Sonder Santiago Rival22 Hydraulic

According to Sonder Bikes, the Santiago is its take on the classic steel tourer: smooth, reliable and assured. As an all-round package it really delivers, especially from a comfort point of view, whether on or off-road.

• Pros: A beautifully smooth and comfortable frameset, decent tyre clearance
• Cons: Quite heavy, post mount callipers when the rest of the world has gone flat mount

Ride

If you've never ridden a steel frame then you really should. Generally speaking, even in its most basic alloy form the tubes it produces offer a smooth ride and tame road buzz, and this is what makes the Santiago such a comfortable place to spend many miles.

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Our test bike came with 35mm wide tyres and one of my first long rides on the Sonder was a four-hour trek on the local gravel tracks. I didn't really have a route planned, so I wasn't sure of the terrain ahead, but with the tyres pumped up to a rigid 55psi I headed off.

The loop turned out to be more than 90 per cent off-road rather than tarmac, but even with those tyre pressures being reasonably high the Sonder never felt uncomfortable even on the rough and rocky sections. There seems to be quite a bit of forgiveness from the seatpost/seat tube combination.

A look at the figures says the Santiago is heavy at 11.79kg (26lb) but it doesn't really feel like it. It has a responsive frame, relatively speaking, and on smooth terrain you can cover a decent mileage without having to work too hard.

It's only on the really steep climbs that you feel a little impaired, especially as it quickly loses the fight with gravity the moment you hit the base of the incline, even when carrying a lot of speed. You just need to sit down, bang the gears into the basement and tap away at it. Once I'd learned that, the Santiago and I got on well.

Being designed primarily as a tourer, the Santiago has a long wheelbase compared to something with more of racing bias. Our medium with a 56cm effective top tube length covers 1,063mm between its axles, which makes for a very composed bike on the road even when loaded up.

It'd make a great commuter bike too, if you are the type of rider who isn't scared when the weather turns a little bit iffy.

A lot of this is achieved by the lengthy 450mm chainstays, which offer plenty of tyre clearance and room for mudguards.

Up front, the head angle is a relaxed 71 degrees and you get a fork rake of 55mm (race bikes are usually around 45mm), which gives very neutral handling on the road. Exactly what you want when you are in for the long haul – a 600km audax on unfamiliar roads, for example.

What I really like, though, is that when you are on gravel tracks or diverting down that little byway you've never noticed before, the steering speed on a loose surface is fun enough to be exciting when you are pushing on but still controllable at slower speeds, without feeling like you need to be thinking too much about it.

If you are a hardcore four-season rider, one of those people who gets on the bike every morning without even taking a look out of the window at the weather, then you'd relate to the Santiago. It can take it all on. A change to lighter wheels and slick tyres for the good months would be all you'd need.

Obviously, there are a few compromises with all of this neutrality and relaxed handling when it comes to the trickier, faster sections on a descent. Admittedly, that's not exactly what you'd be buying this bike for, but it manages to hold its own through the bends.

Its weight means the Santiago feels planted to the surface, and the frame and components we've got here offer a decent amount of feedback, which lets you unleash the bike a little to have some fun.

And if it goes a little bit pear shaped – which it often does when you are testing the handling limits of bikes in for review – the SRAM Apex hydraulic brakes do a very good job of bringing the Santiago back to a more manageable speed.

Frame and fork

The top tube, seat tube and down tube are manufactured using cold worked and air hardened Reynolds 631 steel, with the rear triangle, straight 1 1/8in head tube and fork using chromoly instead, which gives an all-up weight of around 3.5kg.

Overall quality looks to be impressively good.

Yes, the frame and fork are running some (by the latest bike standards at least) old school accoutrements like post mount calliper mounts, a non-tapered head tube and quick releases for the wheels, but it doesn't really matter. It all works and delivers exactly as I'd expect for this kind of bike.

The welding is neat and tidy plus there are plenty of hose and cable guides adorning the frameset. It's all external but, just like the material used in the frame and fork, easily fixable and tuneable when out in the wilds. The paint job will take some stick too.

There are three bottle cage mounts plus, as I mentioned earlier, plenty of fixings for mudguards and racks, including four different options on the fork.

The Santiago will take both 650B and 700C wheels, with tyre clearances of 47mm and 37mm respectively, which covers the bases for the type of riding the bike is designed for.

Worthy of note is that Sonder offers a 10-year warranty on its steel and titanium frames, which is a good sign that it's willing to back up its products.

The Santiago comes in a range of four sizes from small to extra-large, in either a blue or grey colourway.

The build

This bike is based around a SRAM Rival groupset with hydraulic braking, but on Sonder's website it says it can tweak the build to one that suits you, which gives you a bit of customisation, plus you can tweak the sizes of the Love Mud components to suit, free of charge.

SRAM Rival, as Dave described it in his review, is a very good mid-range groupset.

Shifting is decent enough once you get used to the dynamics of its DoubleTap gear levers, and its brake callipers, when paired with these Avid Centerline 160mm rotors, offer very powerful stopping.

Sonder has gone for a 50/34 compact chainset paired to an 11-speed cassette, with ratios ranging from 11 to 36 teeth. On a race or endurance bike that would feel pretty gappy, but here on the Santiago it's totally fine, giving you plenty of top end for fast descents with low enough ratios for grinding up steep climbs. That said, if you are spending a lot of time fully laden you might be better off with the Santiago in its Touring build option, which has a smaller 48/32 FSA chainset paired to an 11-42 11-speed cassette.

The finishing kit is all branded Love Mud and it does the job. It's aluminium alloy, and while it's not the most refined or shock absorbing, I had no real issues with it. Nothing slipped or moved when off-road and the saddle was surprisingly plush while still offering plenty of support.

The handlebar has a flared drop which gives you extra stability when riding at speed, while offering more nimble steering when up on the narrower hood section. The drop is compact too, so switching between the two isn't an issue when the surface is on the rough side.

Love Mud also takes care of the wheelset with its Orbit model, paired with 35mm Panaracer Tour tyres.

Sonder has gone with a robust 32-spoke build front and rear, and they can take some abuse. I hit rocks and potholes at speed on the gravel rides and both the wheels and tyres took it in their stride with no damage or flats.

The tyres have minimal tread which makes them roll reasonably well on the road, but they can also cope with loose gravel easily and firm mud. A good fair weather tyre.

Value

When it comes to the cost, if you are used to looking at lightweight, mass-produced carbon fibre race bikes then the Santiago might look quite pricey at £1,799 (currently reduced to £1,549).

It's the same price as the Genesis Tour de Fer we tested in its 30 guise. That comes with a Reynolds 725 frameset, a triple Shimano Tiagra groupset and cable-operated disc brakes, which to me makes the Santiago look slightly better for your money.

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Up against the Bombtrack Audax the Santiago also looks impressive. The Bombtrack costs £2,100 with a Shimano 105 groupset, albeit with cable-operated discs; it is a bit lighter but to my mind the Santiago has a nicer riding frameset. The Bombtrack had quite a lifeless feel, but the Sonder I enjoyed riding: it was quite sprightly considering the weight, and I felt as though I was part of the bike rather than just sitting on it.

Conclusion

The Santiago could possibly look like it's been hanging around from a bygone age, but it delivers a beautiful ride quality on and off-road thanks to its geometry giving you a stable platform regardless of where you are riding.

Verdict

The Santiago delivers a comfortable and enjoyable ride over a range of terrains, no matter what the distance