Roval Alpinist SL Cockpit

I think it’s a fun looking and lightweight handlebar. However, the tubing is really thin for the tops. I’ve found, on really long days in the saddle, I am looking for a place to recover and relax my grip for a bit. I found the thin tops to be really unforgiving. My palms feel worse when I’m looking for relief. I’ve been using Zipp handlebars for years and I really appreciate that oval/ergo tops that gives my palms some relief. These handle bars FLEX A LOT. Personally, I think it makes it comfortable for all day riding but, sprinters/heavy/brute style riders, this will not give a lot of confidence. I don’t want the full aero wing shape, but even that can be more comfortable. They need to get some ergo shapes in the mix. This bar shape is a bit dated in my opinion. Flared drops, ergo shapes, narrower width for longer length. For the price, I think a lot is left to be desired.

Had it on the Aethos for about a year, love the look, love the feel. However mine broke mid ride when I hit a pot hole and pushed down too hard on it. For measure: I'm about 185 pounds and it may not be the best for my build.

Such a clean, super light and lively cockpit. Great upgrade on my Aethos comp.

Does what it says on the tin. These are very light round profile handlebars/combined stem combo thingy. They flex a little and probably not the best for muscle bound sprinter types, but they are called alpinist, and as a lightweight option hard to beat. The stem steerer interface is very tight and I needed a plastic tyre lever to prise the clamp area apart to slide down the steerer tube. They are a perfect match for my Aethos. Very happy.

Ridiculously light, stable during hard efforts, noticeable vibration reduction. Extremely tangible performance upgrade!

Other than the performance and the weight of the bars. It makes my aethos look super clean. I’m glad I made this purchase.

Very light, responsive and great looks.

why is this cockpit not available in size 130/400 and 130/420? When we want to use narrower handlebars and longer stems, we have to turn to other brands or your products and most of the time we have to install in 2 parts, this is ridiculous...

I had experience with one previous integrated bar stem, from FSA K-Force Wing Pro. The benefit of that product was that it gave a supremely damped feeling to the front of the bike when riding over rougher sections of pavement. It was quite a bit heavier than the Alpinist, so my hunch is that they shaping was intended to give this damped feeling and that increased the weight, in turn. The FSA was also painted, and that may have contributed slightly to this damped feeling and extra weight. While I would not say the Alpinist is uncomfortable, I was slightly underwhelmed with its effect on the front of the bike from a ride quality perspective. I can't honestly discern any difference in ride quality between this setup and just a normal carbon bar and alloy stem. So, a bit of a meh on that front. I also opted for Lizard Skins DSP 1.8, which in hindsight was probably a bit too thin for the Aplinist cockpit, considering I have somewhat large hands (can palm basketball) and the bars have minimal mass in some key areas, especially right behind the hoods, where it's nice to have some real estate to rest your palms. Where I absolutely love these bars is out of the saddle, both climbing on the hoods and sprinting. They are just rock solid stiff and really help the front of the bike track straight and stay strong when all you're weight is over the front wheel. I do wish there was a bit of backsweep to the tops, but they went with a very safe shape overall that's easy to get used to and shouldn't offend anyone. Another area that Roval could have done some subtle shaping is the drops, where it's sometimes a bit difficult to keep locked in because there is some pressure on my ulnar nerve from the way the bars position the hands in the drops. So a moderate flare here, maybe like 6 degrees, would be nice. Overall, very happy with them, they just suit the Aethos so nicely.

Love it really light compared to stock. Waiting for mount. I got for my aethos comp. Carbon is really Amazing. Roval ALL DAY

FYI, the proper mount for this bar is S219900021 and you'll need a M4x0.7x9mm bolt that is not supplied with the mount. I used a 10mm bolt and it worked just fine. Installed on an Aethos Pro SRAM. Climbing on these bars feels great, and that's exactly what they are built for. The top of the bars are very thin, even for me with small hands. I'm assuming that was meant to keep weight down. While descending on the drops I feel better control of the bike than I did with the stock setup, but that's probably specific to my body. The integrated stem/bar looks amazing.

I bought these handle bars as an upgrade for my Specialized Aethos Expert. Love the look of the one piece bar/stem combo along with the extremely light weight. For such a light bar, I was expecting them to have some flex but they are extremely stiff. The tubes are a little thinner than my previous bars but I will gladly accept that minor detail for a really light and well made bar/stem combo. You also can't beat the lifetime warranty and crash protection that Specialize offers.