Personal. Best. Cervélo launches its hotly-anticipated P5X, the ultimate triathlon bike that’s tailored to athletes’ unique needs like never before

Kona, Hawaii, October 4th, 2016 — Cervélo Cycles is proud to unveil the P5X, the fastest, most technologically advanced triathlon bike ever made.

There’s more to the P5X than blowing benchmarks away. For the first time in Cervélo’s history — for the first time in history, period — the unique needs of every triathlete, whether training, racing or travelling, are truly front and centre.

“Launching the P5X at the Ironman World Championship means a lot to us,” says Antoine Ballon, Cervélo’s Global Marketing Director. “Chrissie Wellington made history here in 2007 and 2008 by claiming victory on one of our first tri bikes, and we have continued to make history here by leading the Kona Bike Count for 11 consecutive years and counting. Designed with nothing but the triathlete in mind, this badass ride represents the pinnacle of our systematic, engineering-first approach. The P5X is a personal best for us, and we know it will help athletes achieve their own personal best.”

The P5X project began in 2013 with an unequivocal goal: Design the ultimate triathlon bike. Before even contemplating design, however, Cervélo conducted a full year of real-world research. This included taking more than 14,500 photos at 10 Ironman and Ironman 70.3 events; interviewing scores of athletes, fitters, coaches and bike dealers; conducting real-life ride tests with prototypes; and collecting on-board data in a range of conditions, from the extreme wind and heat of Kona to the hills of Ironman France. At the end of this exhaustive process a terabyte-sized database of real-world information was catalogued and analyzed.

“We found that a different approach was needed to improve the entire triathlete experience, not only on race day, but also in training and travel,” explained Cervélo Engineering Director Sean McDermott. “From aerodynamically integrated storage to simple and wide-ranging aerobar adjustments, the P5X delivers a complete system that harmoniously addresses speed, fit and usage.”

PERSONAL STORAGE

Cervélo’s race-course research revealed 688 distinct bike setups, the most popular of which was used by just 3.8 per cent of triathletes. The takeaway: Athletes set up their bikes their way, which is why customizable modular storage is such a priority for the P5X.

“Whether training or racing, everything you need to support yourself, including nutrition, flat kit and cold weather gear, can be securely stowed in the exclusive Smartpak, Stealthbox and Speedcase components,” said P5X Lead Designer David Killing. “With the added convenience of three round bottles placed exactly where you want them, performance will never be compromised.”

PERSONAL PACKING

Another priority: Taking the stress out of assembly and travel. The P5X can be disassembled by removing a few bolts with minimal tools, while the two-piece foldable aerobar with proprietary padded holster ensures secure, quick packing.

PERSONAL FIT

Perhaps the greatest achievement of the P5X is the ease with which athletes, shops and fitters can make subtle adjustments to set up the bike for speed. “A proper bike fit is the biggest performance upgrade you can make to achieve your personal best,” said renowned fitter Mat Steinmetz, who joined the P5X project as Director of Human Bike Interaction in 2015. “The unprecedented micro- and macro-adjustability allows every athlete to find their perfect position quickly and easily.”

BEST AERO PERFORMANCE

Aerodynamic excellence is integral to Cervélo’s DNA, and the P5X is no exception.

More than 180 hours of wind-tunnel testing, along with extensive CFD analysis of 150-plus frame iterations, pushed the limits of aero performance further than ever before.

“It is always an amazing opportunity to work with Cervélo on a new product,” said 2013 Ironman World Champion Frederik Van Lierde, who took part in the testing phases. “I look forward to riding the P5X at Kona this year.”

BEST HANDLING

Because Cervélo believes confidence and performance are synonymous, the P5X features flat-mount disc brakes and thru-axles to improve safety and boost stiffness. Not only does this system contribute to the bike’s peerless aerodynamics, it also offers exceptional modulation and stopping power in all conditions with minimal maintenance.

BEST QUALITY

Cervélo partnered with two of North America’s finest composite suppliers — Hed Cycling Products and ENVE Composites — to design and manufacture the P5X.

Leveraging Hed’s superb carbon capabilities and flawless factory processes, Cervélo’s engineering team worked symbiotically with the late Steve Hed and his Minnesota-based staff to perfect the P5X frame. “Our molding processes and capabilities, and a mutual history of aero innovation, were huge factors in our partnership,” said CEO Anne Hed. “Hed and Cervélo speak the same language regard to aerodynamics and had already a great experience in lay-up and tooling through their project California facility.”

Utah’s ENVE Composites used its extensive design experience and expertise to help realize Cervélo’s innovative vision for the fork/aerobar system. “Making a split aerobar to ease packaging and shipping was brilliant, and the collaboration between ENVE and Cervélo resulted in a solution that gives customers functionality they never thought possible,” said Scott Nielson, Vice-President of Engineering.

Pricing and availability

The P5X is available in two different builds. The utmost features the latest SRAM RED eTap system, including an SRAM crank, and comes equipped with ENVE 7.8 wheels. Starting today, it is available at 80 select Cervélo retailers around the world, including 35 North American shops where it will be priced at $15,000 USD. The second build will showcase an Ultegra Di2 groupset, a Rotor crank and Hed 6.9 wheels. Starting Dec. 1, it will be available for $11,000 USD.

A fully customized Cervélo travel case, co-developed with Biknd to make travelling with the P5X safe and stress-free, comes as an option for purchase.

In conjunction with the launch of the P5X, Cervélo’s “Personal. Best.” marketing campaign features a dedicated microsite — p5x.cervelo.com — and a range of social media initiatives on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. In Kona, an exclusive gallery installation on Ali’I Drive showcases the P5X and the compelling story of its development, and gives athletes the opportunity to engage with Cervélo’s engineers in person.

About Cervélo Cycles

For more than two decades Cervélo has passionately pursued its goal: Make every rider faster. From the very beginning Cervélo has stayed true to its unique, engineering-driven approach: Define and measure, test and refine, and then build the very best. This uncompromising process raises the bar with every new model, yielding lighter, stiffer and more aerodynamic bikes that help riders go faster and further with less effort. No wonder all five of Cervélo’s platforms — R Series (classic road), S Series (aero road), P Series (triathlon/time trial), C Series (endurance road) and T Series (track) — consistently dominate comparison tests and win awards from the most respected industry publications. It’s also why the Dimension Data and Cervélo-Bigla pro teams, the Great Britain Cycling Team’s Olympic athletes, and top pro triathletes join legions of dedicated riders around the world in choosing Cervélo.

Media contacts:

Antoine Ballon
Global Marketing Director
aballon@cervelo.com

Lesley Loughlin
Marketing Program Manager, Triathlon
lloughlin@cervelo.com