Specialized has released the latest version of its Roubaix endurance road bike in the form of the Roubaix SL8 which comes in several spec options. The Roubaix SL8 dovetails with the recently released Tarmac SL8, although there was no previous Roubaix SL7 model the brand says it wanted to link its top-flight models under the same name.
The Roubaix has been around for the best part of two decades now, it was even the American brand’s first full-carbon fibre road bike and features in our best endurance road bike guide. Peter Sagan famously rode a Roubaix model to victory at Paris-Roubaix making use of the Futureshock suspension technology the bike has become synonymous with after its debut in 2016.
Specialized says that in the endurance road category, there is nothing faster than the Roubaix SL8. The brand claims it has eliminated four watts of drag by optimising the areas of the bike that meet airflow first in use. Over a 100-mile ride riding at 3 w/kg Specialized says this equates to a 17-second saving. This means a new fork shape with a deeper leg, especially at the bottom of the fork, and a revised down tube design, whilst the dropped seat stays are dropped further still to aid aerodynamics.
Aside from frame design improvements, Specialized says it has reduced frame weight by 50 grams by optimising the carbon fibre layup. The Roubaix gets Specialized premium 12r carbon fibre which means a 56cm Roubaix SL8 S-Works model weighs a claimed 7.3 kilos. The frame geometry has stayed the same, except growing by 10mm in height up front, partly due to the new Future Shock.
Elsewhere, there is also a brand new Future Shock 3.0 suspension system which we get into below, added mounting points for bottles, bags and mudguards (something we lamented the lack of in our review of the old model) and increased tyre clearance for up to 38c / 40mm tyres. Specialized also says the bike will be just at home running a 28mm tyre as it will be a 38mm option.
Future Shock 3.0
The Roubaix SL8 has also received a brand new Future Shock platform providing 20mm of travel and 30mm of stack height adjustment. Future Shock is a front suspension system located below the bike’s handlebar stem, aimed at increasing comfort and providing additional compliance. The new Future Shock 3.0 series is broken down into three three spec tiers. These are Future Shock…
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