2023 has been a great year for new road bike releases with some popular models seeing a refresh, however, it feels as though last year has been the year of the endurance bike with many other categories not seeing many updates. Sam Gupta has done some research and has pulled together a number of different models which he believes will be updated on this year and it looks like we're set for a year of light weight climbing bikes.
Category
đŸ¥‡
SportsTranscript
00:00 I've done some digging online
00:01 and I've pulled together a number of models
00:03 which I think could be due for an update,
00:05 as well as some bikes which personally,
00:08 I would just love to see hit the market.
00:10 Now, before we go any further,
00:11 you may have noticed that my face
00:13 is looking a little bit funny.
00:15 And that's because I was in a fight,
00:17 not with a person, but with a wasp.
00:20 I was out riding and it stung me on my face, not ideal.
00:23 So if you can excuse the swelling,
00:25 then let's jump into the video.
00:27 (upbeat music)
00:30 We'll start with a bike, which to my mind,
00:34 has to be a bit of a no-brainer.
00:36 And that's because I kind of expected it
00:38 to actually come this year.
00:40 In March, we saw the launch of the new Cannondale Super 6,
00:43 the brand's do-it-all road race bike.
00:46 At the same time, it also launched the Lab 71 Monaca,
00:49 which stands to be the brand's top of the range bikes,
00:52 utilizing a higher grade of carbon fiber.
00:55 After the Super 6 was launched,
00:57 it also released a gravel going Lab 71 Topstone.
01:01 Clearly, it's fairly easy to put the new carbon fiber
01:04 into existing molds.
01:06 So, a Lab 71 System 6 should be on the cards.
01:11 However, the System 6 in its current guise
01:14 is a bike that has been around for quite a while.
01:17 In fact, it's been around since 2018.
01:20 So it's well overdue an update.
01:23 The change in UCI rules mean Cannondale
01:26 could potentially have something really wacky in the works.
01:29 Perhaps the brand will lean into the elongated head tube
01:32 like the Specialized SL8,
01:34 or it may just leave the System 6 behind altogether.
01:39 It's not out of the question
01:40 that the brand could just let the System 6 fade away
01:43 and halt production of the model.
01:45 The lack of an aero bike could then be countered
01:47 by making the next generation of the Super 6 even more aero
01:51 and take on more of a Specialized SL8 design ethos,
01:54 with more aero features at the front
01:56 and more lightweight features at the rear.
01:59 One bike I'm very confident will be coming next year
02:06 is an update to the CAD 13,
02:08 and logic dictates that it be called the CAD 14.
02:12 This is a bike that I am really excited about.
02:15 I've not hidden the fact
02:16 that I love a premium aluminum frame.
02:19 I love how they feel to ride
02:21 and the fact that with the right specification,
02:24 they are just as light as their carbon counterparts,
02:26 but for a fraction of the cost.
02:29 My hope for the CAD 14
02:30 is that Cannondale do something similar to Trek,
02:33 who revamped its Émonda ALR
02:35 by giving it a slightly more aggressive frame geometry,
02:38 stripping out a load of weight from the frame,
02:40 and also really refining the tube shapes.
02:43 It also maintained a classic-looking frame shape
02:46 with no-drop seat stays,
02:48 which from an aesthetic point of view, I really enjoy.
02:51 I'd love for Cannondale
02:52 to go back to a classic-looking frame,
02:54 much like the CAD 12,
02:56 and also work on making the frame a lot lighter,
02:59 ideally around the 1,000-gram mark.
03:02 My second hope for a potential CAD 14
03:05 is that the brand also releases a Lab 71 model of the bike.
03:09 Now, in my mind, it would have the Lab 71 paint job,
03:13 the Momo-designed bars with the top-end RSL wheels,
03:17 with the same fork as found on the Lab 71 Super 6,
03:21 a Dura-Ace groupset,
03:23 and of course, a ceramic speed bottom bracket.
03:26 Would it be overkill?
03:27 Absolutely.
03:28 Would it make much sense?
03:30 Not really, but would I absolutely want it
03:33 and be prepared to pay for it?
03:35 100%.
03:37 Quite frankly, it would be one of the coolest bikes
03:40 out there, so if anyone from Cannondale is watching,
03:43 please make it happen.
03:45 (upbeat music)
03:49 Quite recently, Giant updated its endurance bike,
03:52 the Defy.
03:53 It made the bike a whole lot lighter,
03:55 made it slightly more performance-orientated,
03:57 and supposedly made it more comfortable.
04:00 What struck me most was the former, though,
04:02 that big reduction in weight.
04:05 It demonstrated what Giant is capable of
04:07 when it sets its sights on making something light.
04:10 To bring a Defy frame weight in at a claimed 785 grams
04:14 really shows just how light a new TCR could be.
04:19 It's highly likely that a potential new TCR
04:22 could come in at the low 600 gram region.
04:25 The weight saving could also go further than just the frame.
04:28 With the brand's own components and K-Dex wheels,
04:31 it has the ability to strip out weight
04:33 from every part of the bike,
04:35 and full builds could be landing in the region
04:38 of the low to mid-six kilos.
04:40 The current top-end TCR comes in at a claimed 6.7 kilos,
04:44 so seeing this drop by a few hundred grams
04:47 is certainly a possibility.
04:50 One question looms, though,
04:51 that being would it really make any difference?
04:55 Probably not.
04:56 Having a reliable and versatile bike
04:58 is certainly more valuable,
05:00 but if Giant were able to combine all of these attributes,
05:04 then that would be a pretty exciting proposition.
05:12 After Trek launched the new Madone back in 2022,
05:15 it's safe to say that it turned a lot of heads
05:18 with the Isoflow hole in the seat tube.
05:20 Now, though, I think most riders
05:22 are pretty well accustomed to the look of it,
05:24 and I believe it's been pretty well accepted
05:26 into cycling design.
05:28 Isoflow to one side,
05:29 the Madone itself is a wicked bike to ride.
05:33 It's incredibly fast,
05:34 and we love the care and attention
05:35 that Trek put into the bike as a whole
05:37 to keep the rider going as quickly as possible.
05:40 And it's for these reasons
05:42 that I'm getting pretty excited
05:44 about a potential new Émonda.
05:46 As the Émonda sits in Trek's range
05:48 as a do-it-all climbing race bike,
05:50 I do not think it would be out of the question
05:53 to see an Émonda also get an Isoflow hole.
05:57 It would aid in the bike's aero performance,
05:59 and since Trek also claimed that it helps save weight,
06:02 then that very much matches the Émonda's ethos.
06:06 I see the new Émonda as potentially becoming a baby Madone.
06:10 A bike which perhaps has a slightly less
06:12 aggressive position, but is still race-orientated,
06:16 naturally, it would be lighter,
06:18 and would perhaps try to get close
06:20 to the Specialized SL8 in terms of weight.
06:23 Since the Madone does require
06:25 a decent level of flexibility and skill
06:27 to deal with a fast steering feel,
06:29 a slightly softer version of the bike
06:32 in the form of an Émonda
06:33 could be the perfect road race bike
06:35 for a much larger segment of the market.
06:38 (upbeat music)
06:41 Pinarello has been mighty active in the past year
06:46 with its launch of two brand new ranges of bikes,
06:49 that being the X-Series and the F-Series,
06:52 which replace the Prince and the Paris, respectively.
06:56 We also saw the new Dogma X quite recently,
06:58 which now sits as the top of the range model
07:01 in the X-Series range.
07:03 However, the brand's flagship race bike,
07:06 the range-topping Dogma F, was last updated in 2021.
07:11 So perhaps we could have a 2025 bike launched next year.
07:16 I'm not sure what Pinarello would aim to do with the bike.
07:19 It would likely be a very iterative update
07:22 rather than being something drastically new.
07:24 So I'd expect to see these updates
07:26 along the lines of a bike being slightly lighter,
07:28 stiffer, and more aero, as per usual.
07:32 (upbeat music)
07:36 Launched back in 2020 was the Cervelo Caledonia,
07:40 the brand's road-going endurance/all-road bike.
07:44 It's a category of bike that has really hotted up
07:46 in the past few months,
07:48 since Canyon's Endurace and Specialized Roubaix
07:51 have also taken to the same space.
07:54 Cervelo, though, does have the opportunity
07:56 to bring an updated version of the bike to the market
07:59 that really rivals that of the market leaders.
08:02 We gave the bike four and a half stars when we reviewed it,
08:05 with our only Quam being tied up
08:07 in the price compared to competitors.
08:09 So if Cervelo can come in
08:11 alongside the other options on the market,
08:13 it could land as a fantastic option for the customers.
08:17 I'm guessing Cervelo would likely increase tyre clearance
08:20 from the current 34 millimetres,
08:22 and perhaps build in a greater amount of frame storage.
08:25 But in terms of rideability and current geometry,
08:29 we are already big fans of what it's created.
08:32 (upbeat music)
08:35 Sticking with Cervelo for one more bike,
08:39 and the R5 is also potentially coming
08:41 to the end of its product cycle.
08:44 The R5 does sit along the S5,
08:46 so you either have your climbing bike or your aero bike.
08:50 And the brand has previously said
08:52 that it doesn't want to dilute either of them.
08:55 The R5 is already pretty light,
08:57 as the frame comes in at a claimed 700 grammes,
09:00 which is very good.
09:02 So perhaps, if it were to be updated,
09:05 we may only see a marginal improvement in the weight.
09:07 However, refining the frame shape
09:09 to potentially become a little bit more aerodynamic
09:13 without stepping on the toes of the S5,
09:15 could net a greater improvement,
09:17 while also making it a little bit stiffer.
09:20 Again, I think that this would be an iterative update,
09:23 but it will be a very exciting one
09:26 when it's underneath Team Jumbo-Visma.
09:28 (upbeat music)
09:32 Last on my list is the Scott Addict.
09:35 Scott launched the incredibly aerodynamic foil
09:38 less than 18 months ago,
09:40 and so it's clear that the brand has no intention
09:42 of creating a do-it-all road race bike,
09:45 which means we could be in for yet another
09:47 stripped back specialist climbing bike.
09:50 I've always thought that the Addict looked great,
09:53 and previous generations of the bike
09:54 have been a pleasure to ride as well.
09:57 So, if the current model were to be replaced
09:59 with something that's even lighter and stiffer than before,
10:02 then in my eyes, that is only a recipe for success.
10:06 (upbeat music)
10:08 So, there we have it.
10:09 This year turned out to be the year
10:11 of the new endurance bike,
10:13 and perhaps next year could be the year
10:15 of the super lightweight climbing bike.
10:17 Let me know down below,
10:18 which bike are you most excited for to come next year?
10:22 If you enjoyed the video, then please do drop it a like,
10:24 subscribe to the channel for more content,
10:26 and I will see you again very soon.
10:28 [MUSIC PLAYING]