Reviewed: Bottecchia T1 Tourmalet

Lab: 19.2/20 (.67mm head tube deflection; .28mm BB deflection)Build: 11.3/15Comfort: 10.5/15Value: 12.5/15Handling: 10.5/15Pedaling Response: 11.3/15Aesthetics: 3.5/5

Overall: 78.8/100

Bottecchia could be commended for attempting to address some of the issues that make an aero bike uncomfortable. The company could also be accused of trying to do too much to combine aero speed with all-rounder comfort; as a result, the Tourmalet is an unbalanced experience between front and back.

The tall, 170-millimeter head tube noticeably flexes under heavy pedaling, leading to both twitchy steering and an unsettled ride quality. While that flex takes some of the jarring edge off the front of the bike, it required some muscling in tight corners, like we had to steer, then steer again to get through even wide sweepers.

It’s …

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