At a glance If money’s no object, this bike will make you a better rider – a top of the range racer ideal for mountainous races, sportives and training with the highest quality build and components plus integrated speed/cadence sensor
Tested by
Nik Cook
Performance
Ridden by Lance and now ridden by me, the Madone 6.9 Pro is an awful lot of bike with a price-tag to match.
Previously, I'd ridden a Trek Madone 5.2 throughout 2008-9,
knocking off the full distance 250km Paris-Roubaix Sportive and,
arguably the UK's toughest sportive, 
the ultra hilly 112 mile
Fred Whitton. Despite initial reservations with the Madone 5.2 such
as the ugly and bulbous oversized bottom bracket, the flimsy
looking Bontrager RaceLite wheel set and the bird-nest mess of
cables that come with a Shimano group, I came to love it. Every
doubt I had was quashed as I logged up the miles. The bottom
bracket was super stiff, the wheels whisked me over the
Paris-Roubaix cobbles and the reliability and performance of the
Ultegra groupset almost made up for the cable mess at the front
end. It was with great regret that I boxed it up and sent it back
but Trek certainly didn't let me down with its replacement, the
Madone 6.9.
The Madone 6.9's OCLV Red Carbon frame is unbelievably stiff, light but, at the same time, not at all harsh to ride. For what feels and performs like a genuine racer, it seems almost incongruous that it's so comfortable for long days in the saddle. Talking of which, although the issued Bontrager inForm Race X Lite saddle was a perfectly acceptable perch, I have swapped it for my preferred Fizik Arione. The Bontrager Aeolus wheels, developed in conjunction with aero gurus HED, are light and stiff enough to climb and accelerate beautifully but at the same time deliver a great aerodynamic profile. If you're looking for a do it all wheel-set, they should certainly be on your short list. Combine the
wheels, the frame and the super
lightweight Bontrager XXX Lite bars and stem and you've got the
ultimate climbing machine. My 58cm bike, complete with a rather
clunky pair of Look Classic pedals, weighs in a paltry 7.3 kgs
(16.06 lbs).
At home in the Peak District I've been riding climbs two or three sprockets higher than on my normal none too shabby steed and, on a recent recce of the Helvellyn Triathlon bike route, I was able to stick with a previous race winner during a burn-up climbing The Struggle. When the road tips down the Madone handles impeccably and, after a bit of bedding in, the grabbiness of the cork pads on the carbon rims subsides and, in all but the wettest conditions, delivers effective and predictable braking.
The standard groupset for this bike is unsurprisingly Shimano
Dura-Ace but, via the Project One custom build you can tweak this
to your own requirements and even specify a paint finish. Mine came
with a SRAM Red group and, although I've ridden SRAM off-road for a
couple of years, this was my first encounter with their road
offering. Once I'd got the hang of the double-tap shift, I loved
it, found s
hifting to be incredibly positive
and, if I wasn't an unconvertible Campag acolyte, would certainly
consider SRAM for my next road build. The Madone is packed with
pleasing touches. I particularly liked the integrated DuoTrap
speed/cadence sensor that "talked" seamlessly with my Garmin 705.
If you're going to buy a bike this expensive and beautiful you
don't want to ruin it with ugly sensors, wires and cable ties.
This bike's true home is conquering massive cols in the Alps or Pyrenees and, if you've got the money and accept only the best, it'd ease your suffering on the most mountainous sportives, races and training rides. The price does put it beyond the reach of most of us but features from it will trickle down throughout the range and make riding better for us all. Its pointless docking marks for its price or attempting to rate it in terms of value for money. This bike is a "money's no object" project from Trek exploring the top-end limits of design and engineering and I applaud them for it.
It might not be about the bike for Lance, but, if you've got the cash to spend, the Madone 6.9 will make you a significantly better rider.
Photography by Stuart Holmes
