New Bike – Specialized Aethos Comp

If you have been under a rock you may have missed that I sold my beloved ‘pink princess’ bike recently and I purchased a new bike!

The new bike is a Specialized Aethos Comp and I got it from the lovely people at Cycle Evolution in Colchester, Essex.

Why Was I Looking For A New Bike?

I’ve been asked this a lot and I added a video to my socials showing the new bike in the shop but the sound is muted. Why is it muted? My friend Karen was in the shop and you can hear her saying to me ‘Lisa, why did you want a new bike?’ and then my replying ‘Karen, what a stupid question’. Meant entirely in a nice way but also serious – who wouldn’t want a new bike?!

I loved my Tarmac and was really sad to see it go, but I have loads of great memories with it and it went to a lovely new home. I was injured and off the bike and figured I would take a look and see a) if I could get a bike I wanted in my size (as they are not as easy to source these days) and b) if I could sell mine for what I wanted to help fund the upgrade.

My Tarmac was rim brake and I had no issue with it at all but as my gravel and MTB are both disc brake bikes, I knew I eventually wanted to upgrade my road to be the same.

I had looked (drooled) over the Aethos for a long time and so this was what I was looking at. I did also look at other options but kept going back to the Aethos. I had test ridden it, knew the geometry was almost identical to the Tarmac so it would be a comfortable ride for me and also spoken to others who had ridden both the Tarmac and the Aethos to get some feedback and everything seemed to confirm my choice so Aethos was it!

The Technical Bits

• Frame – Aethos FACT 10r Carbon
• Fork – FACT Carbon
• Handlebars – Specialized Shallow Drop
• Stem – Specialized Pro SL
• Tape – Supacaz Super Sticky Kush
• Saddle – Body Geometry Power Sport
• Seatpost – Roval Alpinist Carbon Seatpost
• Brakes – SRAM Rival 1, hydraulic disc
• Shift Levers – SRAM Rival eTap AXS, hydraulic
• Front Derailleur – SRAM Rival eTAP AXS
• Rear Derailleur – SRAM Rival eTap AXS, 12-speed
• Cassette – SRAM Rival, 12-speed, 10-36t
• Crankset – SRAM Rival
• Chainrings – 48/35T
• Bottom Bracket – SRAM DUB BSA 68
• Chain – SRAM Rival 12-speed
• Wheelset – DT Swiss R470 rim, 20mm internal width, tubeless ready, 24h, Specialized full sealed bearing thru axle hub, centerlock disc, DT Swiss Champion 14G stainless steel spokes, DT Swiss brass nipples
• Tyres – Turbo Pro, 60 TPI, folding bead, BlackBelt protection, 700x26mm
• Inner Tubes – Presta, 48mm valve

Of Course I Changed Some Bits

When you purchase a bike the bulk of the cost is the frameset. I already knew I wanted to change some parts on it and so after buying I left in the shop with some parts on order to upgrade as follows:

• Roval Alpinist CLX II front and rear wheels – I had deeper rim wheels on the Tarmac but had been looking at these for the Aethos and they are the ones recommended
• S-Works Carbon Hover handlebars (40cm) – on my Tarmac I had the handlebars rolled up slightly for a more comfortable fit and initially was looking at the Alpinist bars but was recommended these, which also meant it raised 15mm)
• Shimano Ultegra R8000 SPD-SL pedals – again what I have used before so tried and tested
• Specialized Turbo Cotton tyres (700 x 28) – I am general a Continental girl so this is new for me, partly following recommendations but also those tan walls are just lush
• Latex inner tubes – recommended and is a little bit of a learning curve for me with the lower PSI and having to remember to pump up every ride (which I forgot to do on my very first ride)
• Custom Fat Girl Fit stem cap cover – I had this on my Tarmac and like to add a bit of pink where I can so always planned to swap this over to any new bike I got
• Mimic Pro saddle – my go to saddle that is tried and tested and works for me (I also have this on my turbo bike)

Where Did I Get The Aethos?

Full disclosure I work with the guys at Cycle Revolution but I will always give an honest opinion and I can hands down say they could not have done enough to help me. I can talk! And I spent several hours in the store asking questions and discussing options and they were nothing but patient and super helpful.

I also met a friend in their Colchester Evolution store who was struggling to source a bike suitable for her needs and in her size and they were equally as great helping her and she has a bike on order from them too.

Most Importantly What Do I Think So Far?

I will admit it is early days (I have only had it for just over 2 weeks) but so far I am seriously impressed! She rides like an absolute dream and is just as comfortable as the Tarmac.

I was sceptical about SRAM as I have only ever known mechanical and Di2 but after a few ‘oops that’s the wrong gear change’ I picked it up.

Naturally I look to see how I can pink up my bikes but not sure I can with this one. My Tarmac was fairly in your face and I loved it but part of what attracted me to the Aethos was the simplicity of it. I liked that it stripped it back to being a bike I would just love to ride – less is more was something a friend said when she saw it last weekend and I couldn’t agree more!