Unboxed: Specialized’s S-Works Diverge takes adventure to the next level

We like adventure bikes here at road.cc. We might not have miles of gravel roads like they do in the States where the seed for this style of bike was planted, but we've got plenty of rotten country lanes and miles of bridleways, byways and forest paths to play on allowing us to escape congested and increasingly angry roads. Throw in the added versatility offered by the mudguard and rack mounts these bikes commonly come with and you have an ideal bike for commuting, touring and bikepacking. 

The tech in this growing category of road bike is moving forward pretty rapidly and the most advanced bike we've yet seen has just arrived in the office. It's the all-new Specialized S-Works Diverge and this latest model gets the Future Shock from the Roubaix providing 20mm of handlebar movement plus a 35mm height adjustable dropper seatpost, the first time we've seen one on a road bike. There's also a novel Swat Box for storing a spare tube, multi tool and other essentials in the nook between the seat tube and down tube, and bigger tyre clearance than the previous Diverge, a bike we really liked at - you can read the review of that model here.

- Specialized Diverge 2018 launched 

We've lucked out and got our hands on the top-of-the-range S-Works model with a mighty £8,500 price tag, but it's available at a starting price of £2,000 for the Diverge Sport which still features a carbon frame and Future Shock, but does without the dropper post. This S-Works model here shares the same frame but gets the highest grade FACT 11r carbon so the frame is the lightest in the range. You also get some very nice parts: Shimano XTR Di2 rear mech with XTR 11-40t cassette, and an Easton EC90 SL Carbon crankset fitted with a 42t chainring spinning on a CeramicSpeed 386 EVO bottom bracket. Roval CLX 32 Disc wheels are fitted with 38mm  Trigger Pro tyres (yes I know, I said 35mm in the video, my mistake) and a full complement of S-Works contact points, including the carbon Hover bar and Toupe saddle.

You can take a closer look at the bike in this gallery of photos. 

Those are all the tech details, what you probably want to know is it any good? We'll be fitting some pedals and hitting the roads and trails very soon and there'll be a full review on the website very soon. Stay tuned. 

- 18 of the best 2017 gravel & adventure bikes