The latest owner of the 2010 Cervelo P3

Words cannot describe the overwhelming joy I am feeling right now! Today, I was fortunate enough to purchase my dream bike Cervelo P3. At one point, my gf Kristi almost saw me becoming emotional! Was it because I just had a dream come true? No…no it wasn’t that at all. Don’t get me wrong I am SUPER excited about that! I think the emotions came because I am one step closer to realizing my dream. This bike is a symbol of my dedication to triathlon and is absolutely a blessing from God. I pray I do not fall short of glorifying Him.

So, this is how the day unfolded. I bought my Cervelo R3 (my Cervelo roadbike) from the largest bike store in Charlotte one year ago. I decided that I would be a loyal customer and purchase the Cervelo P3 from them too. Why not?? I go to the store and drill their triathlon bike guy about the differences between the P2 and the P3. I knew most of the differences but just needed to hear it from an actual person. Then we talked about the differences between the Cervelo P3 Ultegra vs. the Dura Ace. After the discussion, I just could not feel comfortable justifying spending another $900 to upgrade to Dura Ace. After months of debate, research, and reviews, I decided I was going to buy the Cervelo P3 Ultegra.

The largest bike store in Charlotte did not have the Cervelo P3 in stock. Oooook. I asked them to order it and said I will be here to buy it and ride out the following Friday. This gave them 10 days to order the bike. I was told they typically require a deposit on a bike before they order. Really?! It’s a Cervelo P3 they should have been carrying that bike anyway! Well here is the issue. They wanted 20% to order the bike. Hmmmm. You want me to pay a 20% deposit for you to order a bike that you should be carrying anyway.

Then I was told they were going to order the bike without me leaving a deposit. I call 5 days later which was Tuesday, today, to see if the bike arrived and that I am ready to walk out of the door with the P3. Uhh sir, we ordered the bike and uhh well the bike hasn’t been shipped yet. And, uhh we are talking with the Cervelo Rep. Hmmmm really! What you are really telling me is YOU DIDN’T ORDER THE BIKE!! Nooooo problem. I know who carries the Cervelo P3 in stock! Inside Out Sports!

I called Inside Out Sports, (which by the way is the same store I test road the Cerverlo P2 and bought my spanking brand new Blue Seventy Helix Wetsuit for a great price!). Bob remembered me when I asked him about the differences between the P2 and P3 which was Kudos to him for remembering me! Remember my previous post when I said the Inside Out Store has the mom and pop feel. They do and man does it make a difference when people recognize you. I feel a sense of trust when members of the store recognize me you know? That trust is because it is the start of a relationship! Every customer that walked in the door it seemed they knew by first name. That was impressive. If they didn’t know them they sure treated them like they knew them for a while.

Bob takes me to the bike room and there she was! My chariot awaiting her hero to mount her and charge into the Ironman battle (Kristi babe! it’s just an analogy hehe). Bob took some measurements and did some tweaks. He asked about the seat height and I felt it was a little high. That thing was really giving me some uhh “genitalia compression.” He dropped the height of the seat tube 1 cm and I tell you what! It is huge what a 1 centimeter adjustment will do for you. An adjustment here, a pedal stroke there, and the occasional measurement then it was time. It was time to take the P3 out for a spin (pun intended).

I was more nervous because this ride makes it a grand total of TWO times ever on a triathlon bike. Except this one I wanted to buy. There I am on the sidewalk trying not to vision myself wrecking this bike! I start with my traditional bunny hop start (one leg push off) and Im on the road. I started the ride using the hoods but man this bike screams for you to be in the Aero position (arms in the arm rest, bending at the waist). I take it for a test ride and man the gears were killing me at first! I was like What tha? I was freaking out big time!!! Then I looked down at my cogs and realized I had A LOT more gears left! I was too nervous to change the gears on the bike because of the resistance I was feeling when trying to change gears. I guess that is something I have to get used to also.

The fit was super comfortable and the ride on the bike was sweet! I looooved the test ride and really enjoyed this bike. I enjoyed riding this bike more than the P2 actually. It is likely because of the fit I had with this bike. I can’t wait to put this baby on the road. For now, we will be working on the trainer until the weather breaks. Hopefully we only have a few more weeks before we can get out.

I just have to tell you, I was like a kid in the candy store. I did a lot of research on every item I purchased. I was running through the store picking up items like it was Christmas! Kristi decided she would just sit down while I ran Willy-Nilly through the store back and forth and back and forth. I added the XLAB Sonic Carbon wing rear hydration system to complete to bike with a profile aero bottle in the front. I also grabbed a pair of Look Pedals. I think I am going to put these pedals on the Cervelo R3 and upgrade to the Look Keo Max 2 pedals on the P3. I am so excited about this bike and this experience! I just wanted to add this last piece of information. I was the first person to buy the 2010 Cervelo P3 Ultegra from Inside Out Sports. Since they are the only store that carries this bike, does that make me the first owner of the Cervelo P3 Ultegra in Charlotte? HeHe I guess it does lol!

P.S. we loaded the P3 ever so delicately in the back of Kristi’s SUV. I jokingly said, “Try not to hit any bumps!” What’s first thing she did?! LOL drove over the curb LOL!!!! That was hilarious! I think she did it on purpose!!