NEW BIKE DAY! 2023 Cervelo Soloist Reviewed 

Same here. Although I don’t fully regret it it stings a bit.

Is this better than specialized tarmac??

@@josejpl69 If you do long distance rides 100km or above, the Caledonia 5 comfortable and great! But if you plan to do races and crits, it's heavy and slow to react. It's not as aero as the S5 and not as light as the R5 nor can it do Gravel as well as the Aspero. The Cervélo Soloist is a better bang for buck in my opinion. But if you do want a Caledonia 5, go for a higher spec Non-5 Caledonia. Atleast you'd get carbon rims and a better groupset despite the slightly heavier carbon used for the frame. Also, since it has a round seatpost, you could even change it out to an aftermarket seatpost like Darimo. Which is also why I changed to the Aethos. It's lighter and more reactive with the same Geometry as an SL7/SL8. I love the reactive feel of the acceleration but I don't race so I didn't go for the SL7. Nor do I want to go for an aero bike with proprietary parts again. The SL7 would be better than the Caledonia 5 and comparative with the Soloist. With the SL8 out, SL7 prices have dropped. The weight difference between the SL7 and SL8 is also quite substantial and the SL8 is alot thinner. But for the budget, it's hard to beat an SL7.

I feel like as a crit channel, advocating for a frameset build on something like this Soloist makes sense since it is much cheaper than the typical 3300/5500 frame price points and still gives you good performance.

Yeah, totally not. So many minutes with fake laughter, stupid printed! glasses, tan side wall tires, ketones, advertising, rapha, hybris, overconfidence, lack of humbleness. Just totally off putting. Not for me.

tubeless is superior in everyway. the only haters are the clowns like durianrider who have built a brand around appeasing their snobby 60 yr old demographic.

Doesn’t it squish when you sit on the bike?

​@@loc9588 no

There’s actually less contact (rolling resistance) on tubeless when looking at the tire to pavement side profile. Wider rims make the real difference here. And of course I’ll throw in way less pinch flats!

Not really an option for larger riders though is it, and sealant doesn’t work much above that pressure.

Are you running these reserve 40/44s at that pressure? For your weight 60/65psi does lean on the low side if you are running tubes, though I am sure that is fine as those Reserves have really wide internal and allow you to run a bit lower pressure. Rolling resistance penalty for too high of pressure is far worse vs. too low. Diminishing returns for too low would be risk of pinch flatting/tire wear/rim damage risk on strike. In almost every scenario lower pressure is going to be the better option unless you are really sending it on rough terrain and want to protect the rim or if you have absolutely perfect pavement to ride on.

@@nickspano4709 I'm running tubes in Zipp 404 Firecrest which have a LIMIT of 73 psi/5 bar so the 60/65 psi is perfect...fast and comfortable. I appreciate your response but I think I was really looking for Jeff's take on the psi relative to HIS body weight and the crit racing he does. Apologies, I should have been less cryptic in my original post.

Same - red crank saved like 300+ grams + red cassette. Lighter rotors and 140 rear. Bars and saddle but lighter, but that’s more about aero and comfort. I’m down to 16.2lbs without pedals/cages.

@@jwfriar do you have the same stock wheels and tires or did you change those too?

@@JPTVII04 I went with Roval CL II. 51 front and 61 rear. Paired with new S-works road tires. Wheelset is 1590g which isn’t awful, but would love it to be zippier . They roll fast, but so get caught in the wind a bit. Overall look great.

@@jwfriar do you mind me asking how much this whole setup cost?

@@JPTVII04 Base bike was $5,200; Wheelset was $1,200 on sale, BB was like $200, Saddle $330 on sale, Red crank was $530 on sale; Red cassette was $300; Bar/stem was like $400. I can prob sell some of my old stuff and recoup. I also did all the work, so that saved a bunch. If I had to do it again, I'd build out the frameset.

Agreed. And the small weight penalty is worth the extra stopping power.

People use the rear brake more??

They're braking wrong, most of the work should be done on the front brake. 75% front 25% rear. I can bet when they brake, they drag them.

If you are using the rear more on the road, you really need to work on your braking technique. Even on my mountain bikes which I use the rear WAY more than on road, they both wear equally (and i have a 220mm on the front).

Hey dude, I know you probably dont want to hear this, but your collarbone is looking a little proud of your shoulder; might want to get that checked. Thats what mine did after my accident, and it ended up needing completely rebuilt using tendons from my hamstring. Then again, it might just be a camera angle thing… but if you can „move“ the end of the collarbone without the shoulder moving, thats the first sign.

Seconded, I'm starting to dream the "mid-tempo piano with EDM beat" song in every video

Rule of 105 🤘

​@@NorCalCycling Rule of 105 saying if you're gonna have a wide tyre, you need a wide rim, which you've got. But if you had a narrower tyre and narrower rim it would be more aero. Bike looks awesome though! Love the paint job too, super sleek but more interesting than pure stealth black

@@myrimidon202 true but wide tire is better in everything else and the aero penalty is very small

You’re comparing the Super Six non hi mod to the soloist which I believe is a “top tier” carbon more comparable to the hi mod at $8k+

Very impressive. As long as you're happy keep it up. Those are high watts compared to everyday/new riders

bingo

Yea, otherwise fat bikes would be peak aero

Yeah, I'd like Hambini to fact check that one too 😀

It has to do with the ratio of rim to tire width look up rule of 105.

@@NorCalCycling Yes, that's what I was referring to in my 3rd sentence: "However,..." *What you said **_in this video_** was wrong.*

Ceepo is one of the less-discussed brands in the road cycling world, but I think they may be talked about more in the triathlon side as that's what they started out on. I dare say they're the original #aeroiseverything pioneer as they fiddled with it before it was cool. My last workplace sells Ceepo frames, mainly the Stinger (aero bike) and Mamba-R (do-it-all: road, triathlon, gravel, bikepacking). I got to take a Stinger for a spin for a while and it felt stiff and unyielding. A customer I know said she's faster on her new Mamba-R despite it being heavier than her Tarmac SL6 FACT 9r, even on climbs.

@@yonglingng5640I've sourced all the components & wheels and now just need to visit Thailand to get the Ceepo Mamba R. Thanks for sharing your thoughts about the bike mate. Very helpful.

I am on the new Rival now and it is flawless.

Also nobody glues tires so not really a consideration. Plus you can usually find high end tires at steep discounts on the right website or at the right time.

Technology has come a long way even since 2017... I'll never be a pro but I believe most of them run tubeless setups or latex tubes now.

nobody rides less than 25mm anymore, 28+mm tires are so much better in all areas

I ride 30s on the same bike and it’s super low rolling resistance and comfortable.

@@thomasgehrig7175 I use 23's in front, and 25's in back. Don't think that I could fit 28's in my bike.

Judging by most comments, Cervelo is getting a good return on investment with these "reviews" 😅

The scientific consensus is they have zero effect on endurance training or performance.

The Reserve 52/63 wheels are even wider at 35mm external up front. The widest point is in the middle of the rim and not at the rim bead edge though. Still this allows you the option to run a wider tire coupled with that wide internal for lower pressures and still be within rule of 105. Aero af AND maximizing rolling resistance/comfort. Plus a hooked rim allowing for all the tire options. Reserve crushed it on their latest gen of wheels.

Care to explain? I've never seen them here in Asia. Are they a bad brand?.

My first thought was: damn how cool are those glasses lookin 😅

Around here they are predominantly worn by the type of person that has a big truck and will coal roll or try to scare cyclists on the road

@@facingup1624 Got it

​@Facing Up So this would be an uno reverse card Jeff is playing?

Pretty sure the new bikes don't come with press fits anymore....

@@JOutterbridge soloist and the r5 cx have a T47a so not press fit, but most if not all of Cervelo's other models do use a press fit bbright bb

​@@JOutterbridgeCervelo is faithful to their BB.

There's no way I'm buying that proprietary headache.

7.8kg is the new 6.8kg 😂

Yeah, why does it cost so much more here in Europe? I’ve never heard anyone give a reason for this. Especially since the rest of Cervelo’s range of bikes don’t really vary in price compared to the rest of the world.

Perhaps weight? How often in a crit are you solo in a flat straight away taking advantage of the aero. It being lighter allows him to accelerate out of corners and ladder up to other groups perhaps. Prob specific to this style of event.

@Jason Friar I do take your point but would push back and say the moments that matter in these (generally flat) races are the 200m you're sprinting out in the wind at 60+kph, bridging etc. I would personally go aero above all else, making me think the soloist was pushed on them to support the way they sponsors want the market to go. I wait to be stood corrected, though!

@@jwfriar aero matters far more in acceleration than 100 grams at these speeds

@@Shadowboost Have you ridden a crit before? Again, as I explained, it depends on a lot of factors. If you're sheltered in the group the majority of the race, it may not be as helpful. What if there is a hill? Also, he's running 40/44 Reserve wheels which are also lighter - again for acceleration. An S5 comes with bulky 52/63s that are slower to accelerate. If you ride them, you feel it. Even in the TDF, they switch up bikes. They ride the R5 in some stages and the S5 in others.

The stock bars are alloy with the soloist.