I’ll admit it. I don’t like writing bike reviews. First and foremost I am naturally skeptical of how each generation of a given product comes with a wave of new performance claims, complete with wind tunnel testing that conveniently buries the lede in comparing a bike with deep section aero wheels against another bike with lightweight climbing wheels. But more than that, I consider bike related preferences to be highly subjective.

And as someone who personally believes that the best bike related money that you can spend is a proper bike fit, there are just so many variables in bike setup that I find it difficult to scientifically compare bike A to bike B. Change the fit, change the wheels, heck even change the tire size, and a given bike will feel very different. Which is to say nothing of value considerations. Sure, spending more - hopefully - gets you incrementally better performance. But the simple truth is that the best bike is the one that you ride, whether it costs $100, $1,000 or $10,000.

So with that preface, this is not a review of the Moots Routt RSL (if you want one such review, head over to CyclingTips). And I’m not going to pitch you on why the Moots Routt RSL is the best bike for you - because truthfully, it might not be. Rather, this journal entry is why the Routt RSL is right for me and why I am so incredibly stoked to be riding it in races and many slightly silly adventures in and around NYC.