Specialized brand...

[boyRacer]

Newbie rider here. You guys think Specialized is looked on as a generic brand? I bought an 03 Allez Sport w/ Tiagra/105 for $500 this weekend since i couldnt pass up the deal... ...and i would probably buy another bike later on regardless of the brand as long as i get a good deal on it again. From looking around though... badge snobs sneer specialized even the s-works... ...is it because you can pronounce the name at the first try?

 

[waterboy420]

There is nothing wrong with your Sepcialized. I personally ride a Cannondale (US made non-exotic mulit-market bicyclemanufacturer), and see plenty of Specialized bikes on the road. It is true that in the sporting goods stores I have seen Specialized, and Trek bicycles . . .and nothing exotic in those same stores. That is OK, that just means that you'll see more people riding them because they are in places other than the LBS.

Specialized makes a good product that is just a little more common to see around the block than your Pinarellos, Colnagos, Bianchis, etc. that you only see at the LBS. Less exotic, more mass market appeal . . .because they do market to a larger crowd than just the high end roadie.

And remember, everywhere you go, no matter what sport, there will always be the "snobby" crowd that deams thier sport to be practiced in its most purist form without tainting it with the "weekend" warriors who don't have the "love" of the sport enough to go out and spend $5000 on a bike. You purchased a bike that fit your budget, and are out on the road enjoying the great sport of cycling. Enjoy the ride.

 

[lokstah]

Originally posted by boyRacer
Newbie rider here. You guys think Specialized is looked on as a generic brand? I bought an 03 Allez Sport w/ Tiagra/105 for $500 this weekend since i couldnt pass up the deal... ...and i would probably buy another bike later on regardless of the brand as long as i get a good deal on it again. From looking around though... badge snobs sneer specialized even the s-works... ...is it because you can pronounce the name at the first try?

Snobs are snobs. Specialized, to be accurate, doesn't have any more or less credibility as a valid brand than the other four or five big-label companies you find in every other bike shop: Trek, Giant, Cannondale, and even Bianchi (they might appeal to the classicist, but in all fairness, there are enough entry-level Bianchis chained to trees around that they give Trek a run for their money).

Like Trek, Giant, C'Dale and Bianchi, Specializeds are everywhere, which annoys the snobs, but also employed by some of the sport's greatest international elite. Each of those labels builds bikes that any serious rider would be proud to take into a major tour -- guys like Cipollini, Simoni, Ullrich, Beloki among them. These are serious companies.

Even the manufacturers which are, techinically, generic -- like shop-house labels Novara (REI), Scattante/Weyless (Supergo), and Douglas (Colorado Cyclist), are considered solid rides which sport quality components. You might not see them on a magazine cover, but you can see them leading the pack on a weekend hill climb.

Have fun out there!

 

[boyRacer]

Thanks guys... I had no regrets about buying it... just wondering what the deal was since someone told me to avoid the "generic' specialized brand... too bad i already bought my bike. lol.

 

[lokstah]

Originally posted by boyRacer
Thanks guys... I had no regrets about buying it... just wondering what the deal was since someone told me to avoid the "generic' specialized brand... too bad i already bought my bike. lol.

Well, with all due respect to that guy, calling Specialized "generic" is sort of idiotic. Sure, Specializeds are fairly common, but don't forget: the most ludicrously materialistic icon in the Euro riding scene, Mario Cipollini, with his carefully sculpted stubble, gold chains, Armani wardrobe, and plasma-TV loaded traveling team lounge, has logged plenty of style-dripping miles on an S-Works...

 

[::dom::]

I own a 04 Specialized Sirrus Sport and have just purchased a 03 (love those Zebra stripes) Specialized Allez Comp. Both bikes are brilliant.

 

[meehs]

I was thinking the same thing as Lokstah! If Mario Cipollini, who has been known to stop a team training ride to shop for designer Italian loafers, rides Specialized; who can argue? Ned Overend, probably the greatest American mountain bike racer (well... male at least) rode Specialized for almost his entire pro career! So you're in good company boyRacer! Just ride!

 

[lokstah]

Originally posted by meehs
Ned Overend, probably the greatest American mountain bike racer (well... male at least)

Allison Dunlap represent!

 

[meehs]

Originally posted by lokstah
Allison Dunlap represent!

Actually I was thinking of Juli Furtado! But Allison Dunlap is the new "Queen"!

 

[rv]

didn't juli spend most of her time on a gt?

 

[meehs]

Originally posted by rv
didn't juli spend most of her time on a gt?

Yeah. I didn't mean to imply that she rode Specialized. We just went off on a tangent about the greatest American female mountain bike racers. I think Furtado started with Yeti and then switched over to GT, where she spent most of her career.

 

[crystal_tears_]

Funny how some of you seem to be saying Specialized are a commonly seen bike in America because this is not the case at all here in England. Only ever seen one Specialized racing bike on the road ever and that was being ridden by a bloke in the cycling club i'm in. I see Giants and Bianchi's far more often, even Colnagos and Pinarellos are less rare !

Thought the zebra stripes looked wild and the shape of the frame looked so sexy too. Completely different in appearance than the run of the mill. So i made a mental note and eventually ended up buying an Allez Comp frame myself for racing on complete with Campag Centaur groupset and Eurus wheels.
Think it's good to own something a little different

 

[lokstah]

Originally posted by crystal_tears_
Funny how some of you seem to be saying Specialized are a commonly seen bike in America because this is not the case at all here in England. Only ever seen one Specialized racing bike on the road ever and that was being ridden by a bloke in the cycling club i'm in. I see Giants and Bianchi's far more often, even Colnagos and Pinarellos are less rare !

Funny how culture works that way, no? It's not unlike, say, Mercedes Benz in Germany, versus America. Here, it's strictly marketed as a luxury car; in Germany, everyone and their mother drives them to hell and back.

Specializeds are, in the States, one of the juggernauts that hold a tight grip on the commuter/hybrid/casual-rec market. Visit any high school or college campus and you'll find dozens of inexpensive Specialized mountain and city bikes chained to racks and lamposts.

That they also have a great share of the elite racing market may, in fact, be better known in Italy than in California. I think it's cool that Specializeds and Cannondales are sort of chic in the Mediterranian racing scene.