RAAM Trek Madone Road Bike Review

Sigma Sports is proud to be supporting the RAAMIN4Charity team as they take part in the 2016 Race Across America, raising money for Great Ormond Street Hospital and the Aplastic Anaemia Trust.

The four-man team will be riding on Trek Madone 9.9 C H2 Road Bikes as they tackle the 3070 mile, 12 state race in 6 days.

Adam, one of the four riders, has been training hard on his Madone. Read his thoughts below.

Well, when someone suggests you should race across America, what bike do you go for? The simple answer is, the lightest, most aerodynamic, efficient and best handling bike possible...oh and it needs to be pretty!

So simple really! I was told that the Trek Madone was all of these...scoff scoff etc, insert patronising comment here. I have a top of the range road bike, surely it can't be that much better?

Now, I've ridden numerous bikes and have loved and loathed them in equal quantities, but the jury was out on the Madone, at least for me, until it had proven itself.

Looks-wise, it features sweeping lines, bladed carbon tubes, a clever headset design and aero and an integrated seatpost and brakes. Continuing this trait the Bontrager wheels also offer stunning looks. On closer inspection, you can also find some very clever and well thought out size specific modifications. I have the 50cm model and believe me, some bike manufacturers do some horrible things to fit it all in on 'little' bikes! The same can be seen on the larger bikes of the more ungainly members of the team, thankfully Trek had addressed this with both the smaller and larger models.

As for the first impression, this bike is FAST! Everything pushes you forwards with little or no distortion, however, the bike remains comfortable (even for a 10-hour ride across South England) and is the most responsive bike I have ever ridden.

It really does climb well. This is in part due to its 14lb (6.3kg) weight. It's responsive too, as I found when I took the racing line on one of Surrey's less than well-surfaced roundabouts at 50kmph. I am pleased to say the bike reacted to the rider input immediately.

So, I am genuinely impressed, it is an out-and-out race weapon. It really is the complete package. The componentry works immaculately, from the bladed carbon handlebars, which are almost a work of art in themselves, to the ultra fast Bontrager Aeolus 5 TLR Clincher Wheels, this bike is built for comfort and speed. The Shimano Dura Ace 9070 11-speed Di2 groupset and even the saddle (which I am usually pretty fussy about) both work perfectly.

I am a true believer in giving credit where it's due and the Trek Madone deserves all the praise it can get!