prime winner

Over a month ago I put a deposit on a Trek FX 3 with word that it would be in around middle of October. Latest delivery update was estimated end of this month or longer so I went to the LBS and switched out my order and went home with a 2021 Verve 2. I really wanted the FX 3 but didn’t want to risk the wait while I had a chance to get the Verve 2 now. I’ve been riding my Giant Talon 2 29er mtb on residential rides for 5 months now, and I think the stretched out riding style has caused this chest pain I’ve had for 6-8 weeks. I’ve been to physician and had an ekg and heart was supposedly fine.


I’ll be using my Verve 2 for street riding, 3 to 4 times a week, 10 miles most rides but 20-30-?? on a weekend ride. Hope to average 13-14 mph (currently averaging 11.5-12 on my mtb). When I got the bike home I put a pair of shimsno saint m828 pedals on it, and moved over my ergo gp5-l bar end grips and bags from my mtb.

Soooooooo .......

How do you gals and guys Verve?

05 fuji

Got my Verve 2 in March after cancer surgery. I usually ride 20 to 30 miles on MUPS. I put a different saddle on it and have over 700 miles so far. I think it's a great bike!

prime winner

Nice riding, and congrats on the recovery. I'm hoping to ride a 29 mile paved real trail in a couple of weeks.

prime winner

Went out for my initial fitness ride this morning. I can really tell a big difference from my mtb, even though the mtb is noticeably lighter. The quickness and responsiveness on the Verve 2 is a nice improvement.

10/13/20 15 mile ride on 29er mtb - average speed 11.8 mph , average heart rate 132 bpm. Wind 6 mph.
10/18/20 15 mile ride on Verve 2 - average speed 12.8 mph , average heart rate 141 bpm. Wind 15 mph.

I’m looking forward to see what I can do when my body gets used to the different riding style.

uriwvu

I picked up the Verve 3 in early January. I'll go over 2400 miles for the year on my next ride, so as you can imagine I love it. Most of my rides (4-6/week) are fitness rides on pavement (10-15 miles) but I also take it on gravel and hardpacked state park paths as well. I recently changed the tires from the stock H5's to Continental Speed Rides 700 x 42, which make the bike both lighter and quicker. I've also had thoughts on the FX 3, but the geometry of the Verve fits me perfect. Enjoy!

prime winner

First off, congratulations on riding over 2400 miles this year. That is awesome. When I googled your Continental Speed Ride tires I was surprised to see that they were tires that I saw recently but dismissed them as cheap tires. Do you remember the speed bump you got when you switched tires?

I have been on two rides on my new Verve 2 so far and I love the comfort and responsiveness of the bike compared to my mtb I was using for road riding. On a 10 mile ride and 15 mile ride I average 1.0 mph faster on the Verve 2 compared to the same rides last week on my mtb. I had my heart rate average 8 and 9 bpm higher on the rides but I think it will calm down after I find my sweet spot in the gears. My mtb has 2x9 and the Verve 2 has 3x8.

guachi

My wife has two Verve 2 bikes. One is an ebike she rides around with me. The other sits permanently attached to the smart trainer. Doesn't matter if your bike is heavy and not aerodynamic when you aren't going anywhere. It's a size Medium and we both use it so it's a bit small but it works well as a trainer bike. Really like the low gears when biking up a mountain on Zwift and the upright riding position is fairly comfortable for longer rides.

uriwvu

Much thanks. At 56, I was looking for a new form of cardio, and with my 8 year old daughters now riding, biking is a great excuse to spend more time with them. The Great Cycle Challenge in the fight against kids cancer also motivated me to get in a ton of miles last month. As for the Continental Speed Rides, don’t simply dismiss them as cheap tires due to their affordable price tag. The Continental Speed Rides are a folding bead tire, that is light, yet well-constructed. They give me a very nice ride and I’ve went from an average of 11 MPH (Bontrager H5) to around 12-12.5 MPH on the CSRs. And, if by chance they don’t work for you, well not a huge loss financially. Good luck.

hokiefyd 

The Conti Speed Ride tires are an excellent value. They're fast, light, comfortable, foldable, and inexpensive. I've had a pair before (gone now, due to being on a bike I sold earlier this year), and I think their biggest "negative" which is really just a counterpoint to some of their positives, is lack of strong puncture protection. However, if they had this, they wouldn't be as inexpensive and as fast/light/comfortable as they are. They're not tubeless ready and they don't come with snazzy tan sidewalls. But they're only 25 bucks each and they're great tires if you're looking for a true 38mm tire that works well on a variety of surfaces. (They're labeled 700x42, but they inflate up to about 38mm on most hybrid style rims.)

prime winner

That's a nice bump in speed. I see the reviews are mostly really positive with a few sprinkled in mentioning the tires go flat often. That's kind of weird with so many other positive reviews.

And congrats on getting out and riding with your kids. My daughter is 18 now and won't go anywhere near a bike haha.

prime winner

Thanks hokiefyd. Between you and uriwvu recommending them I am going to give them a shot. I will be riding paved residential roadways 95% of the time so I'm hoping for very few to no flats.

WarrenR

My 2019 Verve 2, just over 13,600 kms. Did it's first century last month. Continental contact speeds currently after wearing out the front and 2 rear H5s. After pulling the spokes through the rear rim twice at 5000 and 10000 kms, covered under warranty, went with Mavic rims. Trekking handlebars added to the comfort on the longer runs!

prime winner

Great looking bike Warren. I like the white/silver highlights and that shade of red. Nice additions as well. And you rode a century on it! Awesome.

Here is a pic of mine. I've raised the seat a bit since the pic.

hokiefyd 

I put about 400-600 miles on mine before I sold the bike, on all sorts of terrain (smooth, light gravel, light single track, etc.) and didn't flat once. I am careful with how and where I ride, and I do take it easy on surfaces where at least pinch flatting is more likely (of course, it's hard to predict a puncture from a small road hazard like glass).

Still, limited puncture protection is certainly one of the trade-offs of an otherwise very good tire that is also very affordable.

WarrenR

Quite a change in the frame!

prime winner

Yes there is. Mine looks small but it's a large.

Why do a lot of people talk bad about the suspension seat? I don't mind it at all.

WarrenR

I'm 6 2 so I got the XL

Nothing wrong with this suspension post, you can crank it up as stiff as you want.

Tricyclekid

Got the verve 3 several weeks ago and have only rode it 5 times. I am 72 with a bad back and just getting back into riding after 50 yr hiatus. Comfort was a priority and the verve hasn’t given me any discomfort so far. Really having problems with steeper hills but should improve as I build up and maybe change tires. Plus my rear end is too bony for my saddle. I strictly ride on pavement. Wish I could have gotten the FX but my back wouldn’t let me. The verve is a great compromise.

prime winner

Put some miles on that Verve Tricyclekid, 5 rides in several weeks sounds like neglect haha. I got my Verve 2 last Saturday and after 4 rides I'm looking forward to riding it more and improving. I went for 25 miles yesterday and I really noticed a difference in how I felt after the same 25 mile ride nearly a month ago. My rear is sore today, and the back of my legs are really sore. I guess the different riding position has slightly different work on my legs.

Alzerbster

Just got a 2021 Verve 3 two weeks ago. I don't ride on roads, so all my riding is on rail trails, which I just love to do. 80% of the trails I ride here in Pa. are crushed limestone, with the other 20% being asphalt. I did buy fenders for this bike which help to keep stone dust off my chins, chain rings, and chain. Kind of disappointed my first 40 miles I put on it. It just felt slow compared to my Cannondale adventure, which is a similar bike. I really dislike the Bontrager H5 700x45 tires. They just feel so big and clunky riding on them. I didn't even try the saddle. I put my Brooks saddle on it right away. I also swapped the cheap pedals out. So I took the 700x38 Marathons off my Adventure, and put them on my Verve. What a big difference. I realize they put the bigger tires on this bike for a more comfortable ride, but riding on rail trails I noticed no difference between the 700x45's and the 700x 38's. What the 38's did was make the bike faster, and just feel lighter. So over all I do like the bike.

hokiefyd 

The stock H5s are heavy and slow not because of their size but because of their construction. They're relatively inexpensive tires with THICK puncture protection layers and (likely) a pretty coarse casing. All of this adds up to a tire that does not return much energy back into the system after it deforms (as it rolls), making it slow. It probably does okay if you inflate it super high (to avoid deformation), but that's not a good workaround. Better tires, regardless of size, will help tremendously. I'm glad the Marathons work better. They're also puncture resistant tires but they have a higher quality construction and roll easier.

prime winner

I got the Continental Speed Ride tires installed and saw a 0.1 mph boost on my usual 10 mile ride. I didnt notice a difference in ride comfort either, but it was only my 5th ride on the Verve 2 so I'm sure I have a lot to work out and get acclimated to. The biggest thing I need to work out is my average heart rate and gear use. I'm used to 2x9 on my mountain bike, and the still need to find what works for me on the 3x8.I'm confident that as I get these worked out I will see better results. Still loving the comfort of the Verve but my legs remind me its a different ride haha.

mstig

I bought a 2021 Verve 1 in August. I typically ride about 10 miles a day on suburban streets at the Jersey Shore. Sometimes I ride on gravel bike paths or paved trails. I'm very happy with this bike having come from beach cruisers and a mountain bike. I don't know if anyone has this "problem" but though the bike rides great it's intermittently noisy. The rear end sometimes sounds like a train going down the track; then on the same ride is perfectly silent. The tech at the bike shop says that's normal but I have my doubts.

Alzerbster

You are correct that is not normal. Its possible the rear derailleur may need adjusted slightly. When I got my Verve it was not shifting properly on the two largest gears on the cassette. I tried adjusting the cable tension, but when I got the one end to shift correctly the two smaller gears would not shift correctly. So back to the bike shop I went with it. They asked me how I haul it, indicating I might have bent the derailleur. I assured them I did nothing to bend it. So I kind of watched the bike mechanic working on it. He had the rear wheel off it 3 times, did something with the derailleur, and finally installed a new cable. The bike shifts okay now., but not as well is my 8 speed cassette on my Cannonball Adventure. I would take the bike back to them an tell them its making a noise and you are not happy with it. A bike that is adjusted well should not make any noise. Maybe pay attention if the noise is happening while in a particular gear.

prime winner

Well I wiped out on my Verve 2 with the Continental Speed Ride tires. I am not blaming the tires though. I took a right turn too fast and my back tire spun out on some wet dirt/debris on the pavement. I ended up with minor road rash (couple spots on face but looks worse than it is), and 8 stitches just below my right knee. After I gathered myself I picked up the bike and it had the front wheel and handle bars twisted apart in the wrong direction. I straightened that, and put the chain back on and it rode home (almost 4 miles) without a noticeable problem. After a closer inspection I didn't find any other damage besides some road rash on my Ergon bar ends and my right pedal.

I hope to be back in the saddle in 2-3 weeks.