Time for a new bike

[Racing roadkill]

What about the following week ?

Nice bike do they do a full handover when you pick it up ?

They can / do if you want / require it.I've got to know the chaps / chapesses at my local Decathlon quite well, they've always set the bikes up brilliantly. When I first used them, they did the whole handover thing, whilst I was there, I trust them to do a good job now, and they sort it out before I pick the bikes up. They offer a free 6 week check and fettle as well, if you require it.

 

[Racing roadkill]

Yes, I agree with everything you say above, they are very different. I also have both and also ridden them 'back to back'. I can also see that the top tube, seat tube and forks are at different angles. I'm just talking about the idea that a racey geometry would have a lower stack and a longer reach than a more leisurely geometry.

The only point I wish to make, is that the difference in geometry between the "racy" Ultra and the "sportive" Triban is either so subtle it is impossible to identify with a tape measure or they are essentially very similar geometry and they are sold to diffferent markets. I.e. £1,050 = racing, training, endurance; £300 = commuting plus the odd sportive.

The lower stack / longer reach thing is really just an aesthetics issue, as far as the majority of everyday / leisure / occasional sportive, type rider is concerned. I talked at length to a tech from a well known branded bike manufacturer about this type of thing. He informed me that the low stack settings that you see on the show pony bikes, are like that, because people want their bikes to look "like what the pro's have got". The pro's have them like that, because that's best for them, in their situations. What the customer wants, the customer gets.