Scubaquarius

Like the look of Trek Verve. Looks like you can sit more upright. Anyone have experience with these?

Thanks,
Scubaquarius

freeranger

Verve riders ....... lets hear how you ride - Bike Forums
Here ya go.

bradybunch84

I love my Trek Verve 1 that I bought 7/17/2017 I am just under 300 lbs. and feel totally safe riding this bike. It is built pretty solid and feels good and solid even when reaching speeds going downhill. I would buy another one if I could but I thought they were not available anymore. I ride it on paved roads as well as some gravel.

05 fuji

I bought mine in January of 2020. I love it!

Scubaquarius

Wow, that was really great... so much info from so many Verve riders!
Are there any variations or adaptations you can make to the handlebars?

Thanks, Scubaquarius

freeranger

With the exception of a few bicycles with very proprietary components (Verve is not one of those), components may be changed. Yes-the bars can be changed. Various sites carry many variations on bars, or just google "bicycle handlebars" and lots will come up. Just need to know the clamp size, which will be on Trek's site.

Scubaquarius

Very valuable info...thanks!

Scubaquarius

bradybunch84

I want to modify my handlebars on my Verve 1 so I can alternate hand grips. I would like to attach something to the ends that points forwards so that I could reach further. I don't really know where to look. I also don't know what you call the kind of thing I'm trying to explain. Can someone guess what I'm trying to say and write it down in this thread? 25 years ago I loved my road bars and loved moving my hand grips all over. Especially like riding with my hands around the brake hoods. I think that's what they are called. I also want to clarify that my Verve 1 is not an e-bike. Just a regular bike.

bradybunch84

I thought Trek had discontinued their Verve 1 hybrid bikes but I just now see that they brought them back for 2021. I am so excited! I am going to buy another one of these bikes when I get up to Tacoma, Washington next month. At least I hope that the Trek store will have some in stock. Never know anymore about how COVID-19 affects the different stores. I have been hearing that bicycles are in short supply at the different bicycle shops.

bradybunch84

I just got off the phone with the TREK dealer in Kennewick, Washington. He can only take orders for Verve bikes right now. The physical bike won't show up to his shop until after November 1st, 2021. WOW. That is a long wait. I really want that bike so I guess I will be putting down some deposit money.

mdarnton

Regarding bars: I recently bought an FX 1 disc after debating between the Verve and FX models. The FX 1 has steel bars, and switching them out for aluminum was one thing I wanted to do immediately. I formerly have had drop bars, but nowI have arthritis in one shoulder that not only makes leaning forward sometimes painful, but also the twist to my arm caused by hand position can be a problem. After looking at a lot of bar shapes, finally I bought a $25 trekking (butterfly) bar from Amazon, and I'm not disappointed. It gives me a forward-leaning position for getting under wind, but also I have the normal straight bar position up close, the sides which are a lot like bar ends, and also the front and back corners give my shoulder pain some relief. Anyway, tons of different positions, and I'm pleased. They're a bit odd looking, but that's the cost. In my case I had to buy a new stem extension to lift them and bring them closer, but for the Verve I don't think that would have been necessary. If the stock stem isn't a 4-bolt clamp for the bars you might need one to snake around the corners getting to the center.

Anyway, it was a cheap and easy experiment that worked well for me.

Tom8379

I have a Verve 2+. I added Jones' bars to allow to sit more upright on long rides. I had to extend the hydraulic brake lines a little bit it was worth it.

LB07740

I have been riding a 2012 Trek DS 8.3 and it is a great bike, but over the past few years, I found myself a bit achy after long rides which I attribute to the riding position which is a bit too aggressive. I am closer to 60 than 50 and really wanted something a bit more comfortable for the 20-25 mile rides we take on the weekend along with the shorter 8-10 miles rides along the ocean that I try to get in during the week. I looked at bikes from GT, Giant, and Momentum before heading to the Trek dealer. Each of these options had pluses and minuses, but either the frame did not fit right, the bike was lacking hydraulic disc brakes, or the seat was too springy. Some of the suspension seats felt like a pogo stick and I really did not want a pure comfort bike.

I described what I was coming from (the DS) and my riding style and the LBS guy immediately took me to the Verve 3. After 5 minutes I could tell that this was the right bike. The 18-speed drivetrain is a lot smoother than the 24-speed on my DS and should be more usable as well. FWIW the Verve 2 has a 24-speed drivetrain. My one hesitation was the frame size. He put me on an XL and the top tube was almost uncomfortably high when straddling, but when I compared this with the Large I could tell that the XL was the right bike. I was concerned that the right might be harsh without the front suspension on the DS, but the Verve is super smooth and you do not notice the suspension seat post. The riding position is more upright than the DS, but not like riding a beach cruiser. The 700x45 tires provide a really smooth ride.

So far I only have 3 rides and about 20 miles, but zero complaints or hesitation to recommend the Verve.

MRT2

It makes sense that you might want alternate hand positions and/or something that puts your wrists in a more natural position. . I would suggest something like the Surly Moloko bar, the Velo Orange Casey crazy bar or the Nitto Albatross bar.

This is not an exhaustive list. Here is a link with more. https://www.cyclingabout.com/list-of...ng-handlebars/

bradybunch84

Thanks MRT2! I had no idea that there were so many different options. I looked up your options you mentioned and watched a few videos about people putting them on their bikes. I thought bar ends were my only choice for something different but now I have to really think about this. Going to be so much fun. Thanks for the choices.

MRT2

No problem. I used to have bar ends on my flat bar hybrid. I ultimately switched to road style handlebars, but if I ever switched back to a flat bar, I would probably looked for something like the Surly or the Velo Orange, as they have the swept back bars for relaxed riding and the horns forward and in a more narrow grip for a sort of aero position. The bar ends on the outside of the bars was ok back when flat bars were kind of narrow, but with a lot of bars these days much wider than they were 20 years ago, I wouldn't use them today.