After teasing it in multiple professional races this past season, Trek has officially launched the new Speed Concept time trial / triathlon bike.
Said to be the “the fastest bike we [Trek] have ever tested in the wind tunnel”, the new Trek Speed Concept is claimed to save a rider “around six minutes” over the 180km bike leg at the Ironman World Championship in Kona, compared to the outgoing model.
Focusing heavily on its triathlon credentials, the new Speed Concept gains increased levels of integrated storage and two hydration systems “with no aerodynamic penalty”.
In addition to now being a disc-brake only platform, the new Speed Concept also has a version of Trek’s IsoSpeed comfort-enhancing decoupler system, making it “40 per cent more comfortable” than the outgoing Speed Concept, according to Trek.
More aero and more convenient
As you’d expect with a dedicated time trial / triathlon bike, the primary focus is on improving aerodynamic efficiency.
With that in mind, Trek claims the new Speed Concept saves 16 watts at 26 mph / 41.84 kph ("a Kona winning pace") versus the outgoing model. As already noted, Trek says this will shave “around six minutes” off a 180km Kona bike leg.
Two minutes of those savings are said to come from the reduced rolling resistance Trek claims can be achieved when using its latest Aeolus RSL wheels with 75mm deep rims (which, being disc-brake only, weren’t compatible with the old Speed Concept).
A move away from the hinge fork design on the old Speed Concept, to a more conventional fork design with a round steerer tube, makes the new Speed Concept less aggressively narrow at the head tube.
The upshot of this change is the front end of the new Speed Concept is said to be far easier to disassemble for transport (and then reassemble at the other end).
Trek says most positional adjustments – crucial to getting a bike fit optimised for both comfort and aerodynamics – can be made using only two Allen keys.
The integrated triathlon bars also feature continually adjustable extensions, meaning extension reach can be altered precisely without the need to cut down any carbon parts.
Aero bike packing
With the growing popularity of long-distance triathlons such as Ironman, finding ways to carry food, water and spares on the bike has become a crucial design parameter for bike manufacturers.
As such, unused space on the top tube, behind the head tube, is dedicated to an integrated food storage box. As well as having enough room inside it to carry eight gels, Trek says it has removable dividers for customising the space, and that it can be removed for easy cleaning.
Similar to the latest Orbea Ordu time trial / triathlon bike, the new Speed Concept also gets a specially designed aero water bottle, with a 700ml capacity, for its down tube.
Trek says this can be used to carry water (or your energy drink mix of choice) with no aerodynamic penalty, unlike standard round water bottles, which would increase aerodynamic drag.
Rather than using an aero-optimised storage box on the outside of the frame, though, the new Speed Concept hides spares (such as a multi-tool, spare inner tube, tyre levers and a CO2 inflator) inside the down tube, underneath the aero bottle.
Trek has also developed a new Between-The-Arms (BTA) bottle (available separately) for the Speed Concept, offering an additional 700ml of fluid storage. It’s refillable on the go, via an accessible port on the top of the bottle, and includes a straw to allow riders to drink from it without leaving the aero position.
According to Trek, a BTA bottle such as this “is the fastest place to store water”, assuming it works with your bike fit (you’ll need to have enough space between your forearms to accommodate it).
IsoSpeed
Comfort is something not often associated with time trial or triathlon bikes, but when you’re looking at a 180km bike ride followed by a marathon run (and preceded by a 2.4-mile swim, because why not?), it’s obvious being more comfortable is likely to improve performance.
On the new Speed Concept, the IsoSpeed comfort-enhancing decoupler technology is integrated into the seat tube / top tube junction, with a “forward pivot optimised for a triathlete’s weight bias” (which tends to be more over the front wheel compared to road bikes such as the Trek Madone or Domane).
Trek Speed Concept Geometry
There are two versions of the new Speed Concept frameset; the Speed Concept SLR and the Speed Concept TT.
Both versions of the frameset can be used in UCI-sanctioned events, but Trek says the triathlon-specific base bar on the Speed Concept SLR would need to be replaced with a UCI-legal version.
The Speed Concept TT differs from the SLR version by forgoing the IsoSpeed system and integrated storage solutions. It also has a "slightly tweaked geometry for a little more nimbleness", making it a better fit for the shorter, more technical time trials typically found in professional road races such as the Tour de France.
| Trek Speed Concept SLR geometry | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frame size | S | M | L | XL | ||||
| Wheel size | 700c | 700c | 700c | 700c | ||||
| Seat tube length (cm) | 49.9 | 52.5 | 54.9 | 57.4 | ||||
| Seat tube angle | 78.0° | 78.0° | 78.0° | 78.0° | ||||
| Head tube length (cm) | 6.5 | 9 | 11.5 | 14 | ||||
| Head tube angle | 72.2° | 72.5° | 72.5° | 72.5° | ||||
| Effective top tube length (cm) | 49.5 | 51.8 | 54.1 | 56.5 | ||||
| Bottom bracket drop (cm) | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | ||||
| Chainstay length (cm) | 41 | 41 | 41 | 41 | ||||
| Fork offset (cm) | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | ||||
| Trail (cm) | 6.1 | 6 | 6 | 6 | ||||
| Wheelbase (cm) | 96.7 | 99.5 | 102 | 104.7 | ||||
| Standover height (cm) | 76 | 78.5 | 80.8 | 83.1 | ||||
| Reach (cm) | 39 | 41.6 | 42.6 | 44.5 | ||||
| Stack (cm) | 49.2 | 51.7 | 54.1 | 56.5 | ||||
| Minimum saddle rail height with short seatpost (cm) | 55.9 | 58 | 60.4 | 62.8 | ||||
| Maximum saddle rail height with short seatpost (cm) | 66.6 | 69.2 | 71.5 | 74 | ||||
| Minimum saddle rail height with tall seatpost (cm) | 64.9 | 67 | 69.4 | 71.8 | ||||
| Maximum saddle rail height with tall seatpost (cm) | 75.6 | 78.2 | 80.5 | 83 | ||||
As Trek says, the Speed Concept TT uses a slightly modified geometry to the Speed Concept SLR, with shallower head tube angles across the size range and a shallower seat tube angle of 76 degrees (compared to 78 degrees on the Speed Concept SLR).
The latter may be intended to make it easier for riders to comply with the UCI’s technical regulations, which dictate the tip of a rider’s saddle must be at least 5cm behind the centre of the bottom bracket (unless a “morphological exemption” is granted by the UCI).
| Trek Speed Concept TT geometry | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frame size | S | M | L | |||
| Wheel size | 700c | 700c | 700c | |||
| Seat tube length (cm) | 49.9 | 52.5 | 54.9 | |||
| Seat tube angle | 76.0° | 76.0° | 76.0° | |||
| Head tube length (cm) | 6.5 | 9 | 11.5 | |||
| Head tube angle | 72.0° | 72.0° | 72.0° | |||
| Effective top tube length (cm) | 51.8 | 54.4 | 56.6 | |||
| Bottom bracket drop (cm) | 7.2 | 7.2 | 7.2 | |||
| Chainstay length (cm) | 41 | 41 | 41 | |||
| Fork offset (cm) | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | |||
| Trail (cm) | 6.3 | 6.3 | 6.3 | |||
| Wheelbase (cm) | 98.2 | 101 | 103.4 | |||
| Standover height (cm) | 75.1 | 77.6 | 80 | |||
| Reach (cm) | 39.8 | 41.7 | 43.4 | |||
| Stack (cm) | 48.4 | 50.9 | 53.3 | |||
| Minimum saddle rail height with short seatpost (cm) | 55.9 | 58 | 60.4 | |||
| Maximum saddle rail height with short seatpost (cm) | 66.6 | 69.2 | 71.5 | |||
| Minimum saddle rail height with tall seatpost (cm) | 64.9 | 67 | 69.4 | |||
| Maximum saddle rail height with tall seatpost (cm) | 75.6 | 78.2 | 80.5 | |||
Trek Speed Concept specs, pricing and availability
Constructed from Trek’s OCLV 800 carbon fibre, with a threaded T47 bottom-bracket shell, the new Trek Speed Concept is available now, exclusively through Trek’s Project One customisation programme.
Trek is offering five different builds at launch, all with Shimano or SRAM electronic drivetrains, and a frameset option for both the SLR and TT versions.
There are three builds featuring SRAM’s wireless eTap drivetrains, starting with the top-spec Speed Concept SLR 9 eTap model, which gets a SRAM Red eTap AXS groupset.
There are two options with Shimano drivetrains – the Speed Concept SLR 9 with Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 R9200 and the Speed Concept SLR 7 with Shimano Ultegra Di2 R8150.
The three SRAM builds all include a power meter to match their respective groupsets as stock, but the Shimano builds do not, as things stand.
All models get Bontrager Aeolus carbon tubeless-ready wheelsets with 700x25c Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite clincher tyres.
Prices for complete builds start at $8,799.99 for the Speed Concept SLR 6 eTap and rise to $13,499.99 for the Speed Concept SLR 9 and Speed Concept SLR 9 eTap models.
Speed Concept SLR 9 eTap
- Price: $13,499.99
- Frameset: Trek Speed Concept SLR
- Groupset: SRAM Red eTap AXS, with SRAM Red AXS power meter
- Brakes: SRAM Red eTap AXS hydraulic disc
- Wheelset: Bontrager Aeolus RSL 51
- Tyres: Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite, 700x25c
- Saddle: Bontrager Hilo Pro Carbon
Speed Concept SLR 9
- Price: $13,499.99
- Frameset: Trek Speed Concept SLR
- Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 R9200
- Brakes: Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 R9200
- Wheelset: Bontrager Aeolus RSL 51
- Tyres: Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite, 700x25c
- Saddle: Bontrager Hilo Pro Carbon
Speed Concept SLR 7 eTap
- Price: $9,999.99
- Frameset: Trek Speed Concept SLR
- Groupset: SRAM Force eTap AXS, with SRAM Force AXS power meter
- Brakes: SRAM Force eTap AXS hydraulic disc
- Wheelset: Bontrager Aeolus Pro 51
- Tyres: Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite, 700x25c
- Saddle: Bontrager Hilo Comp
Speed Concept SLR 7
- Price: $9,499.99
- Frameset: Trek Speed Concept SLR
- Groupset: Shimano Ultegra Di2 R8150
- Brakes: Shimano Ultegra Di2 R8150
- Wheelset: Bontrager Aeolus Pro 51
- Tyres: Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite, 700x25c
- Saddle: Bontrager Hilo Comp
Speed Concept SLR 6 eTap
- Price: $8,799.99
- Frameset: Trek Speed Concept SLR
- Groupset: SRAM Rival eTap AXS, with SRAM Rival AXS power meter
- Brakes: SRAM Rival eTap AXS
- Wheelset: Bontrager Aeolus Pro 51
- Tyres: Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite, 700x25c
- Saddle: Bontrager Hilo Comp
Speed Concept SLR / TT frameset
- Price: $4,999.99
- Frameset: Trek Speed Concept SLR / TT
