I tested out a 54cm Specialized Roubaix the other day. A Roubaix rather than a Ruby because no one keeps 54cm women's road bikes around. It was a little long, but it felt better than my current bike, fit-wise. Anyway, I took it on a 1.5-mile test ride (some small hills, mostly quiet neighborhood streets), and it was a rather strange first experience with carbon.

The fact that I felt insulated from the road was kind of cool. Weird, after riding an aluminum bike for two years, but cool. What I didn't like was the fact that it was weirdly sluggish and the cornering felt very odd. I felt like I was fighting the bike half the time. Is this something that you need to get used to with carbon? I'm wondering if it felt odd because I'm not getting the sort of "feedback" from the road that I'm used to. Or is it just an artifact of that particular bike? The shop guy suggested that it may have been the frame because it's a men's bike and built for a heavier rider. Any truth to that?

(I'll admit that part of my frustration stemmed from the pedals. I don't like toe cages so I flipped them over. No grip on those things whatsoever.)