Endurance Bike vs Road Bike Speed Test | Which Is FASTER In The REAL World?

In 2024 some of the best endurance road bikes are now light, aero and comfortable, is there still any reason for most of us to choose a road race bike?

Let us know whether an endurance bike or road bike best suits your riding in the comments below...

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⚫️ In this video

0:00 Introduction
0:45 Van Rysel NCR endurance bike
1:40 Road race bike
2:10 Endurance bike vs road bike
2:55 The test
3:30 Endurance bike impressions
4:30 Road race bike impressions
5:52 Results
6:30 Conclusions
7:55 Outro

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[roadcc]

Which would you choose? Endurance bike or road race bike?

[comedyman]

I've had this bike for a year now. I've been fooled into thinking it's an endurance bike because of its big tire clearance, but the geometry is so aggressive. More aggressive than Giant TCR or Canyon Ultimate, which are fullly fledged race bikes.

[jwfriar]

Respectfully - I feel the exact opposite. I rode an endurance bike for 4 years bc that’s what I was told I should get. Not until I did research did I consider a race bike. After switching, I’m frankly pretty upset I didn’t switch earlier - so much snappier, faster to accelerate, obv just faster overall. And with wider tubeless tires being common now, it’s just as comfy on the bumps. I guess more aggressive position, but that’s what I want.

I have so much more fun riding my race bike.

I guess just depends on your goals.

[nerigarcia]

I've owned several top end race bikes and as I got older I felt the need to prioritize comfort over speed and aerodynamics. I've swapped my bikes out for more all-road setups where I just swap wheels for road or gravel. I've found that I could achieve similar speeds on these bikes as I did on a race bike that was twice to three times as much. I'm slower now with fitness but I'm not far off the speeds I was doing on my race bikes. Where I feel the difference lies, aside from position, is the race bikes just feel lighter, more responsive, and handle better (or quicker) than an endurance, all-road, or gravel bike. Those characteristics do make the it feel faster and it performs faster but if we're just basing it on speed, they're very similar. Sure a race bike may get up to speed quicker but eventually your top end speed will be similar. The engine is the same, the chassis will give you the marginal gains.

[cxbkpmf]

Good choice to feature a Van Rysel ! I like what they do.

[robotics]

That Van Rysel doesn't have a relaxed gometry at all. Its stack to reach ratio varies between 1.43 for a size XXS and 1.49 for a size XL. These are very agressive values which are so easy to check by taking a look at the geometry charts. A relaxed road geometry means a stack/reach ratio of at least 1.5, and ideally aiming at values of 1.6.

[buster.keaton]

For most roadies, "speed is everything"... at least in our heads. However, if that was true, we'd all be ride time trial bikes. That being said, I love my endurance bike for real-life riding regardless of if it costs me a few seconds that no one really cares about.

[arthurnagy]

I don't understand why you consider the Van Rysel NCR an endurance bike. In a size S it has a reach of 386 mm and only 529 mm stack, a top tube of 543, head tube of only 117 mm. I could continue, and this is for size S which is recommended by Van Rysel for riders of 1.6-173 m. Kind of out of touch to say this is an endurance bike. Even Van Rysel considers it a race bike, the endurance bike is the EDR from Van Rysel.

[guillaumegenest]

I have a Roubaix sport which is considered an endurance bike. This bike is extremely comfortable for long rides, but I found it a little slow. I added Mavic Cosmic SLR 45 wheels. Now I have comfort and speed. The best of both worlds. I average 34 km per hour. I am so happy

[ashurany]

At this point, the results shouldn't surprise anyone who pays close attention. Unless you race or are obsessed with copying the pros over any other consideration, an endurance bike is the way to go, and with larger tires (min 32mm) to improve comfort and stability even more.

[nicdoye]

I ride a 32 year old race bike. As I have also aged by the same amount during ownership, I've recently shortened and raised the stem slightly. It never had the huge amount of drop that today's pros use, but raising any higher affects handling somewhat.

It has the short wheelbase and quick steering of a race bike, that I love. While that can be a negative on a climb when very slow and tired, most of the time it just makes the handling *fantastic*.

I wouldn't want to trade that fast steering, but am finding flexibility an increasing problem. At some point I'll be forced to change ... I just wish there was a comfy, yet fast steering alternative.

[cypriano]

the reality is with the trend of wide tire clearance, you could have a race bike with 50mm wide tires and really only need 1 bike. imagine the tcr with wide tire clearance, all the bike you would ever need for road, endurance or gravel, all road. thats the future, hopefully

[kieronward]

It seems that working on your flexibility would make more difference to your speed regardless of bike.

[danikani]

This video just came 1 day too late. Dropped 5.5k on a race bike yesterday 😂😢

[benoittheminerandgamer]

ok, there is a problem with this test. You have to do it again with Power meter and fix the power ( let say 220watts avg ) on each test to see the real number.

[endianAphones]

Would love a review on that specific bike. If I was replacing my bike, that would be a contender. I'm not, still super happy with mine (terms and conditions may apply).

[DavidSimon-sntc]

Liked watching this....However, I guess some of the comments here are right: The ncr does not seem to be a typical endurance bike when considering its geometry. I own a Canyon Endurace 7 (Alu-frame and 105-equipped) and a Canyon Ultimate cf sl 7 etap (carbon frame and sram rival axs-equipped). I love both bikes. However, at my moderate speeds (about 25 k/mh) the Ultimate seems to be about 2 k/mh faster...

[veganpotterthevegan]

My Domane has the same very aggressive fit of my rim brake Soliost SL. Oddly enough, it's even more aerodynamic😂 It weighs about 1.2kg more but with similar rims and the exact same tires, my plush endurance bike is a hair faster than a bike that was probably the fastest bike you could buy in 2009

[Mgrant]

I moved up from a 2013 Specialized Roubaix to a 2022 Specialized Tarmac SL7 recently. I sold my Roubaix and purchased the Tarmac while recuperating from a collarbone/rib injury downhill mountain biking. I had never ridden the Tarmac until I was given the green light by my Doctor. During my recovery I kept reading about how much more stiff the ride would be, the more extended body position, the twitchy handing, etc. My first ride after 4 months off I was a bit apprehensive. I did feel the differences but not to any radical extent but to be fair, my longest ride so far on the Tarmac is only 50 km or so. The real test will be on longer distances. Both bikes are fast, light just slightly different. I'd be happy with either one.

[dolittle]

Nice video. Definitely worth it to compare the two bikes. Still I just ride for fun. Just enjoy moving at the speed of life! Going fast for someone like me would ruin the cycling experience. To each their own. Still it’s an enjoyable video to watch. I learned a lot.