INTERBIKE 2009 – Specialized’s Globe Line of commuter, utility and urban / city bicycles filled their “street curb” display and in our opinion, the new bikes are soooo much cooler than what they showed last year.
Yep, you’ve probably see this green one before, called The Roll, but there’s lots more to gaze upon, including some really sweet grocery getters and errand runners.
Hit ‘more’ to see the full line up with pricing and specs…
The Roll comes in two flavors, Roll 1 and Roll 2. They both have custom Reynolds 520 Cromoly tubing with custom track dropouts and brake drillings. The ‘1’ comes in at $610 and the ‘2’ comes in at $830, with the main upgrades on the ‘1’ being:
- custom lugged fork with custom allen bolt attachment and forged spacers
- sealed bearings in hubs versus loose ball
- Sugino cranks versus Suntour
- Deeper dish “V” rims (42mm versus 32mm)
Color options are Black, Green and Gray for the Roll 2, and Green and Powder Blue for the Roll 1.
Both models get the Globe Roll one-piece injection molded saddle. Somehow, me thinks it’s not a Body Geometry part. Note the custom seatbolt binder.
The Roll has an integrated one-piece stem/handlebar combo (450mm wide) with a perfectly straight bar and seemingly integrated grips. Alloy endcaps finish them off. Depending on the model or color, they’re chrome or painted. Rear hubs are flip / flop so you can run it as a fixed gear or singlespeed, and the brakes are included with the bike, they just weren’t installed on very many of the display models.
All of the Globe bikes have the sleeved headbadge that you can insert your own picture into…and not a bad place to stash some emergency medical info, either.
The Roll 1 gets these custom allen bolt spacers to attach the front wheel. The Roll 2 uses standard axle bolts…no quick release on either one.
The Globe Live is an aluminum-framed front-basket hauler that comes complete with integrated fender and rack braze-ons, paint-matched front tray basket and built-in dual kickstand. There are three models to choose from, two with men’s and women’s frames (the red one in the back shows the sloped top tube of the “Mixte” women’s model).
The Live 2 models get dual v-brakes and a Shimano internal 8-speed rear hub with twist shifters. The Live 1 models get a rear coaster brake and single speed drivetrain.
The Glove Live 3 is the top of the line version and gets Tektro hydraulic disk brakes, Gates belt drive and Shimano 8-speed Alfine with Tap Fire shifters. MSRP is $1,550.
Even the inside of the belt drive is color matched! The Live 3 is only available in this Marina Blue color, and the other models’ colors and pricing are:
- Live 2 – $940 – Luna Gray
- Live 2 Mixte – $940 – Terra Brown
- Live 1 – $580 – Java Brown
- Live 1 – Mixte – $580 – Bourgogne Red
All Live models have wooden tray bottoms on the front basket and get Specialized tires and Body Geometry saddles.
The Haul is a heavier duty transport bike with an aluminum frame, fenders and integrated rack. Whereas the Live’s front tray can carry up to 25kg, the Haul’s rear rack can hold 40kg. There are two models, the Haul 2 (above) with Alfine 8-speed hub and mechanical disc brakes for $1,100 is the top model and is only available in Java Brown.
The Haul 1 is $660 and gets a normal drivetrain with 38/28 FSA double crankset up front with alloy ring guard and an 8-speed cassette in the rear. Both models get a real wood deck and integrated front and rear lights. In a very nice touch, the rear brake cables on the ‘1’ models is run inside the top tube.
The front lights are built into the stem. The Haul 1 men’s/regular version comes in Kalamata Green, and there’s a women’s/step-through frame in Tundra Gray (also $660). All models also have front pannier rack mounts standard.
