Scott Speed Sub  India review

New Scott Sub Speed 40 Review: City Slicker

Even as smart mortals, some of us do have our share of rather dumb vices we call habits. One such habit I find solace in, happens to be lighting up a stick full of diseases and puffing out some lethally toxic smoke out of my mouth. While I still haven’t been able to figure why I reach out for an early death, searching my pockets every few hours, there have been times when I’ve tried to quit.

Those wise phases of life made me invest in at least one pair of running shoes every year and even a bicycle once. But after a few days of enthusiasm, the smiling devil inside takes over, those shoes and the bicycle start eating dust, and I’m eventually back to square one.

It hasn’t always been like this. There was a time when I was yet to earn a driving licence and pedalling all day was the only activity that came closest to matching the thrills of motorised liberty. The bicycle has been witnessing some early morning action lately though, thanks to a pretty cyclist who pedals on the same route every day. So on a day when the opportunity presented itself to review a bicycle, I was the first among my colleagues to put my hands up. Perhaps I was the only one since all the others were still buzzing on a Monday morning after a night out.

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To be honest, before you guys come after me with all your guns and knives, I’d agree I’m not an athlete and I’ve never reviewed a bicycle before. But I’m not a wasted couch potato either. If it adds any weight to my pedalling credentials, I’ve done a fair bit of cycling in my younger years and I can pompously average about 25-30 kph when I venture out in the middle of the night, when the traffic’s thin.

To introduce the bike in question, it was a very yellow Scott Sub Speed 40. A stylish, urban bike that is as modern as bicycles can be, yet conveys a retro message through its styling. Finished in pale yellow with almost no stickering, the bike paints a very 50’s picture in the mind, the classy front and rear fenders aiding that nostalgia tremendously.

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Like a sleeper car, one has to look real hard in order to find the ‘SCOTT’ name inscribed on the double butted alloy frame that weighs a very handy 12.4 kilos.

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The matt black flat front handlebar is adjustable and so is the saddle, both made by Syncros. Although what could’ve eased things is a lever in place of screws to adjust seat height, as found on the quick release mechanism for the wheels. There are two slots on the frame to add a bottle holder and a portable pump, or both, or anything else you fancy that can fit.

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The Sub Speed 40 comes loaded with Shimano equipment to its gills. The 3 sprocket front and the 24-speed Altus derailleur at the rear can be seamlessly shifted through thumb-n-index EZ Fire Plus shifters, mounted near the contoured brake levers. The cassette, rear hub and the crankset also come from the Japanese component manufacturer. Lightweight Stainless black spoked rims are wrapped in premium Schwalbe Citizen rubber.

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A Scott Comp V-brake setup ensures adequate braking. For those who think premium bikes like these need disc brakes, you seriously don’t need to shed that much momentum with a mere dab, as it requires that much more energy to build it again. And unless you’re coming downhill on a trail bike, for an urban bicycle like this, such a braking setup is all that you’ll ever need.

On the Move

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With the seat set to the right height, so that my legs were fully stretched when the pedal went all the way down, I started off warming up for the ride. Pedalling with my toes, a few minutes into the ride, I soon found a comfortable rhythm, the chain locked in the middle setup. Sometime into the ride, it was clearly evident that I was able to maintain a higher rate of cadence, compared to my Made in Taiwan bike, which could be attributed to the light weight, superior components employed on this Scott.

I soon found myself moving into deepest ratio of the rear cassette, pedalling in a spirited manner, as I was about to reach the halfway mark of the route I cycle on, before heading back. The crankset is a revelation for anyone who’s been a casual cyclist and moves onto a bicycle like this. Working in a slick atmosphere with other components, it does urge you to push faster, while maintaining a decent pace is as easy as walking.

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Shifting between gears is a greased affair, while 24 different ratios are at the disposal of your fingertips, whether sweating your way uphill or letting the wind dry it off on your way down. One thing that did make me slightly uncomfortable though was the saddle, which my rear somehow couldn’t adapt to even after spending a week riding the bike for almost 18 km every day. Maybe some parts of my body aren’t all that good at adapting. The other thing which I found slightly uncomfortable for our kind of roads is the all alloy front fork, which transfers all the undulations straight to your forearms. A front suspension setup would’ve made things a little merrier, but I have a bad arm, where Titanium has duly replaced the calcium in the form of a solid rod, and maybe this is what they call nitpicking.

Summing it up

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So then, after spending a week with the Scott, my lungs definitely have been thanking me and although I’m back on my old bike now, which costs 3/4th of the Scotts price, the difference is certainly noticeable. The Sub Speed 40 makes cycling evidently enjoyable, whether you use it as an equipment to stay fit, or a cool looking mode of transportation.

For the money you spend, what you get is a bicycle that makes you look savvy, trendy and sexy. The uninitiated might argue that all bicycles are the same with a common denominator of a human having to pedal himself, but the fact is, if you get one of those rather simpler bikes spending less initially, thinking you might not be able to commit to the activity after a while, here’s some advice. That bicycle will indeed rot away in the basement somewhere, for the fact that its heavy frame and lazy components will juice you, making you feel like a pulpy extract that remains in the juicer.

But if you intend to bring back the joys from a time when you’d purposely pedal through a puddle, or get on your bicycle and propel yourself to freedom, that Playstation be damned, get one of these. Whether you have smoke filled lungs, or weary legs, these things show you the brighter side, make you feel fitter, and importantly for some, make you look better.

Price: Rs 40,300 (inclusive of local taxes, excluding octroi)

Technical Specifications

  • Frame SUB double butted 6061 Alloy, 700c
  • Fork New SUB Alloy, 700C
  • Headset VP semi integrated
  • Rear Derailleur Shimano RD-M 370 24 SpeedFront
  • Derailleur Shimano FD-M191 34.9mm clamp
  • Shifters Shimano ST-EF 51A L / 8R EZ-fire plus
  • Brake Levers Shimano ST-EF 51A
  • Brakes SCOTT Comp V-brake
  • Crankset Shimano FC-M171 48x38x28 T
  • BB-Set FP-B902
  • Handlebar Syncros UC3.0 620mm, 15° bend
  • Handlebar Stem Syncros UC3.0 31.8mm
  • Pedals SP-822
  • Seatpost Syncros UC3.0, 31.6mm
  • Seat Syncros Urban X, VL-4234
  • Hub (Front) Formula FM-21
  • Hub (Rear) Shimano FH-RM 30
  • Chain KMC Z-7
  • Cassette Shimano CS-HG31, 11-32T
  • Spokes Stainless black, 14G/2mm
  • Rims AX-22, 32H, CNC
  • Tires Schwalbe Citizen 700 × 37C
  • Extras SCOTT UC fender
  • Approx. Weight KG 12.40kg

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