2021 Turbo Creo SL Expert EVO

Mine is likely a common story, as at age 71 and living in Colorado, I can’t keep up with younger friends on big uphill rides. Strava reveals the obvious - that I have been avoiding the climbs that used to be a regular part of my season. Finally, my wife told me that either I needed to accept that I needed an eBike, or I needed to accept that I would be off the back when riding with people years to decades younger. So, I bit the bullet and am ecstatic about this bike. So far on identical routes I am getting 85% of my normal calorie burn. It’s still a great workout but just more fun. I am looking forward to summer and the big climbs I’ve been missing!

I bought my bike nearly a year ago and have done 6500 totally pleasurable miles since. I purchased the bike, having been an avid MTB cyclist but at 66 years old, finding it increasingly difficult to ascend hills and keep up with my mainly younger riding buddies. It has instantly solved both problems, hills are no longer a problem and with the amazing Mission Control, I can infinitely control the assistance level I require, to suit who I am riding with. Absolutely brilliant.

I bought an Creo Expert! After 50 years of riding and racing at a high level I now have an ebike. I wish I had this bike 20 years ago. It rides like a top line racing bike with a tail wind. If your 70 years old like me BUY THIS BIKE NOW! What are you waiting for. Thanks Specialized for such a wonderful experience. You added 20 more years to my riding fun.

Overall, I like the bike. The motor experience is smooth and the ability to tune it using the Mission Control app reduces the range anxiety. I like having the dropper. Good tires for my use case. I'm not keen on how the cable for the dropper is routed. Mine causes a distinct bulge tape. Not good. More annoying is that the Di2 does not include the ANT+/BLE module (a $90+ purchase) so you cannot integrate the Di2 operation with Garmin, nor program it through you phone. I had to find a Windows laptop to load e-tube project (it does not work on MacOS) to reprogram the shift operation the way I wanted it. For a $9750 bike, one would expect this to be included. The Blips that come with the bike are not installed and come with no instructions on how they work. I was to believe that the Blips or the top buttons of the Di2 could be used to interface with the DCU for control of the assist. This does not work. If the bike was cheaper I might be less picky. I expect better.

At 70 years old I’m an avid cyclist and ride over 10,000 miles a year, plus I also ride gravel. I kept saying I’ll get an ebike when I’m 75, when I may need it. But I took the plunge and I got it not because I needed it but that I wanted it. This bike makes me smile, I still get the workout that I want watching my heart rate and power, but now every ride is a great ride. If I make a mistake and have to come home into the wind, no problem I just give myself a little assist. It truly is a “go anywhere” bike and could be soon my only bike! Why would I ride anything else, I get to choose the effort and I have the freedom to go a little more. Thank you Specialized!!

I always thought this e-bike thing was sort of a cop out but I took the plunge and all I can say is wow. The technology opens up a whole new range of terrain and performance I was not able to achieve due to either time and physical conditioning. The Specialized geometry is perfect and the drop post is a real advantage when I am downhilling gravel and dirt trails. The gravel bar is also a real surprise. Way more comfortable than a traditional ergo drop bar due to the flair. For the price though, Specialized should have included a carbon bar. My only gripe is the graphic on the stem came painted on crooked and it is one of those super annoying things because it makes the bar look misaligned ever time I look down. I also think an 11-42 cassette is overkill. With e-assist I don't think I even shifted into the three top gears my entire ride and there was a lot of uphill.

This is a bike that Specialized has put a lot of R & D into to produce an awesome ride. I have taken this bike on rides of 50 miles plus with over 5000 feet of elevation change. It smoothly delivers extra power as needed and is a bike that you can comfortably ride all day in the saddle. Its so much fun you'll want to spend all day on the bike!