Trek Road Bike Range Guide
Trek Road Bike Range Guide
The Trek road bike range is constantly evolving. For the 2023 model year Trek have introduced new frames for their carbon road bikes and have continued to tweak and improve their aluminium bikes. In this guide we’ll walk you through the range and look at which bikes work best for different types of rider.
Trek Generations
For 2023 Trek have introduced the concept of generations. Bikes like the Domane SL now come as Gen 3 or Gen 4. This is a similar concept to Apple use with the iPhone. The Gen 4 bike is the latest model with a new frame. The Gen 3 model uses the same frame as 2022 but is a few hundred pounds cheaper. Trek have done this partly to offer more choice, but also due to ongoing supply chain issues. Carrying on making some of the older bikes mean more bikes reach the shop floor.
Men’s and women’s bikes
All of Trek’s road bikes are unisex. Trek do vary the bikes slightly according to size. So the smaller bikes will often have a different saddle, different bars, cranks and brakes. This makes them easier to handle for smaller riders.
AL, ALR, SL and SLR
Trek’s road bikes come with different letters after the name. This tells you the type, and quality, of material the frame is made from.
- AL = Aluminium
- ALR = The best quality aluminium
- SL = Carbon fibre
- SLR = The best quality carbon fibre
As well as a better-quality raw material the ALR and SLR bikes will often be made using more expensive techniques. So you are getting the best of the best in terms of frame material, design and build.
Trek Domane AL Rim - £800
Best for – beginners looking for their first road bike
The rim brake version of the Trek Domane AL is the entry level bike in the Trek road bike range. It just comes as one model, the Domane AL 2. It’s a great beginner’s bike for people who want to test out road cycling, or who are looking for a fast and simple commuting bike. It is built around an aluminium frame with a carbon fibre fork and comes with 2x8 speed Shimano Claris gearing. The rim brakes are simple to use and maintain and provide decent stopping power in most conditions.
Trek Domane AL Disc - from £975
Best for – riders who want a versatile bike that can do commutes, club rides or light gravel
The Domane AL Disc, as the name suggests, is the disc brake version of the Domane AL bike. There are 4 models of Domane AL Disc with the 2 being the cheapest and the 5 being the most expensive. All use the same aluminium frame and carbon fibre fork. As you go up the range the quality of the gears gets better and on the 4 and 5 you switch from mechanical disc brakes to hydraulic ones. This gives more reliable, low maintenance stopping power.
The Domane AL Disc is classed as an ‘endurance road bike’. That means it’s setup to be comfortable on longer rides. It comes with a fairly upright riding position and wide 32c tyres for added comfort. This also means that Trek rate it for ‘light gravel’ use. So you can use it on hard packed cycle tracks such as old railway lines.
This versatility, and the ability to take mudguards and racks, makes the Domane AL 2 a great commuting bike. But at it’s hear it’s a fast road bike that’s plenty quick enough to keep up on group rides.
Trek Emonda ALR - from £2350
Best for – riders on a budget who want a light and fast bike with quality parts
The Emonda is Trek’s lightweight climbing bike. It’s designed to be a race bike so the focus is on being as light and fast as possible. The ALR uses Trek’s best quality aluminium tubing and manufacturing processes to produce a bike that rides as well, if not better, than many more expensive carbon bikes. The Emonda ALR is a great option for riders looking to do their first races or join the fast group on club rides. You get a really good quality frame and great parts at an affordable price.
Trek Emonda SL and SLR - from £3250
Best for – racers and climbers looking to take Strava KOM and QOM crowns
As we said above the Emonda is Trek’s lightweight climbing bike. It’s designed for big days in the mountains but also works well for lumpy rides in the UK. The SL version comes with a carbon fibre frame and the SLR comes with even nicer, and lighter, carbon.
Trek re-designed the Emonda SL and SLR in 2022 to make it more aerodynamic. They focussed on low speed, unstable, aerodynamics as this is where you spend most of the time while climbing. Their aim was to find the perfect balance between aero speed and lightweight. To do this they used the legendry Alp d’Huez as their benchmark. They used computer modelling, wind tunnels and real world testing to produce a bike that will get you up the 21 hairpin climb in record time.
The base model in the range is the Emonda SL 5 which comes with super reliable Shimano 105 gearing. For 2023 the Emonda SL 6 comes with Di2 gearing, bringing this down below £5000.
Trek Domane SL and SLR - from £3050
Best for – big days out and long rides on rough roads
The Domane SL and SLR is the carbon version of Trek’s endurance road bike platform. It is designed to be more comfortable on long rides than the Emonda and comes with wider tyres for better cushioning and grip on rough roads. This is still a very fast bike though. The toughest road race in the world is the Paris Roubaix and the Domane has been ridden to victory in the last 2 women’s editions of the race.
For 2023 there are two versions of the Domane SL and SLR available. They are the Gen 3 and Gen 4. The Gen 3 bike is essentially the same bike as the 2022 model year bike. The Gen 4 version comes with a new frame which is about 300g lighter, more aerodynamic and has bigger tyre clearance. The new Gen 4 bike can take tyres up to 38c and is rated for light gravel use as well as for use on the road.
Trek used a lot of the aerodynamic and materials research from the Emonda on the Domane. The Domane also comes with IsoSpeed. This is a simple mechanical device with ‘decouples’ the seat tube to allow a small amount of controlled movement. This movement allows the bike to soak up bumps and vibrations so you can stay in the saddle, and on the power for longer.
Trek Madone SL and SLR - from £5500
Best for – Flat out speed and race winning aero performance
The Madone is Trek’s aero road bike. It is designed for winning races. As it is a little heavier than the Emonda the Madone works best on flatter terrain where higher speeds mean the aero performance can really come into it’s own.
Like the Domane the Madone is available in Gen 6 and Gen 7 versions. Gen 6 is basically the same as the 2022 bike while the Gen 7 bike is new for 2023. The Gen 3 Madone comes with a new frame which includes IsoFlow. This is a triangular cut out at the back of the bike. It not only helps direct airflow through the bike for better aero performance but also adds compliance to the frame to soften the ride slightly.
Trek Speed Concept
Best for – time trials and triathlons where you are racing against the clock
While the Madone is designed to win bunch races the Speed Concept I for solo efforts in time trials and triathlons. This dedicated time trail bike puts you in the most aerodynamic position possible so you can go flat out against the clock.
The Speed Concept is only available in Trek’s top end SLR carbon. It comes with the same IsoSpeed tech as the Domane so you can stay aero and on the power even on rough sections of road. As this bike is designed to be used on triathlons it comes with built in options for storing food, tools and drinks on the bike.
Trek Checkpoint ALR, SL And SLR
Best for – gravel riding, backpacking adventures and adventure racing
While the Domane is rated for ‘light gravel’ use the Checkpoint is Trek’s dedicated gravel bike. It comes with ALR, SL and SLR versions with each aimed at a slightly different audience.
The Checkpoint ALR is the most versatile bike in the range. It can be used for fast gravel rides, multi-day bikepacking adventures or commuting. The SL can’t haul quite as much gear as the ALR but is faster so works best for riders who want to mix some racing into their general grave riding. The SLR is a pure race bike and is designed for those who want to compete in the growing number of gravel races and events.
