Ridley releases the Kanzo Fast, bringing its aero engineering prowess to off-road rides

As gravel bikes continue to be further segmented, Ridley today released its Kanzo Fast - a specialist, competitive gravel bike with integrated cabling, aero tubes and comfort seat stays in what the company is calling the “fastest gravel bike in the world.”

Conceived specifically for people who want to race over chunky, mixed surfaces, the bike borrows tubing technology developed for Ridley’s race-proven Noah Fast and downloads it into the Kanzo Fast with several notable features, including: F-Wings at the bottom of the front fork, integrated cables and a very stealthy set of aero bars, probably the bike’s most striking feature (see gallery). Several small tweaks have been made to existing Kanzo frame geometry to give the Fast bike reduced drag, even off-road.

"Gravel was immediately linked to comfort and bike packing, but more and more cyclists want to participate in Gravel Fondos. With the Kanzo Fast, cyclists have the ideal bike for their adventure," says Bert Kenens, product manager at Ridley. "The bike is reactive, amazing on technical courses. It's aerodynamic of an unseen level in the gravel world and it makes gravel rides of over 200km comfortable".

"Our tests in the wind tunnel show that you can easily save 17 Watts compared to an ordinary gravel bike. That's a lot of power you can use elsewhere in the race," Kenens explains.

Specs:

• Available from 1 September

• Frame Fork Set: 1190 gram (frame size MEDIUM, lacquered) and 490 grams (fork, lacquered)

• Kanzo Fast with Forza Vardar wheels and Shimano GRX Di2: 8,55kg

• Available in sizes XS to XL, with gravel geometry where the reach is shorter and stack higher

• Handlebar - stem combinations from 38cm to 44cm and 9cm to 14cm available

• Available for electronic and mechanical groups. One-By Only

• Designed to fully integrate the innovative Classified shifting system without additional adjustments.

• Standard collection available in SRAM Rival1, Shimano GRX 800 and Shimano GRX Di2 but also other sizes can be configured in the Dream Builder.

• Tire clearance up to 42mm

Hopefully a ride review in the near future.

Hope and British Cycling reveal dope looking track bike slatted to debut at 2020 Olympics

The last time Lotus — winners in Formula 1, Indy 500, Le Mans 24 Hour and others — were this excited about bike racing, Chris Boardman was riding their now iconic Lotus Type 108 track bike in 1992 at the Barcelona Games.

With Tokyo postponed, the company is now hyping what might have been -- their fast, atypical aerodynamic whip born from the same minds that made the Type 108 (a bike that will undoubtedly be used once track racing returns in full).

Richard Hill - the chief aerodynamicist for Lotus - worked alongside Boardman on the Type 108 and developed the Type 110 - the bike Boardman would ride to victory in the 1994 Tour de France prologue time trial. Here, Hill explains the reasons for the new bike’s front-end design and what’s he’s learned from the bike that will shape Lotus designs in future.

How far has aerodynamics moved on in the years since you worked on the Lotus Type 108 in 1992?
The basic rules of aerodynamics haven’t changed – you can’t alter the laws of physics – but what we have learned over the last 28 years is to take a more holistic approach to every project.

What do you mean by ‘a more holistic approach’? Back then it was simply about developing an aerodynamic bike that would go fast. But really there are two separate elements – the bike and the rider – which come together as one to move through the air. That was the approach we took with the new bike. Put simply, since 1992 we have learned how to use the bike’s design to make the rider more aerodynamic, and also vice-versa. What’s improved is our understanding of how to get a bike and its rider round the track together in the fastest possible time.

Were any specific lessons learned from the Type 108 and Type 110 incorporated into the creation of the new track bike? They were both extremely low-drag bike frames in their own right, with every element designed as an efficient aerofoil and the monocoque frame itself acting as a 'wing sail'. The frames were designed to operate best in complete isolation from the rider. Chris Boardman’s famous 'Superman' riding position was about creating an airflow channel between the rider and the bike frame, minimizing sing interactions. These frames are no longer allowed under track cycling regulations, so the new bike – which meets the updated regulations – is all about getting the rider and the bike to positively interact with each other. In this way they can benefit each other and cause each to lower the drag of the other. We achieve that by careful manipulation of the interference between the two.

The new bike has very wide front forks, far wider than other track bike that would have been at the Olympics. What is the thinking behind this design? The geometry of the forks and handlebars lower the drag of the rider, which in turn lowers the drag of the frame. In some ways it's a similar concept to how riders position themselves in a team pursuit race – so one behind the other and very close – to benefit each other. Careful alignment of individual elements of the bike and the rider cause the drag of the two together to be lower than the sum of the individual parts. As far as track cycling goes, I believe it’s man and machine in perfect harmony.

Is there any relevance of the aerodynamic performance of the bike to the next generation of Lotus sports cars? Yes there is. Old-school aerodynamic car design was all about pushing the air around your vehicle in the most efficient way. The latest Lotus designs are all about the interactions between various elements of the airflow around a vehicle and also through the vehicle where appropriate. The Lotus Evija hypercar, with Venturi tunnels through the rear quarters, is a great example of that. It’s all become a lot more nuanced. What we have learned with the bike is absolutely having an influence on some of the features we are currently developing and testing for our future vehicles.

Standard framesets start at £15,550 + VAT. More details at https://www.hopetech.com/news/hbt/

Strade Bianche nears as the strangest season starts anew

On the heels of Strade Bianche and the start of a compacted 2020 calendar, the misery of pedalling indoors for hours on end is fading, yet the shadow of this asterisk season still looms.

What will it actually look like? For Strade Bianche, it won’t be the wet Spring roads to which the race owes some of its infamy (pictured above on a glorious day in 2018). Quite the opposite, the parcours (184km, 11 sectors and 63km on gravel roads (34.2% of the course)) will be run during a bone-dry Sienna summer, the forthcoming images to look much more like a dry Roubaix only with more dirt, I imagine.

Come biblical rain or scorching heat however, the fact that it’s happening, in a season that seemed done in March, is a dream. With so much virtual racing in their legs, no matter how laboured or contrived it seemed, and kicking off with Burgos, an event unknown save for this season, the next three months might be the best bit of bike racing cycling has ever known. From the gun, it’s not going to stop.

Unfortunate that it is only beginning in that halcyon haze of the professional racing calendar when typically so many races are done, when fans and riders can appreciate a little post Tour lull - the perfect repose to catch a low stakes criterium, a kermesse, or hell, do something other than pedal biking before the Vuelta starts.

What a strange few months, with all the obvious aside: a Garmin extortion case (like, WTF), a truncated season that was always in doubt, and in some cases, still is, three Grand Tours in three months, demand so high you can’t buy a bike in Europe, build times of 3-8 months for custom work, service appointments booked 4 to 6 weeks out, cycling podcasts rewatching and telling tales about old races. Cycling has never needed normalcy more, no matter how unreal it seems.

It is going to be pretty nice to watch 20-plus teams suffer this Saturday. Even better when it happens seven days later at 111th Milan-Sanremo. From the macabre to the near normal, racing is back. It’s time to dream again.

The best bike packing kit of 2020

Is all of this just road kit with more pockets? Maybe. But just think where those extras might take you.

Three years after they first were raced, prototyped and developed to death, cargo bibs were introduced to cycling. They were marketed to explore-types and gravel grinders, but universally appealing to anyone who ever wanted something closer-at-hand during a ride - something purpose-built for multi-day efforts.

“The reaction was pretty mixed when they first launched,” recalls Rapha designer Thomas Perren, one of the minds behind the cargos. “Lots of people thought they were strange, but two years later, now they understand what we were trying to do.”

While not a market-first when released, they were certainly a first in the way cargo bibs are conceived today, and though hardly essential, endurance (or gravel kit) has since become a mainstay in the world of cycling kit, iterated in many forms by many kit cos. Morphing from simple banana transport to comical necessity, so much can be stuffed, ground and accomplished in “bike pack” and “gravel” kit; as a genre, it has become undeniably utilitarian and handsome looking, too.

If you’re in the market, what follows are 5 of the best “endurance” releases we’ve ridden in so far in 2020 - feature-rich designs soon to become a mainstays (we think) in much of cycling kit going forward.

Castelli’s Unlimited Bibshorts and Jersey

If you’re still reading and wondering WTF is bike packing kit, you’re not alone. I spent the better part of two years mocking the need for different kit for rougher roads or harder rides only to be recently converted. By and large, “explore/gravel/endurance” kit mimics that of road though there are subtle differences, both in engineered durability and aesthetic.

“We approached our gravel collection as we would with any product: by trying to identify how the needs are different for a particular use,” explains Steve Chapin from Castelli on the challenges of conceiving unique-looking and feeling kit in a slightly-different-than-road cycling segment. “There is a good bit of overlap between the needs of a road cyclist and gravel cyclist: similar performance characteristics, comfort and breathability - everything still holds.”

Despite its challenges, chapeau to Castelli - they didn’t miss a beat with their “Unlimited” issue this summer, picking up on the subtleties - marketing included - required to execute inspiring clothing that just happens to have “gravel” written on the tag. Both the bibs and jersey in the Unlimited releases feature reinforced fabric and added pockets, are beautifully understated in muted colours and can withstand “ride, shower-with-kit, ride, repeat” use cycles, which they were subjected to for the writing of this article.

Two mesh rear pockets on the bibs are perfect for tubes, food and tools, while Castelli has stitched up the side pockets just so to ensure everything stays in its right place on the must-have cargos. Laser-cut sleeves and bibshort edges are considered and well-executed finishing touches. (Also digging the VG 5 short and tech polo for après ride meals.)

Utility bibs and Gravel Jersey: Isadore

Extra-long, mildly compressive sleeves and zippered pockets add a little bit of differentiation to Isadore’s gravel jersey. Being able to secure essentials: definitely a nice touch on rough roads.

Isadore kit is so consistently well-executed that it has become rather predictable for its high quality. You’ll find no difference with the Gravel Jersey in Rio Red (pictured). The Merino slim-cut jersey breathes panache - the red is electric, the fit, trim and the comfort perfect for when in the saddle pedalling. Across temperatures, the jersey excels: wear it open with the snap sternum strap to let some air in or zipped up when the weather turns. The three zippered pockets are good open, used traditionally, and perfect zipped up when the road gets gritty or the weather gets wet.

For this article, we also had the chance to ride in Isadore’s Utility bibs - their extra-long-day ride-as-hard-as-you-want shorts adaptable across a range of temperatures. While they might lack the requisite cargo for which inclusion in this article should be required, their compression, durability, fabric (made with Schoeller) and use of an innovative, TMF Cycling pad, which eliminates pressure from a rider’s sensitive bits, make these something exceptional - which in the world of kit - is tough to pull off. Designed by ex-pro Martin Velits for the hardest rides. Well done, sir.

Rapha’s Cargo Bibshorts

The above image is not me wandering the Swiss countryside spec’d head to toe in resplendent Rapha kit, but we’d be remiss, when writing about growth in gravel to not make specific mention of the bibshorts that solidified its emergence.

Gravel-specific clothing might have been a thing prior to the 2018 release of the Rapha cargos, but it definitively was afterwards. Every bit as comfortable as their classic bibs and borrowing a bit of the enhanced fit from their other, racier collections, these feature mesh bibs with cargo pockets on the sides and a stiff elastic up top, capable of carrying food, a phone and then some on your next epic securely. Ride with your jersey empty by stuffing the rest of your ride essentials in the two lower-back mesh pockets. If you’re prone to riding in t-shirts or button down shirt sleeves, these are the bibs for you. As technical and performance driven as they are stylish. Fast-drying in hotel rooms, too.

Cascada Mountain Shirt

Though we weren’t able to get a sample of this shirt prior to writing, the snaps, material and buffalo check pattern in Old Gold has made this shirt catch our eye more than once. Straight hem on the front and with a longer and rounded cut on the back to offer extra lower back coverage while pedalling.

Seven Mesh MK3 cargo bibs

I don’t know if these are technically gravel shorts, but who cares. At 214 grams, the new MK3 cargo bibs are one of the best and most functional for day-in, day-out use.

The high-density elastane weave is compressive without being tight and offer the kind of support you want on long, hard rides. Three stash pockets in the rear store food or tubes. A new performance chamois from industry titan Elastic Interface is pressure-free and seems to be getting more comfortable with each use. (You can read the full review of 7mesh’s kit here.)

Here’s to long rides, people. Whatever you’re wearing.

Setting a high watermark for everything that comes next: 7mesh review

New releases from BC-based 7mesh feature materials typically reserved for high-altitude mountaineering and snow sports gear, borrowing from the backgrounds of several of its founders and current employees (former Arc’teryx staffers). With select notable exceptions, the kit is almost without equal; alpine-grade, exceptional across conditions and a genuine unicorn in a crowded wood.

We connected with the company’s European general manager to discuss a world beyond colour blocks and font tweaks - the one which 7mesh inhabits: true originality.

On the road to growth: uniquely executed designs have sales close to doubling every year.

“The initial idea was to create alpine-grade stuff that protects against the elements, not just lycra with big logos and high prices,” explains John Zopfi, the company’s European GM, recently over Zoom. “I think it’s important when you design something that you’re adding something to the market, not just being a copycat or building something that’s already there. On the functionality and fit side, there’s lots of innovation still possible in cycling.”

You needn’t look further than the company’s do-everything gilet for an example of what Zopfi believes is 7mesh’s hallmark. A feature-rich vest with GORE Infinium paneling that cuts wind, keeps in warmth, and has stretch fabric in the back to allow heat escape and back pockets to be loaded. Rear zippers provide venting and are easy-to-access (string toggles, too. A touch normally seen on snow jackets. Extremely practical.). It is cut slim (medium; 185cms, 73 kgs) with taped seams and at a meagre 93 grams, is a lightweight packable worth carrying and worn when needed. In light rain it beaded water and trapped heat brilliantly.

The Ashlu Merino Jersey Sustainable. Stink-free. Comfortable AF. If you’ve debated a merino jersey until know, this is the one. Rather than stitch the bottom and top of the jersey pockets to the merino directly, 7mesh stitched a separate, structured panel of pockets to the jersey (see first image); not only is it durable and harmonious with the lightweight 150 weave, it maintains the jersey’s integrity, giving it heavy duty carrying capacity without unnecessary pulling or stretching. It also adds a pretty cool gradient dimension borne from function. Two additional secure pockets on the left (oversized) and right. Perfectly suited to any kind of riding. (Size down for a snug, tapered fit.)

MK3 Cargo bib short At 214 grams, the new MK3 cargo bibs might not be the lightest bibs we’ve ridden in lately; they are however one of the best and most functional. The high-density elastane weave is similar to other cherished bibs from Ashmei, Q36 and others. It is compressive without being tight and offer the kind of support you want on long rides.

Three stash pockets in the rear store food or tubes; the cargo pockets are useful but need a more elasticized strip at the top to ensure what’s put in (particularly an oversized mobile) stays in. A new performance chamois from industry titan Elastic Interface is pressure-free and seems to be getting more comfortable with each use. Great silicon grips on the legs keep everything where it should be. I loved this short.

We never wanted to be the biggest kit maker, just the best

7mesh’s Skyline Jersey and the already widely reviewed Oro Jacket were still unboxed at the time of writing this review, however anything that comes in its own wash sack is immediately recognizable for being well-conceived. I almost look forward to being caught out in the rain to try it out.

As more people continue to recognize the quality coming out of Squamish, and as cycling’s more adventurous side more broadly explored, interest in 7mesh will deepen, and rightfully so. There is a meticulousness that is clearly being applied here; every item we tried seemed to be widening cycling apparel’s ultra high-end while at the same time being incredibly functional. They clearly excel at working with finicky, high-functioning materials, cut and sold in sizes to accommodate body types and ride styles.

Undeniably other heavyweights helped create and pave the road they are going down, but 7mesh intends broaden it, motivated by a specific, product-focused vision of what cycling apparel could (should?) look like.