Ridley’s Astr RS is a lighter, sooner, fatter-tired gravel race bike than the Belgian bike builder has ever made. It’s a premium race-ready carbon gravel bike that I’d even be pleased to journey as my go-to for informal gravel driving, too. I’ve examined quite a lot of gravel bikes, together with the three Ridley gravel fashions that this one mashes up – the Kanzo Quick, the Kanzo Journey, and the Grifn. And the brand new Astr undeniably comes out on prime in my e-book.
It’s considerably lighter, way more versatile, and probably the most comfy of the bunch – on par with the ADV on that final one.
2024 Ridley Astr RS mild aero carbon gravel race bike
Labeled Ridley Manufacturing facility Workforce racers demanded a extra succesful gravel race bike for harder races like Unbound, Traka, Badlands, The Rift & extra the place quick intense racing will get blended up with rougher terrain. They needed all of the aerodynamic positive aspects, a lighter bike, AND a minimal of 47mm tire clearance. So Ridley went again to the drafting board. And so they primarily created the all-new Ridley Astr RS gravel race bike by scaling up their newest aero all-road Grifn RS to create a fats tire gravel bike with aero street race bike inspiration.
The important thing takeaways on the brand new bike embrace:
a body that now weighs simply 890g for a medium Ridley Astr RS, for 369g saved in comparison with the Kanzo Quick
aerodynamic tube shaping and cockpit integration, identical to on Ridley’s Falcn RS aero street race bike
as much as 52mm broad tire clearance with a 1x setup, or 47mm clearance with a street compact 2x
gravel race geometry that manages to mix all of that with out sacrificing responsiveness or high-speed stability
Wish to get the total breakdown of all the things that’s new within the Astr RS? Learn my in-depth launch protection from earlier this morning, right here.
So, how does the bike really really feel to journey?
Using Impressions: Quicker on fatter tires
It’s a light-weight race bike, so I shouldn’t have actually been stunned at how fast the brand new Ridley Astr RS felt as soon as I hopped on it. However it nonetheless caught me off guard a bit. Burned into my mind is the thought that fats gravel tires will really feel heavy & gradual, and that you just solely actually need massive tire quantity for backcountry adventures or driving gravel bikes on mountain bike trails.
However identical to we see driving high-end 30 & 32mm slick tires on the street, these fast-rolling 47mm Vittoria tires helped make the Astr RS really feel mild & fast. The broader, greater quantity tires meant I may run decrease pressures to easy out even easy gravel roads. They meant I elevated grip in sandy and unfastened gravel corners. And when the gravel roads acquired tough, I merely didn’t need to decelerate to really feel like I used to be nonetheless in management.
Race Geometry Overview: Tweaked for taller tires
And whereas massive tires lent some consolation & confidence-inspiring cush, the body itself felt snappy and responsive. Stomp on the pedals and the brief chainstays rocketed the bike up to the mark. Then, leaning it onerous into turns and the steep (for me) 71.5° head angle dove into the corners.
Ridley talks concerning the further 3mm of BB drop being there so as to add extra stability at velocity and cornering. However because the axles are already sitting about 7mm greater off the bottom than the Kanzo Quick due to greater tires, weight steadiness remains to be a bit greater right here. So, it’s extra the longer entrance heart / enhance in total wheelbase that reinforces stability, since it seems that the Astr has extra fork rake to offset the in any other case longer fork Path that comes from greater, taller tires.
The bonus counterpoint to the elevated backside bracket top, the Astr RS has 13mm decrease body Stack than the Kanzo Quick, which brings weight distribution again down, and reduces the rider’s profile into the wind. Match-wise, I’m fairly versatile, so I appreciated that decrease Stack, and possibly would have lower one other cm off the steerer tube if it was my private bike.
Using Overview: A quick, however versatile all-rounder gravel race bike
A number of bikes targeted on racing appear to require fixed consideration to maintain them in management and going quick. But, this bike felt very balanced. The geometry on paper appears to be like so just like the Kanzo Quick, which I discovered a bit too harsh and twitchy for my liking. However I really feel that the mixture of bigger/taller tires, longer total wheelbase, and decrease bar place makes this bike way more secure and cozy to manage.
It’s a noticeably extra impartial dealing with really feel that type of simply disappears beneath you in a great way. Simply pedal and go.
Sure, this can be a race bike. And an costly one at that. However it could even be a terrific all-rounder bike for my on a regular basis gravel rides. Quick and straightforward on informal group rides. And a race-ready rocket when it’s time to pin a quantity on and see how briskly you possibly can put the hammer down.
Weighing the Professionals & Cons
➕ Huge 52mm tire clearance means you possibly can decide one thing like these fast-rolling 47mm Vittoria Terreno Dry semi-slicks or full knobby 50mm/2″ MTB-style treads with tons of grip.
➕ Fatter tires merely provide higher traction, improved management, and extra all-day consolation. A few years in the past I might have mentioned that 50mm tires had been unnecessarily heavy and stiff feeling, however there merely are so many nice high-volume tires out there now that going wider is a a lot simpler choice to make.
➕ It’s onerous to argue with lightness on a motorcycle that you just’ll be consistently accelerating – whether or not up steep terrain, or simply getting again up to the mark after a tough part of gravel. At 890g (claimed) for the body and an actual 7.84kg for the entire medium SRAM Purple bike with a powermeter with out pedals (8.24kg with my Eggbeaters and a bolt-on toptube bag), this in an undeniably mild feeling journey.
➕ The identical goes for aerodynamics. Do we’d like all gravel bikes to be aero? After all not. But when you may get even small incremental aero positive aspects with out sacrificing consolation or weight, I’m 100% on board. At the least the free watts may offset the marginally wider tire profile into the wind.
➖ However, the excessive value is absolutely onerous to bear right here. With a frameset promoting for 5000€ and the most affordable full bikes from 7300€, there merely are many way more inexpensive gravel bikes which are nonetheless race-ready.
➖ The shortage of mechanical drivetrain compatibility is a nasty factor in my e-book. Name me a luddite, in order for you. Certain, the bike world is trending digital and wi-fi. And UDH is sweet. However I want the dependable simplicity of a mechanical groupset (and by no means having to recollect to cost it), particularly for a gravel bike the place I need to enterprise a bit off the crushed observe. Plus, you possibly can nonetheless construct a lighter mechanical setup, than one with a number of batteries interspersed all through the bike.
➕ It’s a sneaky plus right here for Ridley’s new gravel race household although. However the common carbon Astr is solely a significantly better worth than this Ridley Astr RS, at lower than half the worth. You save 2700€ off a frameset, solely sacrifice 200g in body weight, and achieve a spherical seatpost and that mechanical drivetrain comparability, all on the identical time. The usual Astr is solely a extra logical alternative, except you’ve an infinite finances.
➖ One of many issues I don’t actually like about my Ridley Astr RS take a look at bike was the lengthy 110mm x 400mm broad unflared cockpit, with a kinda deep 130mm drop & 75mm attain. I nonetheless get the sensation that Ridley is a bit old style of their becoming lengthy (digital) stems and longer bars to their dropbar bikes. However this doesn’t actually need to be a minus, as a result of…
➕ Ridley’s on-line customized configurator instrument makes it simple to get the bike arrange such as you need. Consumers can select their excellent crank size, chainring dimension, and importantly the very best handlebar match for them. The 4ZA Cirrus Professional built-in cockpit on this bike additionally is available in a flared model that I would favor. And had been I to purchase this bike I may decide the right 90mm stem, 380mm broad on the hoods, 440mm broad on the drops with its 16° flare, and a extra compact 120mm drop & 70mm attain combo.
➖ One other draw back in my thoughts is the proprietary inside cable routing answer Ridley makes use of right here. The bike encompasses a tapered 1 1/4″ to 1 1/2″ steerer that’s D-shaped to permit the brake traces to suit contained in the comparatively small higher headset bearing. It makes for a slim headtube and clear appears to be like as soon as all the things is in place. However it’s a mechanic’s nightmare to get all the things arrange with so little further room to work in, and even altering bar top is a tough downside to unravel with little room for error.
➕ Customized colours are an effective way to make your bike distinctive, too! Should you hold the usual design, choosing your favourite from 37 single colours doesn’t even price any extra. Or for 400-700€ extra you may get much more artistic. The one draw back being that it’s going to barely delay how briskly you get your new bike.
➖ The one different purposeful draw back might be restricted mounting factors. Folks searching for extra bikepacking adventures may need fork mounts. And year-round riders may need fender mounts. However Ridley has the Kanzo Journey particularly for that. Anyway, my very own 3-5-day-long bikepacking journeys often don’t necessitate fork-mounted gear, and I get by well-enough with strap-on fenders if wanted. (I do extremely advocate the Win Wing!)
Parting ideas on the Ridley Astr RS gravel race bike
There are quite a lot of ups and downs once I dive into what I like and dislike concerning the new Ridley Astr RS. However I really feel like the one one concern that sticks in my thoughts is that value. Should you can abdomen the fee, that is certainly top-of-the-line gravel race bikes you should buy in the mean time. It feels quick. It feels comfy. And it’s simply as pleased taking it simple on informal rides with mates, as it’s when you find yourself driving all-out as quick as your legs & lungs will permit.
Now, I preface this closing assertion with the truth that I’ve NOT really ridden the way more inexpensive customary hi-mod carbon Ridley Astr.
However I’ve the sensation that it’s going to ship nearly precisely in addition to its RS massive sibling. The aero shaping is similar. The geometry is similar. And the tire clearance is similar. So, if I had been trying to construct up a brand new carbon gravel race bike and I didn’t have an additional few thousand euros to burn (I don’t), I’d give the common Astr a tough look. Whereas the Ridley Astr RS appears to be like nice, it nearly makes the worth of the Ridley Astr appear even higher by comparability.
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