is an adjustable coil suspension cartridge housed in the fork steerer. Whether your goal is to escape on gravel back roads, far from cars and crowds, or drop the hammer at the front of your favorite gravel race, no bike does it better than the new Diverge. you'll be looking at about an 8kg build for the Diverge S-Works, set up tubeless. Engineers instead turned to suspension seat posts systems that sit above bike and isolating the rider from the rough roads below without changing the rider's saddle height or location in space. Reply. This translates into a bicycle with a more stable stance than a dedicated road machine, clearances for markedly larger tires, the confidence of powerful disc brakes, and a penchant for blending for asphalt, dirt and gravel. The two cheapest aluminium models the Diverge Elite E5 and Diverge Base E5 do not have either version of the Future Shock. The driveside chainstay also features an in-built rubber protector to stave off chain slap. Join the conversation. But the extra bells and whistles may not be everyone's cup of tea and the $7,000 to $14,000 buy-in price is preventative for most. Jack Luke is the deputy editor at BikeRadar and has been fettling with bikes for his whole life. Happy Riding! After decades of bike riding, getting out of the saddle to respond to and absorb bumps or tricky terrain is almost second nature. The Specialized Diverge Comp Carbon could be the perfect do-it-all bike for those seeking on road fun and off road thrills. but the DT Swiss wheels on the 2021 Diverge are tubeless-compatible while the Axis wheels on the 2015 Diverge are not. He is also a regular contributor to the BikeRadar podcast. Jack can also often be seen zooming about with his partner aboard their beloved tandem, Cecil. Specialized claims that the whole system only weighs just under 400g more than the current S-Works Diverge frameset. The stack height is simply too tall for my liking and the Hover riser bars don't help there. I've seen a Diverge set up with 38700 Specialized Trigger Pros. Thanks to FACT carbon, the frame is lightweight and makes it a suitable competition platform. Tyre clearance has also been beefed up, now offering room for up to 700 x 47 mm or 650B x 2.1 (approx 53 mm) rubber. Specialized Diverge FACT 9r carbon, SWAT Door integration, Future Shock suspension, threaded BB, internal routing, 12x142mm thru-axle, flat-mount disc: . Perhaps most interesting is that where weve previously seen Specialized keep its own handlebars and seatposts across all bikes, the new Diverge sees a few external brands come into the fold. Comp E5 price: US$2,100 / AU$3,000 / 1,999 Price: US$10,000 / AU$16,000 / 8,899. Frameset price: US$4,200 / AU$6,000 / 3,499. but, in brief, it is a lighter overall setup that does not significantly affect handling. With this setup, your sagged riding position should be consistent with a rigid bike. The Expert model gets a gorgeous paint job in a fetching Gloss Raspberry/Redwood/Black/Chrome/Wild Ferns design, which is well worth checking out. 20.10.2022. Even the entry-point of $7,000 is pretty preventative, and many will have to wait for the technology to trickle down a bit further before being able to experience the dual Future Shock. The same is true on gravel bikes. Not that the Diverge isnt comfortable and capable when dirt calls, thanks in part to its 32mm tires, the padded handlebar tape and its carbon seat post.