HOBOOTLEG – SHIMANO DEORE MIX

It prioritizes confidence and everyday riding over outright pace. For road bikes, this score reflects how easily the bike carries speed on smooth tarmac. It ends up here thanks to wider mixed-surface tires that add some drag, aerodynamics that help it hold speed once you're rolling, a more budget-friendly drivetrain that focuses on value, and a more tucked riding position that cuts wind resistance.

Overall on climbs: 2.8/10. Within Road bikes, it sits below average. For hill work, the easiest gear is moderate. Your easiest gear lands around 28.6 gear inches. In its peer group, it lands around the easier ~47% for low-gear climbing. Think of “gear inches” like a difficulty score for your easiest gear: lower = more spin-friendly on climbs. It won’t be the absolute best climber, but it won’t hold you back on most climbs either. Specs can vary by size and build, and some manufacturer details aren’t always published, so treat this as a strong guide rather than a guarantee.

In touring terms, at 4.2/10 for aerodynamics, with tyres around 37mm, it’s more practical than wind-optimized so outright speed on exposed flats isn’t the goal. What that means on the road is: it’s more about stability and everyday comfort than cutting through the wind. Its touring label helps explain the balance between speed, comfort, and versatility. The fit looks fairly neutral, so aerodynamics depends more on the overall design and components than on an extreme position. Tyres around 37mm are a practical middle ground, with a small aero trade-off compared with narrower race tyres. It’s built for ease and control, not for squeezing out speed against the wind.

Balanced fit - a neutral road posture that suits most riders. This is mainly because handlebar height is roughly 79 mm lower than the saddle (moderate drop), and how far you'll be stretched forward is about 553 mm (long). Estimated lean is about 35 degrees.

In Road / Touring, Here is the simple reasoning behind the fit flexibility rating: Standard cockpit parts make it simpler to fine-tune your position over time, Less routing complexity makes swaps and adjustments more practical; The listed seatpost details do not show clear restrictions or extra flexibility signals. Overall, it falls into Adjustable. Put simply, it describes how practical it is to reconfigure your position later.

Comfort comes out to 5.9/10, which usually translates to a moderately comfortable ride. That’s the reason it lands as Balanced. It’s running about 37 mm tires on 700c wheels, and extra tire volume helps mute vibration and small bumps on chipseal and broken pavement. The posture is neutral (posture 5/10, torso ~35°), which keeps things neutral and easy to live with.

In simple terms, it comes out as ‘about right’ for the category. Value is scored 1–10: higher is better value, lower means you’re paying more than similar bikes. Uses MSRP as a baseline; real-world prices can be lower (discounts can change the value). On the spec estimate, the price is close to what we’d expect for a comparable build. Among comparable bikes, it sits around the middle on price (cheaper than about 57% of listings). Quick reference: €1.785 listed versus about €1.728 for a comparable build. Overall, it sits in the expected range for the category.

This setup works well when your ride switches between tarmac and easy unpaved sections. Tires around 37 mm are a good middle ground for varied surfaces. Even though it’s tagged Touring, the spec pushes it toward All Road.