Tech of the week: Van Rysel releases an aero bike (quelle shock!) plus a superlight carbon crankset from FSA, an extended high tube bag from Tailfin and tyre liners from Zefal
Aero race bikes are fairly the factor nowadays. Whereas some producers have chosen to place their eggs in a single basket, making an aerodynamically enhanced race bike that’s used throughout all races and levels by the sponsored professionals, some have opted to tread a extra conventional route, making a devoted machine for the flatter levels, that sits alongside one thing for when the street factors upwards. Colnago simply introduced the discharge of its first aero bike in years, one which can be utilized by Pogacar and his UAE crew within the season forward. And now we’ve got Van Rysel following swimsuit; its RCR-F aero bike will give the Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale group a further choice to the RCR, which it raced with quite a lot of success final yr.
One bike? Extra bikes? Who is aware of the reply however my feeling is nice bike racers will win regardless. However it’s enjoyable to see the differing approaches nonetheless.
Alongside the brand new Van Rysel machine we take a better take a look at a light-weight carbon crankset, a easy gadget for lowering punctures and a voluminous high tube bag.
Van Rysel RCR-F
The RCR-F appears each bit the trendy aero bike
(Picture credit score: Van Rysel)
Van Rysel made headlines when it launched the WorldTour’s most reasonably priced bike, the RCR. The group, Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale, then performed its half by racking up 30 victories for the 2024 season. So how do you look to proceed that success in 2025? By releasing one other bike for a begin.
Deep tubes prevail on the brand new RCR-F
(Picture credit score: Van Rysel)
The RCR-F (quick?) is Van Rysel’s devoted aero bike. It truly made its debut at this yr’s Tour de France however will get a full launch for the season forward. Particulars are scant, with Van Rysel saying solely that it’s a “highly effective machine that may propel basic riders and sprinters to an unprecedented degree,” in addition to being “designed to slice by means of the air with velocity”.
The upcoming Tour Down Below ought to see the RCR-F formally unveiled with just a little extra fanfare. Nonetheless, it is going to be in the course of the early Classics races and one-day occasions in Europe the place it should actually be put by means of its paces. Van Rysel are clearly pleased it has created a motorbike match for function. Now all of the the Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale riders have to do is sustain their finish of the discount.
Zefal Z Liner
Roadies can use the Z Liner tape because of the inclusion of a 19mm broad measurement
(Picture credit score: Zefal)
I’d hazard a guess that almost all cyclists concern winter using not due to the chilly and the moist – there are garments and mudguards for that, in any case – however slightly the considered getting a puncture. Altering a tube, roadside, with numb palms and a stream of uncaring motorists for an viewers is grim stuff certainly. Which could simply make Zefal’s new Z Liner one of the best stocking filler you will obtain this Christmas.
The 27mm width tape will accommodate wider rims
(Picture credit score: Zefal)
Supplied in a spread of widths for street, gravel and mtb tyres, it is a strip of protecting tape created from what Zefal calls a ‘extremely resistant polyurethane materials’, designed so as to add a layer of extra safety. Sitting between the inside tube and tyre, it provides about 200 grams to every wheel. Nonetheless, throughout winter, when a bibs and braces strategy is advisable, it’s a small value to pay, ought to it work as marketed.
FSA SL-Ok Mild crankset
Hole carbon crank arms make for an exceptionally mild chainset
(Picture credit score: FSA)
Because the identify suggests, the FSA SL-Ok Mild crankset is concentrated largely on weight, or lack thereof. It succeeds on the scales thanks largely to the hole UD carbon crank arms, which FSA says additionally supply ‘distinctive stiffness’.
(Picture credit score: FSA)
Elsewhere the direct mount, cold-forged alloy chainrings use the model’s Megatorq expertise, a tooth profile design that goals to cut back dropped chains even when beneath excessive load, whereas guaranteeing clean shifting always; FSA says this new tech has improved chain retention by 45% in comparison with the earlier mannequin. Should you’re sceptical of numbers corresponding to these, the SL-Ok Mild crankset has not solely been examined within the lab but additionally by FSA’s professional group companions, which embody EF Schooling and Uno-X.
Accessible in 4 sizes – 50/34T, 52/36T, 53/39T, and 54/40T – they’re suitable with all 12-speed Shimano and FSA drivechains, in addition to a variety of framesets, thanks, FSA says, to the revolutionary lockring on the left crank arm, which permits for minute changes.
Tailfin Lengthy High Tube Bag
For added stability the Lengthy High Tube bag makes use of Tailfin’s V-mounts
(Picture credit score: Tailfin)
I’m all in favour of merchandise with self-explanatory names, such because the Tailfin Lengthy High Tube Bag.
Consider a typical bar bag you may use for bikepacking. Merge it with a ‘bento’ field that sits on the highest tube and also you get the image. Tailfin says the Lengthy High Tube Bag “provides class-leading stability, considerably elevated storage capability, and intelligent organisational options.”
Tailfin provides the bag in three sizes to keep away from to knee rub, together with the 1.6L model proven right here
(Picture credit score: Tailfin)
To realize this it depends on the identical V-mounts used on its different baggage; this design negates the necessity for any stabilising straps. Then there are carbon stablising struts that help the structural integrity of the bag, customisable organisation choices because of the divider, and double entry zips, that are additionally waterproof.
It’s supplied in three sizes – 1.6L, 2.2L, and three.0L – with the primary two suited to street and gravel frames, the place knee rub could be a problem with some baggage, whereas the most important quantity bag is healthier suited to mtbs, because of their wider Q-factor.
The claimed weights are surprisingly mild – 206g, 250g and 265g repsectively – given the measurement of the baggage, which vary between 370mm and 500mm in size, and the sturdy ripstop materials.
