Specialized Allez Sprint

General Discussion
1

As I’m looking at road bike options to complement my Cannondale Evo (the 2nd best climber in the game, according to Zwift Insider tests, the frame which keeps showing itself is the Specialized Allez Sprint.

Here’s how some top-end frames tested. They measure speed on two course, one flat, one the L’Alpe, and each takes around 3000 seconds. A good guide to what the requirements for each frame are is in this ZwiftInsider article.

  • Cervelo S5: level 25, 603,500 drops: I’ll take this as the reference bike
  • Felt AR: level 34, 639,000 drops: same as the Cervelo.
  • Specialized Venge S-Works: 798,800 Drops: level 33, 1 second faster on flats, 3 seconds faster on L’Alpe
  • Trek Madone: level 20, 887,500 drops: +1 second on flats, +4 seconds on L’Alpe.
  • Cannondale System Six: level 27, 497,000: +1 second on flats, +15 seconds on L’Alpe
  • Specialized Venge: level 18, 461,500 Drops: +1 second on flats, +14 seconds on L’Alpe
  • Cannondale Evo (my bike): level 9, 213,000 Drops: +14 seconds on flats, 13 seconds faster on L’Alpe.
  • The Specialized Tarmac Pro: level 11, 408,300 Drops: +14 seconds on flats, 18 seconds faster on L’Alpe.
  • Specialized Allez Sprint: level 14, 127,800 Drops: +5 seconds on flats, +4 seconds on climbs

The obvious anomaly here is the Specialized Allez Sprint, highly competitive with the Madone, yet with an aluminum frame with only minor aerodynamic enhancements.

I do wonder about what sort of sponsorship deal Specialized locked in with Zwift to make their bikes that much better than the competition.

As an aside, the Tarmac Pro seems a popular choice, but I went with the Evo because it looks good with its parallel top tube, and I saved 195300 drops which I used to get good wheels, then eventually a nice time trial frame (Cervelo P5). I’ll probably get the Tarmac Pro eventually, but not yet.

2

I own the Tarmac Pro and the Specialized Allez Sprint. Also the Zipp 808 and Enve SES 3.4 wheels are in my garage. At the moment I am saving up for the Trek Madone and biding my time till I hit level 20 when it can be purchased (currently level 18). I rode the Madone in L’Etape du Tour Stage 1 and that sealed my planned purchase deal. The Allez Sprint and the Tarmac Pro are great bikes and an very obvious upgrades from the bike one is given at the start of their Zwift life.

3

We took similar routes: I first got the Roval wheels, then the Cannondale Evo, then the Enve 3.4, then the Zipp 808, then the Cervelo P5 (big win on time trials). I’ll probably hold out for the Cervelo (crunch time in races is often on climbs, anyway, so I’m happy with the Evo). I’m close to level 20, as well. The Madone is expensive, and the one in Zwift has the problematic brake covers :).

4

What level are you? The Allez Sprint is a no-brainer at only 127k drops. And if you’re just now at level 14 (when you’re able to access the Allez Sprint), then by the time you can access the other frames you’ll have gotten enough drops to buy them at that time. Allez Sprint + Zipp 808 = about as fast as you can go (if you’re not on a pure climbing course) at lower levels without being on a TT bike (but then you can’t draft). Just buy the thing and ride on :wink:

1 Like
5

I’m 19 now, but I’ve been racing Cannondale Evo + 808s except for pure climbing events, where I switch to the Enves. Crunch time tends to happen on climbs so I’ve stuck with the lighter frame, holding onto drops to wait for first the Cervelo P5, then a nicer aero frame later. But it’s good advice, I think – bang for the buck is exceptional for the Allez (for some mystery reason $$$).