I bought this Pilot 2.1 mid-summer and have been able to spend some time on it. As I have pointed out before, I have long legs and a short torso. I either have a stem with a HIGH rise or a swap out the fork with one with longer steerers w/ a stack of spacers. I'm old school and I am used to quill stems so I opt for tons of spacers. I have done one triathlon and one duathlon and I averaged the same speed as I did on my custom Gunnar Roadie. The bike is very versatile because I am able to complete a triathlon but then put on fatter tires for rough chip-n-seal roads. I just attached the SKS fenders which adds to the overall usefulness of the bike. Its a solid bike. I don't want "to go on" about how this bike makes me faster, stronger and prettier like owners of Serotta, IF or some other high end maker do but again the bike is solid all around. The downside: made in Taiwan and not steel. I can say nothing bad about the aluminum ride though. I think the longer wheel base and tires help. A great bike for $1300.