Test Ride Testimonials

So you're interested in the Wheelhouse frame or Max Perkins Edition complete bike, but you want to know how it rides first? We ask the racers who do test ride our bikes to share their impressions with us, which we share with you (updated frequently - please check back):

DJ Brew (Temple Hills, MD)
Your Ad Here Racing

First let me start off by saying the internet pictures do not do this bike justice.  It looks way better when you see it in person. The 12k weave demo bike that was there was pretty impressive itself, but when you see the 3k weave version, it's HOT! I'm a pretty simple guy and don't really like too much flash on my bikes.  My motto is "The blacker, the better."  This bike is absolutely stealthy looking to me, and that was even with gloss clear coat.  From what I hear, the actual production model will have a matte finish to it.  I can't wait to see that.  I also would've never expected a bike at this price point to have internally routed cables, but it does, and the ports where the cables enter the frame look finished, not like an after thought. I also thought the parts spec on this bike was really nice.  I wasn't expecting the Deda cockpit and Sram gruppo.  I'm a diehard Sram fan and I feel like you can't go wrong with any of it. It works great no matter how you choose to mix parts between Red, Force and Rival. This parts mix is definitely performance where it matters most. Then you keep coming back to the price of the bike and you really have to do a double take because it seems too good to be true.  

I finally threw a leg over the bike to take it for a spin and it is the TRUTH!  I didn't expect it to really feel as good as it did.  I don't really have to much of a distinguished palette when it comes to carbon.  My last carbon ride, by one of the major brands, was an absolute noodle at $2800.  So much so that I ended up going back to an all aluminum ride.  

Since this "full" bike was priced even cheaper than my previous carbon ride, when I stomped on the pedals, I expected this bike to have that same noodly feeling.  It didn't happen.  So I then got out of the saddle to power up a slight rise in the road, expecting to feel some flex and I got nothing.  This bike responded only by surging forward.  The ride feel was quite comfortable as well.  I was riding the version with the RFSW wheelset, so I'm not sure how much comfort came from the wheels or the frame, but they both work great together to deliver a completely unbelievable total package.  I seriously wish I could've spent more time on this bike.  I keep coming back to the price and it's just amazing how the November guys were able to get so much performance at this price point.  

James McNeely (Crofton, MD)
Squadra Coppi

The handling was sharp edged, but not nervous. For the most part, the bike felt extremely neutral. Lean in hard and it dove in; carve gentle arcs and it carved with me. It was very responsive to rider input. A race bike for sure. 

So the first ride impression is really good - a delectable combination of stiff frame, with better road feel than I thought was possible in carbon, particularly at this price point. Can't wait to bomb some curvy descents on this one. 

(More on The Unholy Rouleur blog here.)

Michael Edmonds (Woodbridge, VA)
Potomac Velo Club

The Wheelhouse Max Perkins edition (w/ the RSFW wheelset) is a beatiful machine.  My test ride was just after completing a cyclocross race, so I was expecting the normal adjustment feeling of going from fat, low-pressure 32mm tires on grass to high pressure narrow tires on asphalt.  No adjustment was need, I was amazed at the feel on the road, the jarring and roughness I experience on my current bike ('03 Trek OCLV frame) wasn't there. The bike is solid, I hammered up a small hill to try and flex the frame and there was nothing.  I thoroughly enjoyed my experience, my only regret is that my personal build won't be quite as light. 

Judd Walencikowski (Washington, DC)
GamJams Racing

I think a bike can feel right for you when a bike is a lot like you. Is that really possible? In the Wheelhouse's case, and for me, I think it is. I think my personality matches the Wheelhouse's ride quality and ride characteristics very well. I came to this conclusion after about three hours on the bike two Saturdays ago.

Here's the deal. I can swear to you I'm not picky about my bicycle frames. I can promise the only things that matter to me are that my bike shift smoothly and not have any unnecessary drivetrain resistance (read: clean chain and cassette). But that's not really the frameset's business, right? With my fixation on the moving parts, I can claim I'm willing to ride a forgettable frame. I pretend I'm chill and easy-breezy about my needs and wants, but the truth is I'm a total stickler for details. I tell you I need a bicycle that just works, but I really prefer something refined and proper.

My schtick is that I don't have a schtick. The Wheelhouse offers up the same schtick. It's all like, "Look at me. I'm basic. I kinda disappear. I don't scream flash or gimmick or HOTness. I'm this easy-breezy frame just mindin' my own." But that's totally its schtick. Pry a little deeper and you'll find out the truth. It cares about what I care about. It is attentive to the details (good proportions, clean cable routing, compliance in the right way, snappiness in the right way, enough stiffness to feel rightly efficient) and is completely refined and completely proper. Surprise, surprise! And who doesn't love surprises? This bike is coy and, at immediate glance, doesn't let on how comfortable, powerful, and right it really is. Don't be fooled by this act, the Wheelhouse is an awesome, fun, do-the-right-thing(s) ride.

Is this frame the Great White Buffalo? I encourage you to find out for yourself.

Mustafa Ostrander (Washington, DC)
NCVC 

I had the pleasure of riding the Wheelhouse frameset by November Bicycles on the Great November Ride.  Simply put, the frame performed as well as any carbon frame I’d ever ridden.  And I should know, because I’m like Elizabeth Taylor when it comes to road bike frames.

Aside from an impressive price, the Wheelhouse delivers a perfect balance of lightweight, stiffness and comfort resulting in an impressive ride quality.  First up, the frame is light.  Really light.  You could build a sub 15 pound bike without trying too hard.  And, although it’s light, it doesn’t feel flimsy.  This is a bike that’s clearly meant to be ridden, or rather raced, very hard.  That leads to the second point, namely, that the Wheelhouse is super stiff in all of the right places.  Stomp on the pedals for a town line sprint?  No flex.  Jump out of the saddle to the top of a hill?  No problem.  With the added materials near the bottom bracket and head tube, the Wheelhouse frame ensures that virtually no power is lost to frame flex.  But does that mean this frame will abuse you on long rides over poor roads?  Not at all.  In fact, a ride over the not-so-perfect roads of Montgomery County proved that November Bicycles achieved that rare combination of stiff and comfortable that is hard to find with reasonably priced carbon frames. 

Well done November Cycles.  Oh, and the carbon tubulars are pretty neat too!