New Bike - Rose Xeon CGF 4400

Just thought I'd give some feedback on my new bike as this model doesn't seem to get much attention from the cycling media in the UK. My current bike up to now has been a Giant Defy 0 which I've had for the last 3 1/2 years. It is a great bike and fits me beautifully but I did fancy something a bit lighter and faster but with the same geometry.  There are many endurance / sportive / grand fondo bikes out there but the current trend is for disc brakes which I didn't want (don't want to start a debate on this subject) and unlike a couple of years ago the choice is very limited now if you want caliper brakes unless you go for a racing geometry. I looked at the Canyon Endurace but the geometry is odd, either a very short top tube or a very tall head tube. Strangely the disc braked version has the right geometry but apart from having discs they only supply them with semi-compact chainset (50/36). Long story short I looked at Rose bikes and found the Xeon CGF which ticked all the boxes including the price! I opted for the model with a Sram Force 22 groupset. I placed the order on the 18th April and they quoted a build date of the 15th May. They actually dispatched the bike on the 3rd May almost two weeks ahead of schedule. The bike arrived on Monday and I managed to take it out for a spin yesterday. Following is a brief report.

First of all the std of assembly and set up was second to none. I ran a bike shop for 10 years and have never come across a "factory" bike as well set up as this one. 

The ride. What can I say - it is everything I had hoped for. It is FAST. The lateral stiffness of the frame is incredible. If you stomp on the pedals it just flies forwards; there is no flex at all. However the ride quality is excellent. Bear in mind that my reference point is a Giant Defy which has great reputation as an all day bike but the Rose is even better. The seat post and skinny seat stays really seem to do their job. 

The groupset. I'm a Sram convert. After a few missed gear changes in the first few miles I soon got the hang of the gears and I love them. The changing is much more positive that the Ultegra gears on the Giant, not that they are bad but the the double tap rear change is so much more crisp and the front changer never needs trimming because of the front mech design. I love the carbon chainset, particularly the asthetics (I've never been a big fan of the latest Shimano chainsets). Brakes are superb. I was doubtful about the brake mounted on the chainstays but it very good.

A few other comments:

Dealing with Rose was great. I had some queeries which were dealt with very effeciently. I communicated both by email and by phone on their international freephone number where I always spoke to someone who spoke perfect English.

One of the great things about buying a bike from Rose was the ability to customize the spec. For example specified different bars in the correct width for me. I also upgraded the wheels for a modest price. These sort of things can end up costing you a lot when you have to change parts on a new bike.

In doing my research into this bike I found a number of reviews online from German, Italian and Dutch magazines (Google translate to the rescue) all of which highly praised the Xeon CGF but none from British publications. So hopefully this report will prove helpful for anyone else out there looking for an all day fast bike.

Cheers, Ian