u/Ok-Psychology-1420

I promise to stop spamming this sub soon, it's just that my enthusiasm for this bike has got a chokehold on me at the moment!

After my first ride with the bolt-on top tube bag I noticed some light scratching on the top coat of my brand-new frame and wanted to get some protection on ASAP. I probably should have done this before even mounting the bag, but whatever.

I had some bits of clear RideWrap laying around, but thought I could spice things up with a little vinyl wrap remnant. I've actually wrapped an entire frame before (which I wouldn't recommend) but for a little bit of protection I thought this funky pattern might look cool. I intentionally left it a little oversized for extra flair.

So what do y'all think? Cool? Corny? Feedback welcome!

[Edited: didn't look like my photos were correctly processed the first time around]

Just a quick appreciation post here.

I'm so happy I sold my older Cervelo Aspero and upgraded (sidegraded? idk) to the Diverge 4. I wanted versatility above all else with this new bike, and I really think the Diverge checks all the boxes. I will be doing a lot of mixed-surface long days, and multi-day tours on this machine, so having the option of riding a 2+" mtb tire, a 38mm slick, or literally anything in between is such a valuable asset. I also really love the Future Shock, which kind of took me by surprise.

I've just ordered some Continental Terra Competition tires in 45mm width to see if I can gain a little more speed and aero performance for all of the road miles I ride. I definitely don't love riding pavement on knobbies. The stock Tracers have been fantastic on the looser terrain, but my gravel mix is somewhere around 50/50 at best, so I want something smoother.

I'll include some photos from my 80-miler yesterday, which was mostly asphalt, but with a good number of gravel miles too.

After a 5-week wait, I was able to swing by the LBS yesterday morning and pick up this sweet machine. The color looks so much better in person than the photos convey on the website. I've been out for 2 mixed-surface rides so far, and have to say that this bike has totally surpassed my (admittedly, quite high) expectations. It's a fantastic bike.

In particular, I think the future shock paired with a set of aerobars, is just sublime. I was riding a Cervelo Aspero before this, and had the TT bars on that bike too. There were some really great things about that bike, but I immediately noticed how smooth the ride is when on the TT extensions on the Specialized, all because of the future shock. The Aspero was a little rough at times over bumps and rough pavement when trying to stay nice and aero, and this bike just completely, 100% erases all of that. It's a total game changer. The comfort level is off the charts.

I had intended to run the bike totally stock for a while before putting my carbon Hunt wheels on it, but my curiosity got the better of me this evening, so I swapped the Tracer tires over. Will most likely ride the bike tomorrow with the new hoops to compare to the other experiences I've had thus far.

One thing that had me slightly annoyed was that the future shock/headset assembly came loose on the first ride. I read through the instructions and now know how to adjust this thing, but I'm just a little concerned that this will be a recurring issue. Those "post preload screws" seem kind of fussy. I hope that they don't have a habit of backing themselves out. After tightening it up yesterday I had a great ride today, over plenty of rough surfaces, and the headset seems to be holding. I might be overthinking this.

While I'm picking nits, I also think the look of the 52 cm frame is a little "stubby" with the aggressively sloping top tube and high stack. I'm not really too bothered, but would have been happy if the 54cm frame fit me as well as this one does. It's got much better lines. Maybe the first time I need to put a foot down on techy terrain and don't smash my nuts on the top tube, I'll change my tune, lol.

I wouldn't say I feel bad for anybody out there who's riding the new Crux, that thing looks super sexy. But, after having some incredible rides on this beauty I wonder if a lot of folks might be sleeping on the Diverge? I think the allure of the "fastest gravel bike on the planet" could be casting a shadow over the humble Diverge, which is in its own rite a screaming fast, totally capable, magic-carpet-ride levels of comfort work of bicycle excellence.

I'm looking forward to a few multi-day adventures I have planned for this fall. What a fun bike this is!

EDIT: I almost forgot, but I really wanted to send a heartfelt shout out to my LBS, El Cyclery in Santa Fe, NM for taking excellent care of me, and graciously swapping out a few parts on the bike for no additional charge. Pedro is a good dude. Go pay him a visit if you're in Northern New Mexico!