James’s Swift ‘classic’ racer
Disc brakes internal routing and electric gears? No thanks
Ifi
rst clapped eyes on this bike waaaaaay back
It arrived in the Cyclist office just like me brand new unproven and some months before we’d even sent the first issue of Cyclist to the printers
It was a pre production frameset for a bike that would become a stalwart of the Swiftcarbon range the Ultravox
The bloke who brought it in and sat me down to explain it was Swift’s founder Mark Blewett a South African ex pro who had upped sticks to China to live by the factory that was making his frames
Blewett was my baptism into the ways of Far East manufacturing opening my eyes to the fact that behind most bike brands stood a slew of ‘gun for hire’ Chinese factories
These ‘vendors’ produced overseas designs using expertise materials and machines that the West could only dream of
Blewett’s rationale of being so close to the action was to exploit such talents while ensuring quality control and quick decisions
This frame was one of the first results and bore all the hallmarks of cutting edge design boxy down tube and chainstays for stiffness skinny seatstays for comfort bladed fork for aero gains mm absolute max tyre clearance and a racer’s geometry
Hinting at its pre production ways it also had a bonded alloy sleeve in the PF BB instead of moulded carbon and graphics that didn’t quite line up
Look at this bike’s head tube and fork and you’ll see it’s actually the Swiift
Big day out
At Blewett’s invitation I built the Ultravox frameset up with a Sram Red groupset and some Reynolds R wheels to ride it at the Cape Rouleur sportive in his native South Africa
By today’s standards a mechanical rim brake groupset and a pair of skinny carbon wheels the R’s internal width was a mere mm sound positively antique but at the time my mind was blown
And years on I feel the Ultravox’s first spec sheet still compares favourably
Sure the Sram Red ‘only’ had gears and braking on carbon rims in anything other than perfect conditions was… an experience
But it weighed just g claimed which as far as I’m aware makes it the lightest groupset ever
produced Similarly the Reynolds wheels would be competitive even now weighing just g claimed no mean feat given carbon wheels back then needed lots of extra material in the brake track so they didn’t just melt You kids with your disc brake wheels don’t know you’re born
On my first ride out in South Africa I beat Stephen Roche in the Cape Rouleur’s timetrial OK he was and was only there as a celebrity draw but still this was Triple Crownwinning Stephen Roche The Ultravox must have been good because I certainly wasn’t
The test of time
Over the coming years the Ultravox served as a test mule for all manner of parts until time slowly rendered it obsolete I mean look you can see the bloody cables But I still love it and ride it when I can
For starters the Ultravox weighs less than most bikes I test today This is a size medium and weighs a mere kg The g DT Swiss Mon Chasseral wheels and Veloflex tubeless tyres a snip at just g help but otherwise this is a basic bike and one that was not ever considered top tier The frame weighs a claimed ga nd the frame set costa middle of the road in
Weight aside what endears the Ultravox to me is its ride feel It is stiff and agile feeling highly chuckable thanks to short
mm chainstays and mm wheelbase yet stable enough owing to a longish mm trail Interestingly these are all figures that disc brake bikes struggled to return to after early disc brake placement played havoc with things such as chainstay length mm anyone?
There’s a reason I’ve ridden the Ultravox so much I’ve had to replace the jockey wheels and the headset and the BB many times over I just love it It has been all over the world with me and has never let me down
On my first ride out in South Africa I beat Stephen Roche in the Cape Rouleur’s time trial