Just when you thought road bikes couldn’t get any more aerodynamic, Specialized has teamed up with luxury car company McLaren to build the Venge road bike, leapfrogging all of the current Specialized models to become the company’s top offering. It’s got race car genetics, a winning pedigree and scores pretty high in the looks department too. See all the photos and specs after the break.
UPDATED POST with more weights and technical info is here.
Unveiled in the UK today, the bike is scheduled to make its race debut at the upcoming Milan San Remo event. Select riders from HTC-Highroad, Saxo Bank-Sungard and Astana will be the first to use the Venge, but Specialized says that it will probably not see widespread use among all team riders, and only certain races and conditions will warrant the Venge’s use.
The bike was designed in Mclaren’s technology center, the same facility used for McLaren’s F1 racing team. The Venge borrows design cues from the the company’s famed Shiv and Transition time trial bikes, while still remaining a close relative of its former top of the line offering, the Tarmac. While the design doesn’t look much different from the current Specialized offerings, the company says that working with McLaren allowed them to utilize new construction methods to make the lightest frame available, with a claimed weight of “under 950 grams,” according to Specialized.
After initially being rejected, the Venge eventually won UCI approval for Milan San Remo. With features like a front fork that uses a precise 3:1 ratio (the maximum allowed by the UCI), it’s clear that Specialized wanted to really push the envelope on this one.
For now, the pros will be the only ones able to get their hands on the Venge. Specialized says it won’t be available to the public until at least the fall, and the $9,200 price tag (equipped with Shimano Dura Ace) will keep it out of reach of most amateurs. A frame/fork/seatpost/crankset combo will also be available for around $3,800, and a SRAM Red equipped model is just a little more than Dura Ace at $8,800
The Venge is live on the Specialized site here.
