Trek Domane SL 6 Disc

A ROAD SMOOTHING ENDURANCE BIKE

When Trek says that the Domane offers “blistering speed” as well as “comfort and stability”, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this must be marketing hype, or that something would have to give, but you’d be wrong. Trek has accomplished the holy grail of endurance bikes with the Domane, demonstrating both compliance and power transfer in the frame, and phenomenal climbing ability.

Trek’s IsoSpeed technology has been around for a while, offering a decoupling device that allows the carbon tubes to make tiny movements independent of each other. This innovation offers relief from bumps without resulting in a flexible, speed-sapping ride. The addition of IsoSpeed to the front of the bike is a stroke of genius, creating a road-smoothing ride while keeping the frame’s tubing stiff enough to transfer every bit of power in the back end.

The Domane isn’t the lightest, our 54cm weighing just over 8kg. For those who are really concerned with weight, you can upgrade to the Domane SLR 6 Disc, which loses a couple of pounds in the frame for an extra £300.

Getting the right bits soft and the right bits hard is a dark art in bike design, but Trek has pulled it out of the bag. This desirable characteristic was most notable on climbs, with every inch of our efforts driving the bike forward. The Domane isn’t just a great endurance bike, or a great women’s bike for that matter, it’s just a great bike, full stop.