specialized creo 2

mschwett said:
gorgeous ride !!! thank you for sharing ! the shades of green are more intense but if i didn’t know better i’d have thought they was the american pacific coast. what type of trees are those conifers?
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The UV here is incredibly strong and it makes colours in foliage pop in really weird ways. The bush up there is a mixture of native NZ and managed forest (mostly pine). Rotorua, which is about a 4hr drive north from us, has a huge redwood forest which was planted over a century ago and would remind you a lot of northern CA.
 
themongooseman said:
The UV here is incredibly strong and it makes colours in foliage pop in really weird ways. The bush up there is a mixture of native NZ and managed forest (mostly pine). Rotorua, which is about a 4hr drive north from us, has a huge redwood forest which was planted over a century ago and would remind you a lot of northern CA.
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ahhhh now it’s clear ! i thought scotland and was having a hard time connecting the photos to what i’ve seen of scotland, which is beautiful in it’s own very different way.

i’ve never been to the north island but had an amazing couple of visits to the south island.
 
mschwett said:
ahhhh now it’s clear ! i thought scotland and was having a hard time connecting the photos to what i’ve seen of scotland, which is beautiful in it’s own very different way.

i’ve never been to the north island but had an amazing couple of visits to the south island.
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I really need to change that bio…we have lived in NZ for a long time now!
 
AvalancheRun said:
New review from Ars Technica: Love at first ride: The Specialized Turbo Creo 2 Comp gravel e-bike

Continuing on the hand comfort theme:

"While the Creo 2 Comp is a compliant ride, it's not always comfortable. Perhaps due to the top tube length (572 mm on a 56 cm frame) being longer than my other bikes, my hands would become numb quicker than on my other bikes. The minimalist Body Geometry Power Sport saddle was not a great solution for my more maximalist backside; I swapped it out with a spare Selle saddle and was much happier. But those are my only complaints about the ride. Whether exploring gravel farm roads in central Illinois or riding through a forest preserve in suburban Chicago, the Specialized always handled the terrain with aplomb."
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This is my favorite line from the article and is exactly what I did and how I feel:
"If I owned this bike, I’d run it tubeless and drop the tire pressure a few PSI for an even better ride. And who cares if the big tires and lower PSI slow you down—it has a motor."
 
charleyt said:
This is my favorite line from the article and is exactly what I did and how I feel:
"If I owned this bike, I’d run it tubeless and drop the tire pressure a few PSI for an even better ride. And who cares if the big tires and lower PSI slow you down—it has a motor."
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I would consider running a bigger tire too. Just bought a Diverge and I absolutely love riding without motor noise, but man when summer hits it’s going to be difficult to commute and run errands.

Seems like it’s taking forever to stock these Creos.
 
AvalancheRun said:
I would consider running a bigger tire too. Just bought a Diverge and I absolutely love riding without motor noise, but man when summer hits it’s going to be difficult to commute and run errands.

Seems like it’s taking forever to stock these Creos.
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I love my custom steel frame because of its compliance and incredible feedback I get from the frame with every pedal stroke. It is the first bike I've ever felt get up on "plane" and with a tubeset tuned for my size and mixed terrain riding style. This Creo will never have that compliance loop and is why I will continue ride my steel bike. I had no intentions of buying my first ebike this year but when Gen2 of the Creo was released, I was blown away by the new iteration. And the first ebike I ever rode was when we test rode these. My wife swore we would never need ebikes and then she rode a Creo 2. We each got one and have discovered so many new use cases for it. In some ways the bike has invigorated my desire to get out on days when I might otherwise not which is a huge win. It's just a lot of fun to ride. Long story to say, I knew this bike was in high demand and when the bike shop said they only had one in each size until next year, I believed them and we bought two, a 58 and a 56. I've ridden it about 220 miles so far with longest ride being 35 miles. I just keep telling myself, I bought a $9K ebike at the beginning of winter for next season. It will all be fine.
 
charleyt said:
I love my custom steel frame because of its compliance and incredible feedback I get from the frame with every pedal stroke. It is the first bike I've ever felt get up on "plane" and with a tubeset tuned for my size and mixed terrain riding style. This Creo will never have that compliance loop and is why I will continue ride my steel bike. I had no intentions of buying my first ebike this year but when Gen2 of the Creo was released, I was blown away by the new iteration. And the first ebike I ever rode was when we test rode these. My wife swore we would never need ebikes and then she rode a Creo 2. We each got one and have discovered so many new use cases for it. In some ways the bike has invigorated my desire to get out on days when I might otherwise not which is a huge win. It's just a lot of fun to ride. Long story to say, I knew this bike was in high demand and when the bike shop said they only had one in each size until next year, I believed them and we bought two, a 58 and a 56. I've ridden it about 220 miles so far with longest ride being 35 miles. I just keep telling myself, I bought a $9K ebike at the beginning of winter for next season. It will all be fine.
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Smart move! I ended up buying a Haul ST and Diverge at the same time when it was clear the Creo 2 wasn’t an option. It was an awesome pair at first for car-lite living. Had to return the Haul. The loud motor left my ears ringing after rides, really made me miserable. :(
Did not have that problem once in 1300 miles on my first ebike.

Now if I add a Creo 2 it’s almost the same as the Diverge. Steel bike + Creo 2 is a great pair. I really miss the exploring that my ebike inspired. Glad to hear you are enjoying yours. Seems to be the overwhelming consensus. If I can find one, I’ll snag it.
 
1703611344238.png

Now several hundred miles in in my skinny 28mm tyres and not a single issue. 20 miles today to burn off some of the Xmas turkey
 
New question--seeking advice.
I've been enjoying this Creo 2 thread and reading about the experiences and insights of all you Creo owners and riders. I've been riding a heavy (50 lb) gravel e-bike for the past five years (a Bulls Grinder EVO with a Bosch Speed motor... the earlier generation with a tiny front chainring that spins 2.5 times with each pedal rotation) and plan to upgrade when the New Year rolls around next week to a Creo 2.

My question revolves around which model to spring for. I like the Expert with its speckled off-white paint job and carbon wheels, but it seems overpriced to me. Besides the wheels, the only upgraded features I can identify are the more customizable FutureShock on the stem, and the Rival groupset, which seems fundamentally identical to the Comp's Apex AXS (except for the snazzier glossy finish on the Rival). It almost seems foolish to pay an extra $2,500 for carbon wheels on an e-bike, especially since Spesh is advertising the set for $750 on its website.

Is there a reasonable case to be made for upgrading to the Expert, or would it just be a dumb decision to spend all that $$ for a little bling? Maybe I'm missing something?

Thanks!
 
Amazer98 said:
New question--seeking advice.
I've been enjoying this Creo 2 thread and reading about the experiences and insights of all you Creo owners and riders. I've been riding a heavy (50 lb) gravel e-bike for the past five years (a Bulls Grinder EVO with a Bosch Speed motor... the earlier generation with a tiny front chainring that spins 2.5 times with each pedal rotation) and plan to upgrade when the New Year rolls around next week to a Creo 2.

My question revolves around which model to spring for. I like the Expert with its speckled off-white paint job and carbon wheels, but it seems overpriced to me. Besides the wheels, the only upgraded features I can identify are the more customizable FutureShock on the stem, and the Rival groupset, which seems fundamentally identical to the Comp's Apex AXS (except for the snazzier glossy finish on the Rival). It almost seems foolish to pay an extra $2,500 for carbon wheels on an e-bike, especially since Spesh is advertising the set for $750 on its website.

Is there a reasonable case to be made for upgrading to the Expert, or would it just be a dumb decision to spend all that $$ for a little bling? Maybe I'm missing something?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

great choice !

between these two trim levels, there are essentially many very small differences and the two big ones you identified.

the small ones -

future shock in the expert can be adjusted on the fly, rather than by changing springs. i like this a lot, if you ride on smooth roads, especially uphill, in between the gravel you will notice a much more responsive climbing feel out of the saddle with the shock locked down.

expert vs sport saddle - hardly noticeable

pro vs comp stem - saves a few grams

GX vs NX chain - ditto

the two big ones are the wheels and the groupset, consisting of the shifters/brake levers, derailleurs, cassette, chainring. all of those components are just better made, better tolerances, better materials. i’m not a SRAM guy, but those who are say rival is worth the upgrade. i don’t think an entry level group like apex should be on a 5k bike, but that’s common with specialized and SRAM.

the wheels… if you were going to upgrade wheels yourself, you’d go with the comp. carbon wheels on the creo are well worth the upgrade for several reasons, and while the terra C aren’t amazing they’re very nice and 99% of people will never want to upgrade beyond that.

in summary … unless you are planning to upgrade to your personal choice of carbon wheels, get the expert, especially if you like that color better. many people buy the trim level based on the color and switch other components!
 
mschwett said:
great choice !

between these two trim levels, there are essentially many very small differences and the two big ones you identified.
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Thanks, mschwett— that was a helpful analysis! I didn’t really understand the FutureShock difference nor that Rival was that much better than Apex. Food for thought!
 
Amazer98 said:
Thanks, mschwett— that was a helpful analysis! I didn’t really understand the FutureShock difference nor that Rival was that much better than Apex. Food for thought!
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+1 on the FutureShock 3.3 on the Expert. It's really nice to dial in the level of compression on the 3.3. Regarding the color, my wife has the white expert which spesh calls something like "black pearl speckle." But I think I like her name for the color better which she calls "mint chip." I've started calling my black one Darth Vader to which she replied, in that case mine is a Stormtrooper.
 
Amazer98 said:
Thanks, mschwett— that was a helpful analysis! I didn’t really understand the FutureShock difference nor that Rival was that much better than Apex. Food for thought!
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I went for the Carbon Comp as it was all I could get my hand in here in the UK. I had not used SRAM before and was nervous about the Apex to. However, I can report that bike has been brilliant. The Apex is wirelsss and works flawlessly. After many hours of research, I to found little difference in the groupsets and found not point in upgrading the shifters or derailleur. All carbon Creo 2 have the same frame, so the money you save on the cheaper comp, can buy some tasty upgrades v the expert model and you get exactly what you want. I went for wheels, seatpost (as don't need dropper), cassette tyres. The bike is about perfect
 
Dazman, good to hear that you’re satisfied with the Comp. By the way, I agree with you about jettisoning the dropper for a suspension post— I just picked up an eeSilk carbon post at less than half-price on a close-out sale.
 
Dazmanturbo said:
I went for the Carbon Comp as it was all I could get my hand in here in the UK. I had not used SRAM before and was nervous about the Apex to. However, I can report that bike has been brilliant. The Apex is wirelsss and works flawlessly. After many hours of research, I to found little difference in the groupsets and found not point in upgrading the shifters or derailleur. All carbon Creo 2 have the same frame, so the money you save on the cheaper comp, can buy some tasty upgrades v the expert model and you get exactly what you want. I went for wheels, seatpost (as don't need dropper), cassette tyres. The bike is about perfect
Click to expand...
This mirrors my experience. I chose the Comp because the Apex components are functionally identical to Rival, and a whole lot cheaper to replace. I’ll be adding the Futureshock 3.3, the range extender and a better wheelset in due course (I’ll almost certainly go Enve for their incredible warranty, but I’m open to Rovals as they were awesome on my last S-Works bike). I also love the colour. At this point barring a few very minor things it’s equivalent to the S-Works trim for over a third less (the S-Works also only comes in black, which holds zero attraction for me).
 
By the way, are the Creo SL range extenders compatible with the Creo 2? The Specialized website does not list Creo 2 as a compatible model for the RE battery.
 
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