Name: DZ

Bike: Trek Domane 4.3

Why bought?
In 2016, after many years not cycling I was encouraged to start again by a work colleague. Being tight and naïve of changes in bike technology I was reluctant to spend too much but decided a carbon frame was the way to go. Doing some research showed the Domane to have good reviews and seemed to tick the boxes for my needs. Endurance biased yet still capable of going fast. I looked around and found this one on special end of line sale, last in the shop, at a price that I thought I could justify. A bit of negotiation, and the deal was done.

In standard form it has Bontrager alloy wheels, Bontrager tyres and Shimano 105 group set with rim brakes. Gears are 50/34 compact chain rings and 11 speed 11-32 cassette.

What’s it like riding?

Having previously ridden steel bikes with down tube shifters and triple chain rings (back in the 80’s/90’s, the change to indexed manual Shimano 105 shifting was a revelation. No more fumbling about trying to feel the chain onto the next cog whilst taking one hand off the bars and pedalling awkwardly to stop my knee hitting my arm. I was also amazed at the strength and stiffness of the carbon fibre frame and the beating it can take while still being resilient enough to flex enough to absorb vibrations and minor road imperfections. The Domane has an isospeed..bs shock absorbing seat tube unique to Trek, which seems to work. However, after a few months of getting fitter and more ambitious I realised the limitations of the standard wheels and replaced them with Reynolds Assault carbon wheels for more stiffness, less weight, and superior aerodynamics. A good decision.

The bike has been great to ride being light enough, comfortable, fast, and stable, albeit a bit sketchy on 23mm tyres at 100psi and 50+kph descending our various and very bumpy gorges. I found the gear ratios well suited to the hilly terrain we ride and have been glad of the lowest ratio after a long day and a final steep hill to climb.

I have never had a ‘bike fit’ so went by trial and error without any real issues, but after a couple of years I changed the saddle as inexplicably I started to get uncomfortable on long rides. I also found that my arms were under pressure on long descents trying to hold an aero position and consequently ached unbearably sometimes. As standard, the bike has a relatively upright riding position (apparently for comfort on long rides), with the bar stem sloping upwards and set near the top of the steerer tube. I experimented turning the stem over to slope down and relocating spacers to drop the bars down, and found this made a huge difference. That’s how I have kept it.

One day, caught in a thunderstorm, I discovered how superfluous are rim brakes on carbon wheels, when they get wet. They just don’t work. At all. Which is exciting in a masochistic kind of way, but also very dangerous. I had endeavoured not to ride when it is wet anyway, but after this discovery, any more than a few drops and I don’t go.

I have more recently moved on to another bike, but I shall not be getting rid of the Trek. It’s a handy back up that can still keep pace with most, and also serves as a semi-permanent fixture on the trainer.