Specialized Allez Elite review

Bad weather, bad health and a bag load of work have meant my cycling/running/exercise regimes have been nothing short of pathetic since about Christmas. But our friends at Specialized UK have kindly loaned me a new 2007 Specialized Allez Elite road bike, which has inspired me to don my lid and get the 700Cs turning.

I’m under no illusion that, unlike most of my fellow contributors, my cycling talents lie firmly at the amateur end of enthusiast. I haven’t owned a stream of wild and exotic Italian frames, or ridden most stages of le Tour as part of my summer holidays. No, I’m more a muck about on a riser bar and 5” of travel type of guy, but road riding does interest me. It feels like a totally different workout (perhaps that’s the obvious lack of trees to hit); more exercise than fun per say, but very rewarding all the same.

The benefits of road cycles as I see them are:

• everyone has tarmac to turn on whereas pucka singletrack is more of a rarity;
• less concentration – Lance often refers to Zenning out on his bike or running – do that on a MTB and a face plant will soon follow;
• more continuous pedalling which equals a better workout (cardio, max thresholds etc.);
• the washing machine gets a break from less mud/grit/stones hammered into your kit.

So I’m inspired, but what about the bike? Well, Specialized have consolidated the aluminium-framed Allez range this year from five to three models. Each is available in a double or triple chainset option: Allez (double at £500, triple at £530), Allez Sport (dbl £700 – tpl £730) and mine, the range-topping Allez Elite (dbl £900 - tpl £930). Allez is their opening line of drop handlebars (as the Hardrock range is to their MTB line up) and is designed to “answer the needs of competitive road riders, designed in relentless pursuit of efficiency and speed, and then enhanced with advanced ergonomic features in every model.” With catalogue lines like that, who needs NASA?

The photos don’t do the Allez Elite’s Premium A1 Alloy frame justice. It comes in a gorgeous two-tone blue with colour coded, very thick and comfy bar tape. The tyres are Specialized Mondo 23C width, which is pretty standard fare. I usually find Specialized’s famous Body Geometry saddles very comfortable, but the Alias on this left me a bit uncomfortable for a day or two. Although I don’t think it’s the saddle, more the fact that my backside is out of practice.

The groupset is Shimano 105 10 speed with a polished FSA Gossamer MegaExo 2-piece chainset. It comes with the very modern looking external Hollowtech style bottom bracket. In theory these make the BB stiffer and lighter – I can’t say I noticed a difference over my previous Allez setup, but I approve all the same. The whole thing is like looking at a motorbike - just seeing it makes you want to go fast. NOW. The wheels also shout speed by using the semi-aero Mavic CXP22 rims combined with aero bladed straight pull spokes. Very modern, very plush. Both the carbon forks and seatpost come with the shock absorbing Zerts inserts so perhaps I will get a soft ride after all?

After a couple of minor adjustments, sitting on the bike feels quite natural, well balanced and comfortable. The 105 STI brake and gear levers fall nicely into my hands and take a nice, light touch to change gear. The only trouble is, I’ve got the hands of a little girl so I struggle to reach the brakes when I’m down off the hoods and in the drops. I’ll rectify this problem by buying some slim shims  which bring the levers’ normal position in towards the bar.

This bike feels very light to ride and the Zerts inserts seem to have a dulling effect over the bumps which is pretty comfortable seeing as I have just over 100psi in the tyres. These elastic polymer inserts are deliberately on show in the seat post and fork and seem to take some of the fatigue out of the uneven road; far from full suspension, but helpful nonetheless. Riding the bike does give you a really alive feeling. It’s so fast that any input is immediately translated to speed. The gears are superb and I like the triple version - it’ll climb easier as I’m no king of the mountain.

With the summer just around the corner and the events calendar getting fuller, I think a few more outings on this bike will help build up my general stamina and cycling fitness that’ll help my running and should get me to the top of those forest climbs quicker when I get back on my beloved Specialized Stumpjumper.