Specialized Roubaix Pro - 2018

So long Zertz. It's been fun, but we found someone better for us. In our humble opinion, the Roubaix Pro represents the future of road bikes, and in a second, you'll see exactly why.

The super-light frame has been constructed from our FACT 10r carbon fiber. Its stiffness levels are also off the charts, and compared to the SL4 iteration of yesteryear, you'll experience a whole new, faster, and more efficient geometry. Through some engineering sorcery, however, we've managed to keep the same fit, feel, and position that we've all come to love from the SL4, and kept it consistent throughout the size-range due to our Rider-First Engineered construction.

Of course, you're probably thinking, "get on to the suspension thing up front." We call it Future Shock, and essentially, it's a piston in the head tube with 20mm of travel. We developed this technology in partnership with McLaren Applied Technologies, and the result of this are a host of drastic performance improvements, namely in the vertical compliance department. Without giving a physics lecture, we found that focusing on vertical compliance, instead of fork splay, meant that we could improve smoothness, speed, and comfort in one fell swoop. And of all the bikes that we've tested with our Rolling Efficiency Model, the new Roubaix outperforms anything on the market.

Lastly, we spec'd it top of the line equipment, like Dura-Ace 9100 mechanical shifting, 9120 hydraulic disc brakes, and the lightweight and durable Roval CL 32 carbon wheels.

- Featuring our Rider-First Engineered design that ensures every frame size has the same legendary responsiveness and smooth ride quality that you'd expect from a Roubaix. The FACT 11r frameset is among our highest quality carbon offerings, with the ideal blend of light overall weight and targeted stiffness, while the all-new Future Shock "suspension" system at the cockpit delivers a revolutionary degree of comfort and control.

- An S-Works FACT Disc fork is built from our FACT carbon fiber for supreme stiffness, strength, and reactivity, while a thru-axle design only stands to bolster all of the above.

- The Roval CL 32 wheelset is light, strong, and well-balanced. You'll find the same rims found on its CLX cousin, with the main differences coming at the bearings and hubs—hardly discernable to mere mortal riders.