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TECH NEWS
2015 new products from Thule, K-Edge, Ridley, Rapide and Madison
We've just returned from Milton Keynes for the annual trade-only Icebike show, put on by distributor Madison to show off its huge range of bikes and products. We had a good rummage around the stands and unearthed some new and interesting bits and bobs, a lot of this stuff will be appearing in your local bike shop very soon.
Rapide reveals RL Disc gravel disc-equipped prototype
A new brand launched last year by the same people that produce Genesis, Saracen and Ridgeback bikes, Rapide have a really good looking range of UK designed road bikes, stemming all the way from kids’ and entry-level bikes up to high-end carbon fibre race bikes, priced from £649 up to £2,999.
As we all know, disc brakes are very much in fashion at the moment, and Rapide, perhaps surprisingly for such a young brand, showed this RL Disc It’s still in prototype stage at the moment, but what it is is a gravel bike with space for big tyres and the sort of geometry that works on a multitude of terrain and surfaces.
The frame is aluminium, the fork carbon fibre, and there are quick release axles at both ends. There are plans for three models with a frameset option as well, with a Tiagra, Sora and 105 build. The 105 bike will use hydraulic disc brakes, while the two cheaper bikes will use mechanical TRP Spyre callipers.
There are mudguard mounts and the sort of versatility many customers for this sort of bike expect. There will be mudguard mounts on the production fork - this prototype fork was missing the mounts as you can see. Tyres up to 42mm wide can be fitted, with plans to spec the Continental SportContact tyre.
Got to say, it's a great looking bike, and most people we chatted to were in agreement that the sparkly orange paint job was a well judged decision. What do you think? Orange is pretty much in fashion at the moment, if you look around a few bike and clothing brands.
Rapide are looking at July delivery on this new bike.
As well as this gravel bike, there are apparently plans in the pipeline for a disc-equipped road bikes at some strange, to take inspiration from their road bike model. It should have space for up to 28mm tyres and be offered in three builds with a Shimano Ultegra hydrualic disc brake option. Will be interested to see how that looks. They also mentioned there might be a carbon version of the RL Disc too.
Ridley launches new X-Night SL Disc and X-Night Disc cyclocross models
Want to hear about Ridley’s new line of cyclocross bikes? Course you do.
This is the X-Night SL Disc. It's essentially last year's X-Night Disc, but with the introduction of the cheaper X-Night Disc into range this year, which is made using the same mould but with a lower grade carbon fibre, the bike from last year has been upgraded to the X-Night SL Disc in the lineup. The new X-Night Disc carries just a 170g weight penalty. Back to the range-topping X-Night SL Disc, and it'll be available with two builds costing £3,799 and £4,299, with Shimano hydraulic disc brakes.
The frame has a press-fit 30 bottom bracket, a tapered head tube and all hoses and cables are internally routed. There’s a new fork in development that will be coming out in the summer which will uses a 15mm thru-axle.
Note the metal plate on the inside leg, designed to prevent damaged to the fork when conducting speedy wheel changes. More details on the new fork when they're made available.
This is the X-Night 30 Disc, which is essentially the same as the SL - it comes out of there same mould but uses a lower grade carbon fibre. Final specs have yet to be finalised but, bikes will either use Shimano hydraulic disc brakes or TRP Spryre mechanical discs, with Shimano drivetrains across the board. The bike pictured here has a Shimano Ultegra mechanical build with hydro disc brakes and costs £2,799.
While Ridley have been busy with their carbon fibre cyclocross race bikes, their aluminium models are also worthy of a mention. This X-Ride 20 Disc uses an aluminium frame with a carbon fibre fork and is specced with a Shimano 105 mechanical groupset and hydraulic disc brakes, and costs £1,499. It's a classy looking bike and a good package for the money.
Looks like the ideal option for anybody looking to get into cyclocross racing and keen on the idea of disc brakes.
Another bike that caught our attention is the X-Bow 20 Disc Allroad. Take a regular ‘cross bike and dress it up with commuter parts including full-length mudguards and paint it a nice subdued colour.
This is the X-Bow 10 Disc, with a Shimano 105 mechanical drivetrain and TRP Spyre brakes,a and a £1,099 price tag.
If disc brakes aren’t your cup of tea, Ridley also offers a regular cantilever version of each model in the range.
Thule launches new bike racks and bags
Thule have launched new bags, panniers and updated bike racks for 2015. Not a brand new product as such, but a new black colour option this year, is the Wingbar.
It’s an evolution of the original Aero cross bar and this new version is claimed to decrease the impact on fuel economy by as much as 55%. It’s also said to be much quieter as well, thanks largely to the rubber strip that smooths the central gap. It’s now available in this black colour.
This is the Wingbar Edge. The cross bar is available in five widths and is integrated with the foot bracket, creating a much cleaner appearance on the car than the regular crossbars, which can jut out at the sides. It’s not as accommodating of different car sizes though, but with five widths most cars should be careered for. It’s not a brand new product, but this black colour is new.
Here’s the new Velo Compact 926, a replacement for Thule’s 921 G2 towball mount rack. It’s a 3-bike carrier and, which with an optional extra, can accommodate 4-bikes. It’s capable of transporting a combined 60kg.
The main aim for the new rack design was to make it more user friendly. A new Hercules coupling with a self-stabilising mechanism makes it easier to mount onto the towball without the entire rack flopping down. The wheel holders are more easily adjustable with one hand, and improved bike grippers make the job of securing the bicycles to it far simpler. It’s available now and costs £549.99.
Thule don’t just do car racks, not these days, they have been branching out into other segments and two years ago launched the Pack 'n Pedal system. To address some concerns that the panniers were quite costly, they have introduced this new Shield Pannier. It costs £85, which the tell us is cheaper than similar offerings from other notable brands. Available in two sizes and three colours, the Shield is on sale now. The panniers have a welded construction and roll top closure to keep the contents dry.
If you prefer a backpack for lugging a laptop and spare clothes to the office, Thule have your needs covered: they’ve added a line of backpacks for 2015. This is the Commuter backpack, it uses a rolltop design and has plenty of pockets for all your gubbins, even a place for your laptop. It has a padded back panel with vents for cooling, an integrated rain cover that can be remove for washing, and neat heat moulded crush zones for protecting values like glasses. Cost? £125.
Another new bag is the Paramount, available in 24, 27 and 29 litre sizes. The bag is made from a DWR treated material with a roll top design on the smaller bag, and a more conventional opening on the bigger bags, and there’s a side handle for carrying it off the bike. They're priced £99, £115 and £125.
Each bag is designed to be tough to withstand the abuse of daily commuter. There are easy access pockets when you need to quickly retrieve your Oyster card or wallet, and a protective slip pocket for your tablet. You can see the full range of bikes here.
The last new thing from Thule is this GoPro case, the Legend. It’s available in two sizes - £35 for the single, £50 for the double - and is designed, obviously, to protect your GoPro. The internal padded filler can be removed and it can be washed, in case mud finds its way into the case if you’re filming in bad weather.
Sam Pilgrim's Ridley Noah stunt bike
Not a bike you can buy, this Ridley Noah FAST, used by Sam Pilgrim to perform some gravity defying stunts in Road Bike Party 3 last year, was a highlight on the Ridley stand. Hard to miss it with its lemon and lime paint job. If you missed the film, where have you been? Don’t worry, here’s a link in case you did miss it.
The bike looks mostly stock save for the Vision Metron wheels fitted with some Continental Commuter tyres, presumably for the extra toughness they provide over 200g racing tyres. The main and most obvious change appears to be simply flipping the stem over to raise the height of the handlebars.
You can watch a video charting the building of the special bike here
K-Edge Combo Mount
You’re nobody unless you offer a GoPro mount these days. K-Edge have released the new Combo Mount, which combines a Garmin Edge 1000 compatible mount on top with a GoPro mount underneath.
It’s actually based on the same XL mount that Dave reviewed back along, and uses the existing bolts underneath (which allows the Garmin to be orientated in a landscape position) to attach a GoPro mount.
The GoPro mount can be retrofitted to an XL mount, handy if you already happen to have one of those.
Madison expand saddle range
Madison have expanded their range of saddles, with lots of choice to meet the demands of most road cyclists.
They’re offering a range of widths, and generally the racier the saddle, the narrower it is. This top-end Road Race Carbon is 128mm across. It has carbon fibre rails and base, weighs just 120g and costs £150.
Quite lot of money, but it’s quite a lot less than other big brand saddles of a similar weight.
Moving down the saddle range, this Road Race has a 126mm width and uses titanium rails with a nylon fibre base, for a 218g weight. It costs £59.99.
This is the £34.99 Sportive model, the widest road saddle in the range with a 137mm width. It’s built with chromoly rails, a double density base material and super light foam padding, and weighs 248g. Something for everyone then.
That's your lot for now. More from the Icebike show soo
David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes.
Latest Comments
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https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/technical-faq-bottom-bra...
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That's what we are told. Edge-of-town housing developments are progressing at haste here in Shropshire, all with the same car-centric, profit...
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Or lezyne tubeless pro plugs. I've got a set, but had no chance to try them out. I want to use those mushrooms.
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That's a bit forward! But yes; pop up any time you like. Except when the buses have been at the bridges.
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If businesses are suffering on Linthorpe Road it is entirely their own fault, most of the destination type shops moved out long before the cycle...
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I live in a mostly flat town and can maintain 22-25mph. Makes no difference to drivers who still overtake frantically even only to slow down to my...
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12 comments
My opinion on disc brakes is easy, yes they work. Do I want them on my best bike? No, as they are fooking ugly and ruin the aesthetics of a stunning frame IMO.
By the same token, disc brake owners need to stop trashing rim brake aficionados as being luddites.
I like rim brakes b/c I have a lot of money invested in them. When one owns 3-4 bikes and 5-6 wheelsets, the interoperability of these is key b/c you can tune your bike to what the conditions require: 404s for speed/distance, CX tubs for CX, Ultegra 6700s for communting & bumbling about, Hed Ardennes for mtns and crits.
This makes me want to avoid changing to discs but for now and the next 10 years I don't have to b/c I can find what I need. In fact, as people moving to discs sell their rim-brake wheels, I don't mind snapping up deals.
Same with Shimano or Campag 9 speed. Most people I know have some old jalopy with 9 speed and it is very easy to source cassettes, chainrings and chains new, and shifters in a used state.
Having this choice is fantastic.
Saying that discs are better "just because" is also wrong. Maybe you didn't know how to set up your rim brakes very well? In the CX racing ranks where it braking is as important as commuting there is still no clear preference between riders who have their choice. In fact Sven, for example, was mostly back to cantis in 14/15.
It's not either/or. Road discs are in an evolutionary phase while things settle down - like QR/through-axles, spacings, post mounts, etc etc. Yes, right now you might buy brand A for you and B for your spouse, to find the wheels don't swap. That's a reality in our house right now, with 8,9,and 10-speed cogsets all over the show. And 11 coming soon.
And stopping power is not it either. It's a combination of many things that mean road discs are now an option where for many people the ups outweigh the downs. How many club-run folks have multiple wheelsets? I bet it's less than 10%. Probably less than 1% amongst the wider cycling community. Ergo, swapping just is not an issue. If you really need to, buy a matching wheelset - like I'm going to for my wife's CdF, so she can have 28c's and 35mm CX balloons a few seconds from each other.
...actually, back to stopping power: it is it. Just returned from 2hrs of hilly Hampshire in pissing rain. Several arse-clenching moments where Kool-Stop Salmons, new cables and a ton of lever were not making an ounce of difference for the first few seconds. Sod that, rim brakes are a bloody liability in a UK winter. I wonder how many road rider KSI's are down to crap wet brakes...and no, we aren't all Sven Nys with a fleet of canti-equipped bikes and limitless new wheels when they wear out.
Fact is, discs are just better for 95% of people & their uses. 5% who need multiple wheelsets can stick with rim brakes, and all the faff/poor performance they entail. *that's fine, I have no problem with that*. I'm not calling anyone a Luddite, even if they are bagging discs from the POV of a niche use case.
...oh, and ref. above post, in 4 years running national-level MTB races back when all wheels were QR except triple-clamp DH rigs, I never heard a single instance of a disc wheel popping out under braking. Not one. Non-issue. Not conspiracy.
You see anyone buying a mountain bike these days with v brake? No and I wouldn't buy one.
Same goes with road bikes. Would I go back to v or rim brakes? No chance. Why because disc is that much better. Shame you invested so much on your rims. Lack of vision? I waited for disc brake on road for years and I wondered why it took so long. I could never understood people who can't see ahead or want to embrace advancement. Lucky for us you are the minority otherwise we will still be at stone age.
Actually why are you even on this site? It is all about news and new things which probably shouldn't concern you because you like to live in your own world.
"disc brakes are very much in fashion at the moment"
...so does Road.CC see them going out of 'fashion' sometime soon? if so, on what grounds?
Or can we move beyond the (in some circles) quasi-religious faux-retro-grouch anti-discism, and just recognise that for 99.999% of riders being able to stop reliably in any weather without eating rims, making a huge mess or needing regular cable replacement is well overdue?
Have you ever actually owned a bike with disc brakes?
Because speaking as someone who has owned disc braked mountain bikes for the last 15 years, I can tell you that the maintenance is required is greater and more expensive. Every part will wear out or need replacing. I have even replaced disks after they developed a lip on the edge (on a mechanical disk the wheel can be removed by loosening pads, on hydraulic disk you would have to bleed the brake to get wheel off). Replacing pads requires bleeding, seals will crap out, sometimes replacing the whole unit makes more sense than rebuilding. If you have more than 1 set of wheels (like me) there is a good chance you will have to realign calipers every time you change from one set to the other (like me). I just replaced my road bike brake cables for the first time after 8 years (only because the ends were frayed), the wheels are 16 years old, the pads are still fine. Cost=$3.50/year. My 18 month old mountain bike needed new front pads (and bleeding by mech)after 1 year. Cost (so far) $50/year.
So? Don't get your point? You obviously like disc brakes because you've had it for 15 years?
I have been riding on the road for years and recently changed to discs and I can't be happier. Its not true that you have to bleed to change pads, you must be very ill informed if you think that's the case. Its not true either that I have too bleed the system to get the wheels off. Please don't post things you have no idea what you are talking about.
If anything its so easy to remove the wheels with discs. You don't have to loosen the brake line or the lever and then pull the wheels off.
For a sense of security and the amount of braking power compared to discs and v brake I choose the discs anytime. Stop living in the stone age and move on. We strife to improve not digress.
Starting with a full XTR Gary Fisher Level Betty FH0 with the first production run of Hayes to hit the market, circa 1998. Marzocchi triples, from what I recall 180mm rotors. Then had a couple other DH bikes (written off in what I like to call 'style'), then settled into my 'family guy now can't break self or this one' ride that I've had for 14 years, a Deore-equipped GT iDrive 3.0 with Deore full hydraulic. A bike that I raced in the Questars single-day adventure race series three years running. Two years ago picked up a Trek GF Marlin SS 'niner with new Deore full hydraulic for laffs, oh, and got my wife a Genesis CdF with Hayes CX Expert mechanicals, plus an older lower-end Shimano cable-braked MTB. Do all work myself, including bleeds, pad replacement and caliper adjustment (using the most excellent Hayes tool).
So yes.
You show me your reality, I'll show you mine. I have never had to replace a brake hose or cable. I have never had to bleed a system to change pads. I have never had a seal fail. I have never let a rotor get misshaped. I have always ensured wheelsets are swappable without rub let alone caliper alignment needed. In 14 years of MTB with three years of AR in often appalling conditions I have changed the pads on my iDrive three times, each time taking about three minutes. Without bleeding a thing. I once did top up the fluid to get a slightly different feel, but that only took 5 minutes and was not strictly necessary. Rule of thumb is I change brake pads somewhere between changing chains and cogsets. So compared to the rest of the bike, discs are cheap to run.
You can't be riding year-round in the UK then Imaca, and cable ferrules are available. I go through about three sets of pads a year, either Ultegra/Dura-Ace (whatever's on special) in the summer, and salmon Kool-Stops for winter. Change the cable inners & outers every 3-4000km, when they start to feel spongy, using Shimano SP41 outer and decent off-brand coated SS inners. Pads + cables per year must be about £50 - not bad for 10k in all weathers on hilly, crap-coated roads. Oh, and one set of rims per year, because friction/alloy/heat/flint, y'know.
I don't doubt that it cost you money. I can't comment on why because I haven't seen the bike, but that sounds totally out of the norm.
I bother to write all the above as both a trip down memory lane, and to challenge/refute the notion that discs are more expensive than rim to maintain. Whilst there are always trainwreck statistical outliers such as yourself, on the whole (and based on my experience) disc-equipped bikes cost a hell of a lot less to run than rim-braked ones. And you have more fun/less faff.
you're reading quite a lot into that. discs are in fashion, like fat bikes are in fashion. ten years from now we'll still have discs, and fat bikes will likely have retreated back to the snow line/beach. but everyone's making gravel bikes because they're the thing right now, not because all the bike manufacturers had a meeting and decided to advance the technology for the good of mankind. even so, it's still a good trend.
(Turned into a bit of a tome unfortunately but here goes...)
Back in the mists of time for some of us, and unknown to most of the roadie crowd I expect, there was some analysis (by James Annan - full time job in climate science) which led to quite a bit of discussion, regarding possible loosening of QRs in fork dropouts when used with disk brakes. I think what prompted it was a broken neck suffered by STW forum regular Russ Parkin, who sued Fox (the fork manufacturer) - this was settled out of court so make of that what you will.
At the time there was mostly silence from the bike industry IIRC, and possibly some degree of assumption in assorted user anecdotes of 'my fault, I couldn't have tightened the qr properly' (as I've assumed myself).
Irrespective of how significant it is in practice, there still seems the possibility of a loosened qr resulting in an ejected wheel, as in Russ' case - yet most manufacturers seem to be using forks with downward facing dropouts..rim braking forces the axle backwards, normal disk brake placement forces it downwards. ( Lawyers lips were devised for idiots using QRs as wingnuts)
At the time (2003) the simplest solution seemed to be use Shimano (knurled faces/steel skewers), avoid (stretchy) Ti skewers and those with external cams, and do them up bloody tight.
I don't want to resurrect the whole argument again - it was done to death at the time (google is your friend..) but not successfully disproved.
Other than thru-axles (mostly on gravel bikes), are many manufacturers adopting the other simple fix - caliper fwd of the fork or fwd facing dropouts (as Cotic use) ? In a recent tech session at our small bike club some qrs were worryingly low in tightness...
The guards on that X-Bow 20 Disc Allroad look really nice. Anybody know what they are?
i think they're by curana