ROAD PERFORMANCE
Argon 18 Sum $7,850
Early in 2022, Argon 18 launched the Sum, which still adds up as top option for the road. The Montreal-based company brought together the wind-cheating abilities of its aero Nitrogen and the lightness of its Gallium into one bike. On the Sum, the hourglass shape of the head tube, the internally routed hoses, the shape of the fork blades and the seat tube’s cut-out are all features that help the bike move through the air smoothly. The frame is responsive and saunters up climbs. Its drivetrain is sram’s Force etap axs. It rolls on the Hunt 4 Season wheelset. The wheels are fantastic for 95 per cent of your rides. That other five per cent? Well, if that’s racing, you might want rims that are a little lighter and a bit more aero, to make this fast bike even quicker. ( argon18.com)
Wilier GTR Team Disc $5,995
This gtr Team Disc gives you a lot of bang for your buck. The carbon-fibre frame sports an endurance geometry, which puts you slightly more upright than a full-on racer. You’ll be comfortable on long rides on country roads, while still having the frame stiffness required for a town-line sprint. The frame and fork are not the lightest, about 1.58 kg, but you are not pushing much more mass compared with a top-end frame. You do save some weight with the mechanical Shimano Ultegra group, a big bonus on this build. A 50/34-tooth crankset moves the chain back to a 11–30 tooth cassette. It’s a range that will get you up paved inclines easily and many rougher surfaces with a bit of extra torque. Shimano rotors bring the alloy Shimano RS171 wheels to a stop. ( wilier.com)
Bottecchia 8avio Revolution Disc $4,500
This year, Montreal’s Logica Sport will start bringing Bottecchia to Canada. Riders such as Greg Lemond, Stefano Garzelli and Gianni Motta had career-defining wins with the Italian bike brand. The 8avio Revolution is a lively road bike with a fit that’s slightly on the endurance side. Its carbonfibre frame tips the scales at a little more than 1 kg. One of the builds coming to our shores features Shimano’s I-can’t-believe-it’s-mid-range groupset: the 11-speed 105 mechanical system. fsa components round out the bike. The wheels are Vision’s journeyman hoops, the alloy Team 30 Disc. Hooked into those rims are smooth rolling 25c Veloflex Corsa Evo tires. ( logicasport.com)—matthewpioro