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Save Five Minutes With New Specialized Evade Helmet, Skinsuit, S-Works Shoes (And Venge ViAS)

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Specialized Five Minute ProductsIn addition to the all new Venge ViAS, Specialized has launched several new products that they claim will help even ordinary riders save five minutes on an average ride.   

Specialized S-Works Evade Helmet

The new S-Works Evade Helmet is profiled after the MClaren TT lid, which helps drastically reduce drag. Compared to a S-Works Prevail, the Evade saves 46 seconds over 40 k.

Specialized S-Works Evade GC Skinsuit

While the time savings gained from the nip tuck on the new Verge are impressive, there are some equally big (and more cost effective) ways to shave seconds in the form of clothing.

At $500, the new S-Works Evade GC Skinsuit is not cheap, but it’s claimed to save a staggering 96 seconds over 40k.

The time savings are accomplished by tailor fitting the skin suit to eliminate fabric bunching. At launch, the setup will be available in 11 different sizes, which give most riders a nearly custom fit. Other touches include getting rid of seems by using a welded sleeve opening, a full zipper, and rear pockets.

Specialized S-Works 6 Shoe

The new S-Works 6 shoe looks similar to the existing model, but receives a new carbon outsole. This is the most rigid outsole Specialized has ever used, and in conjunction with a new tapered heel that helps lock the foot in place, is tested to improve acceleration.

Claim time savings? 35 seconds over 40k.

The company also released a new lace up model today, more on that shoe soon.

Roval CLX 64 and S-Works Turbo Tires

Lastly, the new Roval CLX 64 clinchers and Specialized Turbo Cotton Tire complete the five minute package. According to Specialized, these wheels have been optimized for both head and crosswinds, come tubeless ready, and have a 21mm internal rim width.

The claimed time savings for this setup? >35 seconds over 40k.

You can find more info and images of the wheels/tire on our full write of up the Venge ViAS here.

Specialized Five Minute Products

And just for fun, let’s ad up all those seconds and dollars:

 

Specialized Venge ViAS 120 seconds over 40k $12,500
Specialized Evade Helmet 46 seconds over 40k

$250

Specialized Evade GC Skinsuit 96 seconds over 40k

$500

Specialized S-Works 6 Clippies 35 seconds over 40k

$400

Total 4 minutes 57 seconds

$13,650

Time is money, right?

Specialized.com

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vulgar bulgar
vulgar bulgar
9 years ago

That’s about an average of 46 dollars per second! Probably about how much the CEO of Specialized makes.

Rixter
Rixter
9 years ago

We’ve entered a whole new era when we start measuring by $$$/second or $$$/watt. Maybe bikes and components should now come with this info slapped on the packaging, just like a nutrition label. Lets hope not!

js
js
9 years ago

5 minutes of saving compared to what? these specialized products vs. which bike/shoes/helmet? Or does 13k save you 5 minutes vs. just walking to the coffee shop?

That Guy
That Guy
9 years ago

I like the term ‘fabric branching’. Like the fabric goes all out on a big a** bacon-y and Bloody Mary-y brunch, and this uber expensive skin suit prevents that. I’m also glad that Specialized did a nip-tuck on their VERGE bikes. #proofread !!!

Dave
Dave
9 years ago

There’s a lot of Specialized® advertising, er, critical reviews going on around the web today.

Forest
Forest
9 years ago

^ Did you just hashtag ‘proofread!’ when you misspelled the word you’re trying to say was misspelled? ..I’m cross eyed now.

Sean P
Sean P
9 years ago

Add some sales tax on the the bike and those special aero items to save you all that time and you’re hitting close to 15k (depending on %sales tax of course). I’m sure…… I know I could buy a few, most likely 3 or 4, wonderful bikes for that. The bike industry marketing is crazy. And that stem just downright scares me. Speaking of saving time, I don’t want to get home any faster;-}

Heffe
Heffe
9 years ago

The comments here are better than the article!

That Guy
That Guy
9 years ago

@Forest, YUP. Totally screwed that one up. But I’m a commenter, not a writer!

Forest
Forest
9 years ago

@ThatGuy Haha.. no worries man.. I read it like five times.. it was warping my brain.

Conscience of a Conservative
Conscience of a Conservative
9 years ago

I pity the poor guy buying this stuff and going out for a muffin ride.

bbb
bbb
9 years ago

At what speed?

Larasmile
Larasmile
9 years ago

Great innovations by the company that started everything.
Well done!

cerebis
cerebis
9 years ago

Since it stands out so much, I had to break those gains down per dollar.

Item Seconds Cost $/sec
Specialized Venge ViAS 120 $12,500 $104.17
Specialized Evade Helmet 46 $250 $5.43
Specialized Evade GC Skinsuit 96 $500 $5.21
Specialized S-Works 6 Clippies 35 $400 $11.43

Drop the bike purchase for the list and, for 92% savings from the full cost, you still get 60% of the gain.

hellsheadbanger
hellsheadbanger
9 years ago

While these products all seem to have some merit, making precise claims regarding regarding time savings without even stating what they are comparing to (plus the fact that the amount of time saved will be completely different for different riders and different wind conditions) sounds like a lot of marketing bullsh*t designed for rich people who don’t know sh*t about bikes. Ridiculous claims such as these along with the ridiculous price are rapidly vanquishing what little respect I had left for specialized.

bielas
bielas
9 years ago

All graphic designers were fired? There’s no graphics at all in those products, everything just black… quite unusual on Specialized

What?
What?
9 years ago

@Larasmile – The Repack started everything and the big S stole Tom Ritcheys bike and had it massed produced in China. So if you mean started the Chinese production bikes, then you are correct. FYI – Giant makes the big S brand.

Veganpotter
Veganpotter
9 years ago

I’m not going to knock the claims, they’re probably true when comparing these things to typical training gear. However, that’s a hell of a lot of money for such a hideous bike. Form follows function but seriously?

What?
What?
9 years ago

If the tour teams use this then they will win the tour by hours!

Dr. Sartorious
Dr. Sartorious
9 years ago

I like the guy on the mountain bike forum who says “I hate the Big S” and yet later on admits that “I still run their Butcher and Purgatory tires because they’re so good.”

Bicycle consumers: a confused bunch.

Collin
Collin
9 years ago

I’m so buying one of these. Our local Wednesday night crit is on a race track which is about 3 minutes long. The race goes for about an hour and a half where we do around 40 miles or so. Assuming I’m the only one who buys one, I’ll be able to lap the whole field TWICE!

Craig
Craig
9 years ago

@What?

Actually the first Specialized Stumpjumper was made in Japan. Mass production of bikes for the Western world by China came after Taiwan which came after Japan. Some would say the major shift from Japan to Taiwan happened in the mid-late 1980’s and then from Taiwan to China in the early 2000’s.

Repack itself did not spark any large scale manufacturing as such, but copies of the first Stumpjumper did, so Larasmile is somewhat correct. Especially as the mountain bike industry re-started innovation in the road industry…

Although we really have Baron Karl von Drais to thank for his 1818 patent of the “running machine”. Actually he might have grounds to sue Specialized…I’m sure someone will be looking into this.

DesertCat
DesertCat
9 years ago

@What
Giant makes a LOT of bikes in the industry, but doesn’t make Specialized.
Merida makes Specialized (and a LOT of other bikes too).

Robo
Robo
9 years ago

Giant owns factories and rents them out to manufacturers. They don’t make other brands bikes. Big difference.

To the people not understanding the way they’re touting their time savings numbers; it’s the same for everyone. Take the helmet for example. They say switching from the prevail to the evade saves 46 seconds, all other factors remaining equal. That’s for you me, the guy down the street with a beer belly, the Cat 1 a few states over. If each of us were riding around town with prevail helmets and switched over to evades and changed nothing else about ourselves, we would each save 46 seconds on our own, individual 40k times. It’s 46 seconds faster than I previously was. Get it?

goridebikes
goridebikes
9 years ago

JUST WAIT UNTIL YOU SEE THE LACE-UP SHOE.
OMG

Volsung
Volsung
9 years ago

I don’t care what you guys say. I like this bike, and I’d totally tear up the bike path around the lake with it.

Liasara
Liasara
9 years ago

This bike and kit are perfect to improve my strava time, thanks Specialized!
This helmet looks like the 80’s! Cool! Going back. And the retro shoes as well!
But please make stuff more durable, I had to replace two frames and my kit falls apart after few months :/
To comments above… Nobody copied the stumpjumper, there were other mass produced mountain bikes at the same time such as Ross etc… The stumpjumper comes few years after Ritchey breezer potts cunningham etc. People knew about mtb way way before specialized bought ritcheys to have the cloned in Asia.

CXisfun
CXisfun
9 years ago

@Robo: since drag increases aren’t linear, that line of reasoning just doesn’t work. Saving 20g of drag for someone who holds 250w for 40k will net a larger total time savings than someone who rides 40k at 375w. Get it?

CXisfun
CXisfun
9 years ago

Also, this new skinsuit looks just like Castelli’s San Remo skin suit.

Fake Mike Sinyard
Fake Mike Sinyard
9 years ago

Hi, I’m Fake Mike Sinyard.

Laugh all you want, complain about high prices, but, hey, I charge what the market’ll bear; I went to grade school the day they taught Economics 101: Supply and Demand.

The thing is: There aren’t enough work shifts in Asia to make these things fast enough–we make one, we sell ten. I love it.

Cheers,

Fake Mike

greg
greg
9 years ago

Five minutes is a bunch, especially when you’re comparing it to your current equipment, which is reasonably aero already. Even if the benefit is half that, it’s still impressive. One way I could see them fudge the numbers is if the helmet max benefit is at, say 7degrees yaw, but the wheels max benefit was at 10degrees yaw, but they added up all Tue max benefits together. Ideally, they’d take the area under the curve across a particular yaw range and add all that up.

Tomi
Tomi
9 years ago

I can safely say that bar Marty Mc Fly and Dr Emmett Brown, no one ever managed to gain minutes yet alone seconds.

Yagil
Yagil
9 years ago

Well, now that’s a claim that’ll be easy to verify. As tt races are won by split seconds, if those claims are correct then I expect Specialized athlets to win all tt races this year, bar none.

Tomi
Tomi
9 years ago

@Yagil what they do not say is they compared that time to the time the same rider would need on the same 40k course with a single gear dutch city bike on civil clothing.

David
David
9 years ago

Love the comments – just what this steaming pile of marketing guff merits.
@Yagil is pretty much bang on – if Cavendish and Sagan turn up to the Tour with this stuff, that’s the sprints and the green jersey decided straight away. Kittel and the rest might as well take a short cut straight to the beach. Assuming the riders in their lead-out trains have also got it. And that the gains are also significant over the last 200m. And… hang on, who will it actually help, now Jensy has retired and most riders spend their time hiding in the peloton? Are there any French teams riding Specialized?

tony
tony
9 years ago

I prefer to save my money and maybe purchase 13 500 USD of goods in my entire bicycle life.

Dan
Dan
9 years ago

I agree with Tomi. How can they make all these claims down to exact seconds of savings and then not even tell us what they are comparing there results against. Could be a walmart bike with 20psi in the tires.

gatorskin
gatorskin
9 years ago

Specialized claimed the similar improvements last time as well.

According to their marketing department claims, specialized riders should win every single road race now on.
OR
People like Nibali, Contador, Sagan etc. are just suckers.

You pick where the true is.

jeff
jeff
9 years ago

Look at that. Specialized comes out with another BS claim and makes onto every bike forum on the internet, as well as every magazine in a couple of months.
I wish all the internet sites, forums, blogs and magazines would get their claims proven before they run a big and free ad campaign for them. I guess we’re all suckers!

eddie
eddie
9 years ago

the one with the most money would be the one making the claims and validating the wrong from the right… that’s the bike industry marketing as a whole

Colin
Colin
9 years ago

what no one is talking about with this bike is the ride. With the old venge, if you hit a pebble at 8 mph you’d be laid up for a few weeks with spinal compression. With the old frame, the big S found a way to amplify road harshness. Let’s see if they continue “innovating” that technology.

gatorskin
gatorskin
9 years ago


Never rode the previous model, but it is easy to see how this one will have a stiffer fork.
The front brake placement does not allow for the fork to flex at the crown. Poor placement.

I saw a video of sagan and that other british guy, riding next to each other during a race and talking about the bike. neither of them seemed to be too excited.

CreakingBB
CreakingBB
9 years ago

@gatorskin

Sagan changed his bike from Cannondale to S-Works and we can see the immediate effect.

He’s wining some of the competitions with flying colors.

He’s no longer a “Peter Second”.

British guy ? You mean Mark Simon Cavendish (aka ‘THE’ rocket )

Mark
Mark
9 years ago

I’d rather buy a KindHuman or a Ritte. Thanks.

Liasara
Liasara
9 years ago

Creaking bb
You probably don’t follow road racing much… Sagan was the favorite for the stage before the race started, and he won without too much opposition from others, if you understand road cycling you know what I mean… Canvedish had few good years because there was no much competition and it is not well respected by other riders….

Liasara
Liasara
9 years ago

Creaking bb 2… I misread your post… Thinking you said Sagan changed from the older specialized to this new one for the stage he won.
But you actually said cannondale. So you really don’t know much about road racing or follow races… Just a cav boy band fan

Sean P
Sean P
9 years ago

@creaking bb. That’s exactly what your gonna get with this bike. A creaking BB. I’m not sure he’s winning more on a Specialized than he did on a Cannondale……… may want to check the stats on that. Kool Aid, gotta drink it.

Psi Squared
Psi Squared
9 years ago

“How can they make all these claims down to exact seconds of savings and then not even tell us what they are comparing there results against.” This happens because the marketing department doesn’t report everything that is done or found in the lab.

Dan
Dan
9 years ago

@creakingBB

First of all, Sagan has just come into form but hasn’t had nearly the same level of success that he had on his super six evo. Which probably has nothing to do with cannondale or specialized and is more due to team dynamics and the increasing level of competition.

Secondly, while no expert on Cavendish, I believe he’s referred to as the Manx Missile, not the rocket.

Ventruck
Ventruck
9 years ago

something must be flying over my head because the “new” Evade looks the exact same as the original.

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