The carbon road bike: a racer for all weathers

This carbon road bike is the all-round racer of its range. The frame is light enough to give nothing away on a climb, the tubes have been shaped to save effort at cruising speed on the flat, and hydraulic disc brakes at both ends make it as dependable in the rain as on a long descent. The whole bike is matt charcoal grey, with no decoration to speak of, and looks modest wherever it is parked.

Frame and fork are moulded from high-modulus carbon fibre, and a medium frame weighs about 860 g. The down tube, seat tube and seat stays have a truncated teardrop section. Gear wires and brake hoses pass from the integrated handlebar straight into the head tube, so nothing shows from the front. The seat stays are dropped and slender, and with tyres 28 mm wide the vibration that reaches the hands over gravel and road joints is clearly reduced.

Gearing is 2×12 and electronic. Shifts are made with buttons that need only a light touch and are hard to press by mistake even in thick winter gloves. A 52/36 chainset and an 11-30 cassette look after both hard efforts on the flat and climbs of seven or eight per cent. The carbon disc wheels are 45 mm deep and 21 mm wide inside, with tubeless tyres fitted at the factory; for their depth they are among the easier wheels to handle in a crosswind. The rotors are 160 mm at the front and 140 mm at the rear, and the levers still feel linear after sustained braking on a long descent.

• Keen riders who go out once or twice a week for 80 to 150 km at a time.
• Riders preparing for an amateur road race or hill climb who want one bike for training and racing.
• Anyone who often rides the lakeside road and the hill roads and needs brakes that can be trusted on a wet surface.

There are three frame sizes, small, medium and large, for riders from 162 to 190 cm; a medium bike weighs about 7.6 kg without pedals. It comes with a computer mount, a charging cable for the gears, a torque wrench, bottle-cage bolts and a manual. Pedals are left to the buyer, to match their shoes. The frame is guaranteed for five years, and a first service is advised after 300 km.