Had my hands on one of these the other day . . . . .

Not hatin' just fascinated by the depths of our illusions.

 

I like bikes and I seem to like people who make their living in the bike industry. Without them, I wouldn't enjoy my favorite hobby/pastime. I think this bike is cool and look at it like I would a concept car. I think it is good for the industry.

I don't really see where this is much different than a beautifully handcrafted steel or ti frame/bike at the NHBS. I appreciate it, marvel a little at it but would never buy it because it's not practical for me. Would you belittle someone who waits on a five year waiting list to get a custom Vanilla frame/bike? Does everyone's skill level have to match the quality of their equipment in order for us not to call them posers or freds? If that's the case I had better start getting rid of some bikes.

 

@Jeepr (and Foga) If you're talking to me, I haven't belittled anyone. Re-read my post. I simply asked what an $18,000 bike might do for me that a $5000 bike would not. Nobody has attempted an answer to that question. OK, I did belittle golfers who have to have this year's Mega Driver but still get angry when they play. I don't understand purchases that are for status and not for function. That's not belittling, that's admitting a lack of understanding on my part.

Perhaps you were referring to other posts on this thread. Carry on.

 

Hmm, retire at an early age or have fun (and fame) for a few years? JK

I have no prob with $10k+ bikes. I'll be happy when all the features trickle down to a more affordable price point in a few years. It's good for speeding up technological progress/development, to say the least.

Regarding the fame part, I wonder if the media will treat these bikes like the F-22 Raptor and do big coverage stories if one crashes badly or fails, even if it's a "nobody" riding it.

 

Totally agree with those who are pro-development. Thanks to the individuals who can afford the concepts and provide funding for the innovations that eventually trickle down.

 

I say that if you can afford it, go for it. Eventually, some of those innovations will benefit those of us with slimmer bike-buying budgets.

Too funny, Bret. You're such a freak! :lol:

 

I, too, despise the nouveau riche. That money is better spent on a mooring spot closer to the yacht club bar. myes.

 

I should have known better than to post this on STR. What started out as a post about a local shop getting the first of its kind bike, that was a long time in development and collaboration between two companies in different industries, turned into the typical STR thread.

Maybe it's my fault for not writing the initial post better, but it was somewhat clandestine and under wraps at the time. The big "S" wanted to get their publicity from it and I thought some should go to the LBS as well -- a great group of guys that support the cycling community. Once I became aware that it was published in the industry magazine the company wanted, I went ahead and posted more info here and it was also picked up by another web site as well -- others have picked it up since.

I posted it because I thought others out there that appreciate new design, and some that collect bikes may be interested. The collaboration from McLaren was much more instrumental in the development than say the Colnago and Ferrari bike (which is $13,000). A lot of the development has already gone into the S-Works and the Pro model. I for one would much rather spend (not that I'm going to) $4400 on an S-Works frame that is a trickle down from the McLaren design than a Cervelo @ 4900 or Pinarello Dogma 2 @ 5700. Yes, there are a lot of small manufacturers out there making custom bikes, but even the Crumpton, Parlee, and Alchemy frames are over $5000.

Is the bike worth $18,000? Probably not. Does it offer advantages over the S-Works version at half the price (even less if you go with SRAM Red)? From what I've read, it is lighter and a lot stiffer -- which is good for guys like Cavendish, but not many more people will benefit. Does the bike have flaws? Yes. As I noted, millions in development and they couldn't find a place to stash the Di2 battery!? Cool brakes, but not particularly aero. Standard group, bar/stem, and wheels on what would work out to be about a $14,000 frame.

Of course the thread turned into what type a person would buy it (tool, fool, nouveau riche, jerk, or any other adjective). It's actually a different situation altogether. So let's all get back to arguing about important stuff like 26er vs. 29er.

 

Somebody apparently cannot appreciate a good Thurston Howell joke.

I dig the story. Chill out. I actually ride an overpriced ridiculous MTB that I'm sure was viewed in the same light as this bike until very recently. Some people are going to gripe, others are going to appreciate it, and less than 10% of everyone who sees this will bother to comment at all.

 

It wasn't the THIII joke -- actually liked that. I just saw that somehow this thread made it back to the What's New list after I thought it had gone to that place where useless threads go to die.

 

I wonder if a 5 cent pointy piece of metal would be able to take it out.

 

While the price tag puts it juuust outside of my budget, i will say that it's pretty cool to see what an effectively unlimited budget + F1 tech can produce in a road bike.

:beer:

And the 29 vs 26 fight? I thought we had settled that: today's sophisticated gentleman owns both.

 

Did they make this version specifically for southern California? I ask because it's almost $10k more and blacked out, but otherwise essentially the same bike.

$18,000:


$9,200:

 

W/O seeing the specs, can't say for sure. But I'm guessing at least $5k is in the ZIPPs....

 

Personally,
I think it is really ugly. If I was going to shell out $18,000 I would get a custom fitted/made Itallion Stallion.
Then have it gold and platinum plated maybe some emeralds in dollar sign patterns ! Getting a lil' bling for my buck!
I be totally "DUB" rolling then. Hell I might even be featured on some rap video .
Might have to get a matching "grill" made up though!

 

Many people have more than enough money to buy this w/o concern. 18k to them is like a 10 bucks to me.
I meet people building 10k s/f homes without concern for cost.
18k ain't nothin if you got the dough.
Enjoy the ride.

Good for them.

 

Supposedly 100 grams lighter (a lot of $/g). The head tube is shorter (lowering the bars) -- comments made about the S-W Venge is how high the bars are positioned for an "aero" bike. Different layup of the carbon. Both are made in Taiwan.

Specialized says the stiffness-to-weight ratio (in ((N*m/deg)/kg) of the bottom bracket section is 80.4 for the S-Works Venge and 89.7 for the McLaren Venge. By comparison, they list the 2011 Felt AR1 (aero bike) at 56.4, the 2011 Cervelo S3 at 68.0 and the 2010 Ridley Noah at 77.2.

 

what he said!!! Timmy!

 

I wonder if there is a Demo available to try? Haha Just joking. it does look cool and I wish I could ride one.

 

nice bike but 18k woooooo weeeeeee!!!! Thanks for posting this. I bet 18grand I can break it in 1 hours worth of ride time.