Awesome, I'm glad it was helpful!

I’m all about the non BS reviews.

InstaBlaster...

@@cracked229 $80 bike here 🙋🏽‍♀️

For those reading this, the bike is amazing. It does everything well- aside from actually being lightweight. Previously, I had a rim brake Specialized Allez Sprint with designer carbon everything. It rode on 65mm wheels and 25c TL tires. It was a quick bike and I was able to gather a handful of local sprinting strava segments. This new bike is setup similarly (carbon everything), but with 28c tires and it rips. I'm impressed everytime I go for a ride. It has a very slight damping effect- due to the carbon, yet it has precise feedback that "talks" to you. Out-of-saddle sprinting feels similar, but not quite to the level of the Sprint. Outside of that, every other aspect is improved upon. It slices the downhills, brakes consistently and like mad. If you're on the fence and can score one, do it...now 🙂

Thanks Nicole, you're going to love the ride...amazing bike!

I hope you can find a great bike. I know the supply chains is all jammed up and it’s hard to buy the exact bike you want these days, but if you find one I think it’s worth the investment. You’ll have it for 10 years and it will bring great happiness for years to come

Awesome bike, SL7 is pretty amazing. I didn't test it but the weight and components are sweet. Yes-- they're made for hills... up and down both!

Thanks! Glad it was helpful. I'll try to get another video uploaded to answer some questions people had

SL6 Pro is a sweet ride, nice choice!

Yes, I agree, and in person it looks even better, really cool. I think it's the best color scheme of all Treks, unless of course you to Project One custom which is amazing

You should hop in the car and drive somewhere warm just to get on the bike, I wouldn't be able to wait!

@@tappertube lol 😆 I’ve been braving the cold cause I couldn’t wait either!! 😄

Nice job, lucky find! They're super hard to find...that's the way to do it

Thanks, will do! Would love to hear the Domane review. The Domanes are also sold out everywhere, very much in demand and very hard to buy one these days.

Cool! Sounds like a great setup! Totally agree in the fast part. Those wheels cut through the air. Looking at all my Strava times compared to several years ago and my times are all down (despite getting fat and sedentary in the pandemic!). Also you should check out Continental GP 5000’s (tubeless) for tires. I just switched after getting a big flat on my stock Bontragers (which were great) and the Conti GP 5000’s are even better. Super smooth and grippy like everyone says.

SL6 Pro is a sweet ride...Looking forward to hearing your review!

He surely did talk me out of it. Picked up a domane, rode it for a week, and then tested Emonda (they didn’t have my size when I picked up the domane).. it was no brainer decision. Domane is a thumping good ride - very smooth and comfortable. But Emonda is sharp! Thinking to put 32s on it.

SL7 is quite a ride! If you can get one that would be sweet. I think Trek has really come out with amazing bikes in the past few years. I personally just can’t say enough about the value of a great bike. Expensive? Very! Worth it? Every penny!

The silver looks great too in person, even better than the photos. You'll love them both, it's an amazing bike

Thanks!

You're gonna love it. If you gave me $10k to buy a new bike, I'd buy the same bike again, no question. What are you changing from?

@@tappertube from an mtb hahaha. New to cycling. My emond will arrive around next week. Nice review 👍🏽

yes that's right, they said once it's built they can't ship it. So if you can find one in a box you might be able to get them to ship it to you locally

It's so true..the colors look amazing in person..

Same Seeing their bike f2f is just better

Hi I’ve bought the sl6 pro coming from a checkpoint sl6 gravel bike. Trust me you won’t be disappointed the geometry is slightly more aggressive, but after 100 k rides it’s fine and not only feels quick it actually is no bull.

@@clobber66 Nice. Can’t wait to ride a proper road perform bike.

@@clobber66 Roger that

This was my very own primary concern. I bought this bike sight unseen, upgrading from a Specialized Roubaix Comp carbon with endurance geometry-- they built the thing for Paris Roubaix. I loved the bike and put many thousands of miles on it. Also I tend to get low back pain from rowing crew in college, so geometry and aggressive stance was my single biggest concern. So I basically bought it sight unseen, driving 15 hours in the snow up to Olympia Washington to pick it up. The whole drive I was concerned that I had just committed several thousand dollars to a racing bike that would hurt my back after the first 100 miles. Long story short, it's significantly more comfortable than even my Roubaix Comp endurance. I've done a number of rides now for several hours each and were it not for sore legs the next day, I could easily hop back on the next day and ride again. Don't believe all the hype about the aero geometry and aggressive racing stance, etc. This bike is super comfortable and you can ride it for hours, no problem.

Amazing to hear the same supply chain issues in South Korea!

@@tappertube yeah not as bad as USA. The shop where i got mine, had about 7 SL5, had few other shops with some but not on my size. I called about 5-6 different shops.

Yes I agree, it's an amazing bike, and amazing value too. Sounds like you have a great setup Which saddle did you upgrade to?

Greg Tapper from the stock montrose comp to Aeolus elite. Was going to go for pro, but put some of the extra money towards XXX aero handlebars.

I did the same things. I had a red Roubaix Comp, and it looked great, but I was excited about the change to the smoke blue on the Emonda SL5.

I am very pleased to tell you. I now have my new sl5. And its a smoke blue one. Trek had increased the price overnight! Luckily for me my local bike shop had a blue one in stock in my size and where happy to sell it at the previous price. So pleased with it stunning colour!

@@markkeens3013 Awesome! you must love it. I have to say the smoke blue looks even better in person than it does in pictures. Lucky on the price-- even luckier to find one these days! If you can find one, buy it! They're hard to get. Send a note on the ride report, I think you'll love the ride.

No rubbing at all, lots of room. I was talking with the mechanic at the store and we were observing the space and agreed there was much more room available for even bigger tires. I just wouldn’t go bigger than 33. I’m at 32 and it’s perfect.

how are you liking the 11/32 cassette? I am on the heavy side for a rider and think the lower gearing is something I should consider since I do a lot of climbing.

@@KevinDuffyNJ I am. I’m not very light (180 lbs; 5-7) or young (54) either, so when I do hilly roads, it helps to have a 32. I find myself using it a lot.

@@tts8907 did you need to adjust the shifter?

@@KevinDuffyNJ I had it done for me at a bike shop, so don’t know

I haven’t experienced that, but it’s easily fixable. Definitely should take back to the LBS and ask them to fix it. Sounds like someone didn’t do it right, but fortunately a minor quick fix. Also they told me that the cables might stretch after breaking in and they may tuning. So that could be it.

I haven't compared it to the Domane. In fact I had a Domane on hold with a deposit at a local bike store (last Domane in stock) until I found this Emonda SL5, and I opted for the Emonda SL5. I've heard the Domane is even more smooth and very comfortable, which is saying a lot, because this Emonda SL5 with 32 tubeless tires and Aeolus pro 37s rides amazingly well. I also have a tendency to get lower back pain (from my days as a rower in college), so I was concerned about comfort. Actually that was my single biggest concern. Then I've been riding this bike and I feel great during and after rides-- actually even better than Specialized Roubaix Comp carbon (endurance geometry) which I replaced with this Emonda SL5. My longest ride so far is only about 3.5 hours, so I can't say how a long ride like a Century might be. But 2-3 or 4 hours, it's very comfortable and you'll want to hop back on the bike the next day (assuming your legs aren't tired!).

@@tappertube Thanks! After your review I made my decision and I got this bike today. Also same color. It rides very smoothly and comfortably. It’s very responsive and FAST!

@@tappertube im curious if the carbon wheels made any difference for long distance riding? I wonder if the ride will be the same with alloy standard wheels? Can’t decide if i want the checkpoint, domane or this one coming from rim brakes. Does it have lower and longer geometry?

Good questions about the stem. It’s definitely very responsive but I don’t know if it’s the more aero geo or the shorter stem. I think it’s the aero setup compared to my endurance Roubaix Comp. But if it’s helpful, I also bought a 70mm stem and tried that. Even that wasn’t too twitchy, but the fit wasn’t right. I think the 80mm is great. Also the wheels make a big difference. I was on 23s on my Roubaix, now I’m riding tubeless 33s in this Emonda and it’s a world of difference. The 23s at 120psi are twitchy. The Emonda is an amazing ride. I don’t know what size wheels you went with but I think you’ll find it to be an amazing bike. They really got this bike right 👍

It’s more aero than an endurance geometry, but in fact I feel it’s more comfortable and I feel less neck, shoulder and back pain than compared to riding my previous road bike which was a Specialized Roubaix Comp, a true endurance bike. You could make the Emonda SL5 very aero by using 100mm stem, negative angle (say 7 degrees downward) etc. But yes, if you also use a shorter stem, say 70-80mm (I use 80mm), and positive rotation (I have a 7 degree stem), it is very comfortable. I even tested a 70mm / 17 degree stem which was good too, so you might try that. Incidentally my number one concern was comfort, coming off a previous endurance bike, and this Emonda SL5 is super comfortable.

@@tappertube out of curiosity, 70-80mm stem, handling would be twitchy at higher speeds right? I use 110mm stem and im a short rider but I need higher stack bikes.

Thanks George, you'll love it... it will be worth the wait!

Yes I agree, the wheels really do make a huge difference. This is the first set of nice wheels I've had, and this does make a huge difference.