Time trial frames spent a decade optimized around a single scenario: holding a straight line as fast as possible. Specialized drew the S-Works Shiv TT Disc Module against a different brief. The FACT 11r carbon frame is Win Tunnel Engineered and UCI legal, but it was shaped to cut weight and sharpen handling rather than chase drag figures in isolation. The silhouette is new, the front end is new, and the chassis is built for inner-city prologues and rolling courses with steep grades, not only for flat parcours where the clock rewards nothing but a low frontal area.

Fit drove much of that redesign. The geometry and front end were rebuilt around years of Retül fit data and professional rider feedback, with updated spacers, a revised bridge, and armrests that hold position rather than drifting under load. The one-piece bar and stem simplifies the cockpit and takes weight out of the part of the bike you feel most in transitions and through corners. Effective reach to the center of the pad spans 436mm in the rearward position on a size XS to 506mm in the forward position on a size L, so the adjustment range covers a wide spread of positions without aftermarket hardware.

Disc brakes are the other structural change. Variable weather, tight corners, and rough surfaces all reward braking you can modulate deep into a turn while your hands stay on the extensions, and the flat-mount calipers contribute a more settled chassis under cornering and acceleration loads. One thing to plan for before you buy: cable routing is internal and electric only. The frame is not set up for mechanical shifting, so the build needs to be electronic, whether that means Di2, eTap AXS, or EPS.... Read More