A phoenix rises
Trek Emonda SL 6 Pro £3350 From climber to do-it-all race bike
The new 2021 Trek Emonda sees a marked shift away from a purely climber-focused bike to a more allround package with the de rigueur aero shaping to match. While at £3350 the SL 6 Pro is by no means cheap, it does represent fairly good value for money in the context of the wider market. For that cash, you get a full Ultegra R8020 groupset, a Bontrager Aeolus 35 Elite carbon wheelset, a perfectly inoffensive alloy cockpit and a very plush Bontrager saddle. The 56cm bike weighs 8.13kg on the nose with no pedals. Picking two comparable bikes, the Giant TCR Advanced Pro 2 Disc costs roughly the same (£3499) for a broadly similar build, as does the Rose X-Lite Six Disc (approx £3450 plus shipping).
Trek has significantly altered the geometry of the Emonda for 2021, and it is now only available in the brand’s middle-of-the-road H1.5 fit, which sits pretty much in the middle of Trek’s super-aggressive H1 geometry and its endurancefocussed H2 fit. The resulting shape strikes a nice balance between real-world usability while allowing the sportier riders among us to get a low and fast setup should they so wish.
The stack (the vertical height between the centre of the bottom bracket and the top of the centre of the head tube) for the new Emonda is on the lower end of the spectrum for a 56cm bike at 563mm. The reach is fairly average, at 391mm for a 56cm bike. The 56cm bike ships with a 100mm stem. While the reach of the frameset is fairly average, when matched with the 42cm-wide Bontrager Elite VR-C bar, which has a hefty 100mm reach, the fit of the bike feels suitably long and low. We like the overall profile of this bar – there’s loads of room in the drops so you can actually spend some time down there comfortably without your hands getting smooshed up, and the extra reach offers additional useful hand positions. Adding reach to the bar (rather than increasing the length of the stem) also means the tops stay a touch closer to you, giving a really comfortable position for seated climbing.
The ride of the bike is exceptionally stiff and incredibly fun in the way that a proper race bike can be. It’s got that addictive ultra-efficient feel with a totally unyielding pedal response that is amazing on the climbs – you are giving up nothing to the frame when mashing yourself into a lactic oblivion. The overall feel is almost a little old school, with a super-stiff ride that’s reminiscent of early carbon bikes. This will be polarising for some riders, but we personally really like it. It feels rapid and responsive, and going fast is always fun.
While perhaps divisive, this super-stiff ride also goes some way to differentiate the bike from
the others in Trek’s stable. The line between the Emonda and Madone – and to a certain degree, the Domane – is now fairly blurred with this new bike. But by keeping it simple, with no IsoSpeed, a racy ride and a lighter overall package, the Emonda stands out in the range.
That stiffness also translates into a really engaging and enjoyable ride on the descents. The bike shrugs at irresponsibly heavy braking into corners, remaining accurate. It’s no surprise that this stiffness results in a firm ride. It’s not a rough ride, per se – the Emonda still provides that pleasingly damped feel that any quality carbon bike gives on imperfect surfaces, while the integrated seatmast brings a degree of rear-end comfort. However, on larger bumps, the front end can feel quite jarring. The alloy handlebar will contribute to this, but the stock 25mm tyres are the main culprit: 25mm-wide tyres were
It’s a firm ride but still provides that pleasingly damped feel that any quality carbon bike gives on imperfect surfaces
considered progressive a few short years ago, but the majority of new road bikes these days ship with 28mm tyres (or wider), and with good reason.
Wider tyres have consistently been shown in testing to have lower rolling resistance than narrower tyres and, as they can be run at lower pressures, they also improve comfort. Being more comfortable means less fatigue, which means increased speed. This is well-trodden ground, so to see 25mm tyres here is a little bit disappointing. Trek is clearly trying to pander to the hill-climb kids with the tiny reduction in weight 25s will offer, but 28s would be better for most riders in nearly all situations.
Keen to see how much of a difference wider rubber would actually make, we swapped the stock Bontrager R2 Hard-Case Lite tyres in favour of a pair of Panaracer Race D Evo tyres. These measure bang-on 28mm when inflated to 70psi on the Aeolus carbon rims. Unsurprisingly, the wider tyres smoothed out the ride of the bike significantly without making the ride feel mushy – you can focus on getting the most out of the bike’s stiff frameset without having to worry so much about potholes or broken road surfaces. The larger tyres also increase grip on descents.
It was also a little disappointing to see the bike come set up with tubes. The likes of Giant are now shipping complete bikes tubeless out of the box and given the new Aeolus 35 Elite wheels are tubeless-compatible, it’s a pity that the included tyres aren’t at least tubeless-ready.
Trek claims that this new bike sits between the outgoing Emonda and the Madone in terms of aero performance. We can’t quantify these claims, but the bike does feel fast on the flats. This possibly has more to do with the fact the bike’s geometry has been changed because it’s possible to get into a properly long and low position.
The Emonda is built around a full Shimano Ultegra R8020 groupset. It’s nigh-on impossible to level criticism at R8000, offering nearly all the performance of Dura-Ace at a considerably lower price point. The 52/36 crankset is paired with an 11-30 cassette. For a go-fast, all-round climbfriendly bike, this is perfect. However, it’s worth noting that the bike is equipped with a short-cage mech, which officially limits the drivetrain to a
Given the new Aeolus wheels are tubelesscompatible, it’s a pity that the included tyres aren’t at least tubeless-ready
30t cassette. This means you would have to go for a smaller set of chainrings if you require lighter gearing. Even so, the gearing has more than enough range to climb comfortably in the saddle on most climbs.
The SL 6 Pro is the ‘cheapest’ bike in the new Emonda range to feature carbon wheels. At 35mm deep, the Aeolus 35 Elite should, in theory, give a bit of aero advantage without sacrificing too much on the climbs in terms of weight. A 35mm wheel is unlikely to present serious problems in crosswinds, and they feel perfectly wellmannered and stiff. The wheels are based on DT Swiss’ Ratchet EXP freehub, which are easy enough to service with widely available spares. Again, it would have been great to see these set-up tubeless out of the box as it would allow you to run lower pressures, improving both comfort and grip, which is never a bad thing.
Make no mistake, the Emonda is an uncompromising race bike, and it’s all the better for it. In a world of squashy do-it-all bikes, its wonderfully moreish super-stiff ride stands out and we’ve really enjoyed our time testing it. Speccing standard 25mm clincher tyres in 2020 is an odd move, and the weight for this particular build isn’t that competitive. You also lose out on some (claimed) aero benefit with the standard cockpit versus the fancy new integrated Bontrager Aeolus RSL VR-C bar-stem combo. But, if you enjoy endlessly tweaking your position and cockpit setup, this might not be such a bad thing.
A few small spec niggles aside, if you’re after a delightfully fun go-fast race bike, the 2021 Trek Emonda SL 6 Pro is just short of true greatness and very unlikely to leave you wanting.
The Emonda SL 6 is built around a full Shimano Ultegra R8020 groupset, offering nearly all the performance of Dura-Ace