Cervelo Soloist help?

Quoted message said:

Do I go with the smaller bike and the longer stem? Or, do I go with the
larger bike and the "stock" stem?

Intuitively, 12.5cm seems like a pretty long stem for a 51cm bike. 11cm on
the 54 sounds a bit more reasonable. As for clearance, I don't see that as a
huge issue on a road bike. On the other hand, Treks are a bit smaller (in
terms of seat tube length/top tube height) than their size indicates, due to
how they measure.

You're right, this *is* a tough one to figure out.

Quoted message said:

Please resist the "go ride it" advice. There's not a Cervelo Soloist to be
ridden within several hours drive time of where I live. I'm in a remote,
rural area.

Might be worth the investment in time, given how long you're going to own
the bike. I know, it's not what you wanted to hear...

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

"psycholist" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm about to order a Cervelo Soloist by mail order. I've been researching
frame sizes/geometry compared to my Trek 5500.

My Trek is a 52cm with a 53.1 cm eff. top tube and a 12.5 cm stem.

The 51 cm Soloist has a 53.0 cm eff. top tube and, if I get a 12.5 cm
stem, I should be very close to the "cockpit" I'm accustomed to. However,
the salesman tells me I'd be better off on a 54 cm Soloist. That has a
54.5 cm eff top tube and comes with a 11 cm stem. So far it seems like a
toss-up.

The Cervelo website encourages you to compare a couple of measures they
call "reach" and "stack" between your existing bike and the Soloist frame.
Reach is a dead-on match with the 51 cm Soloist, and stack is closer than
it would be with the 54 cm frame.

I'm long-torso'd and short-legged. The standover on a 54 cm compact frame
wouldn't give me much clearance. That's not a big concern 'cuz I don't
have much now. But I'm not riding a compact frame now, either. All my
instincts are telling me the 54 cm is too large. But that's what the
salesman/"fit expert" is pushing. (He has both frame sizes in stock, so
it's not like he's trying to steer me to what's on the floor.) I'd say the
choice to go with the 51 cm would be a no-brainer except for one thing.
Cervelo ships the 51 cm with a 10 cm stem. I'll have to swap that for a
12.5. Not a big deal unless there's some handling compromise or something
I need to take into consideration. On the other hand, the 54 cm ships with
an 11 cm stem which puts the combined top tube and stem length precisely
where my current bike is (despite those "reach" and "stack" measures which
are significantly different).

Please resist the "go ride it" advice. There's not a Cervelo Soloist to be
ridden within several hours drive time of where I live. I'm in a remote,
rural area.

Do I go with the smaller bike and the longer stem? Or, do I go with the
larger bike and the "stock" stem?

Thanks in advance for any wisdom.

Bob C.

--
Bob C.

"Of course it hurts. The trick is not minding that it hurts."
T. E. Lawrence (of Arabia)