I bought a RS and love it. I used to have a LOOK, but the frame was too big. I think this Cervelo is more comfortable than my old Look, but is super light and stiff. Great acceleration and very light feeling when climbing. I am also amazed how well it handles downhills.
My husband has an R3 and wishes that he waited a year to get an RS.

Hey,

I havent seen any pics of that RS yet! Glad to hear you are enjoying it. We have sold a lot of them (way more that the R3) and have only had positive feed back.

Adam

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Adam,

Any thoughts on why that is (selling way more RS's than R3's)? Is it the customer base - i.e. you're just having more people come in who fit the supposed target demographic for the RS vs. target demographic for the R3 - or is the RS just a better overall choice for most people?

BTW, I was in your shop a few weeks back visiting friends from Dallas. Needed some parts for my Vision bars my huge LBS couldn't find and your guys got 'em right out of the back for me. Really nice. So of course I proceeded to buy a whole bunch of other stuff :)

Besides the price difference (RS=$4000 and R3=$5000) the RS is better for most people due to comfort. Most "roadies" go for a R3, but if you bike for fitness or you are a triathlete looking for a road bike to do some training on, the RS is a better choice for most. The RS 54 frame is 990g so its still plenty light and has the stiff BB found on the R3. If the P2C is the best tri bike deal on the market, the RS is similiar on the road bike end.

-Adam

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Excellent information, is funny that you mention the P2C since that is the tri bike that I use and at this moment I’m looking to get a road bike that I can have fun and train hard with comfort

I love my RS, too. Due to work, I've been able to ride it outside only a few times, but it's an amazingly comfortable bike. I was able to set it up just like my old Cannondale -- not too aggressive, but it definitely isn't a "comfort" or touring setup.

I will ask my husband to post a picture.

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I think it comes down for a large part to the demographics of the store. Overall, R3 and RS are roughly equal in sales, but per store there are fairly significant differences. In the end it's pretty simple. If you like the tight, direct handling of say a traditional road racing bike but you want a higher handlebar position, that's the RS. If you want not only a higher handlebar position but you also want slower (I would say sluggish) handling and a less direct response, then the RS is not for you, but that's the way most bikes with longer headtubes are designed these days so there is plenty of choice for that style of bike too, just not at Cervelo.

Certainly the RS is getting a boost right now as the reviews start pooring in (a small overview is here: http://www.cervelo.com/...s.aspx?bike=RS2008#R) but the R3 and R3 SL also still get quite a few requests for magazine reviews.

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Gerard Vroomen
3T.bike
OPEN cycle

Hey Redog, can I ask what handlebars are on that closest Cervelo?

thanks
bk

The R3 uses the Bontrager carbon. The RS has the compact carbon bar from FSA. Both have a short reach and a shallow bend
Axel

just bought one and am totally geeked. I bought the frameset during my LBS 10% off everything sale so it was $1980 for frame, fork, headset, seatpost. The specs say the frame was 1050 grams, my scale, just cause I was curious, put it at 1020. It's crazy light and fits a totally screwy fit like me with long legs and no torso. I left a lot of steerer tube still but didn't need one of those extender stems for the first time on a road bike. I tested it against the Roubaix SL which incidentally is cheaper as a built bike but 500-600 more as a frameset. The fit was almost identical but the ride was night and day different. The RS ride is the most amazing I have ever had.... I have ridden a tricked out carbon Synapse, Orca, Roubaix. Nothing is fit to be compared to this. Finally a Cervelo that fits me.

One question if there is a Cervelo guy out there reading. It looked as if I was going to get an Easton SL90 fork which I was psyched about because I know that fork, great brand, extremely light..... Then it came with a 3T. Totally different shape and style, probably not as light. Everywhere I look, it seems they are getting advertised as the next best thing but I don't really know much about them and can't even find one for sale as a separate retail to get a sense on specs etc. Why did you switch out? Should I be excited or disappointed or neither????

It's crazy light and fits a totally screwy fit like me with long legs and no torso

How about the reverse - really long torso, short legs. I have ridden both a standard R3 and the R3SL, and love both of them but like the idea of a higher front end on the RS and perhaps the extra comfort of the rear-end of the RS. Gerard??

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

Ok I made the decision to get RS frame set, but now I need your advice on what components I need to put on the gorgeous bike.
Components: Dura Ace or Sram red????
Handlebars:
Fork:
Crank: Ergomo Pro
Saddle:
I will use my Tri bike wheels for now. :-)

I guess it depends on your budget, but it sounds like you've got deep pockets, so...

I would go with SRAM Red
Zipp Contour Handlebar
OEM Fork (3T or Wolf)
Saddle is up to you... I want to try the new Selle Italia Flite Gel Flow

For my Dad's recent birthday, I got him a 56cm RS with:

SRAM Red
SLK compact handlebar (I like it better than the Zipp)
3T fork
Mavic R-Sys wheels

Total weight = 14.8 pounds w/o pedals

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You can find more elsewhere on slowtwitch, but we did the aerodynamic design of the fork, and 3T did the structural design. So yes, we know it's a very good fork. In Cycling Weekly's first review of the RS, they said the 3T Funda was the best fork they ever used on a Cervelo, and they have tried Cervelos with quite a few different forks over the years.

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Gerard Vroomen
3T.bike
OPEN cycle

No doubt, the SL-K's are nice! I'm just not a big fan of shallow drop bars.

To each their own...

I was thinking to get the

FSA K-Wing Carbon Handlebar

they look good :-)

Finding a good Handlebar is almost harder than buying a new bike. Go to your LBS and try different types. When my old hb were discontinued a spent 6 month trying to find a new bar. (same goes for the saddle).
Don't forget the stem. I like my FSA 115 (6degree rise). For pure stiffness and looks, I really liked the Bontrager carbon but its too low for me on the R3.

Hi Redog.
Excuse my ignorance regarding road bikes. I been using tri bikes for four years and I didn’t realized the complexity of road bikes components, I’m very excited and looking forward getting my new bike J thank you very much for your tips

For saddles, go to a bike store that lets you try out different saddles and returned them. I think Performance lets you return. Or LBS that lets you try out different saddles. I know my husband (Redog) has tried different saddles that way.

What size is your husbands R3? If it's a 58 does he want to sell it?

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Dura Ace or Sram red????

Budget sounds like it is not an issue. If that is the case, I would go with the SRAM Red - It's a little different. It works very well. The hoods are very comfortable. Plus if you have other shimano wheels/casssettes around you can use them.

Have you pulled the trigger on the RS yet? If so, please give us some feedback. I am thinking of heading that way myself. Although for me, I am likley to just get a Frame/fork and build up from odds/ends of Shimano DA and Ultegra gruppos that I have kicking around. Don't need wheels as I have 3 - 4 wheel sets on-the-go already.

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog