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 glad to experience 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 high in my guide.
It’s considerably lighter, far more versatile, and essentially 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
Categorized Ridley Manufacturing unit 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 wished all of the aerodynamic features, a lighter bike, AND a minimal of 47mm tire clearance. So Ridley went again to the drafting board. They usually 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 huge 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
Need to get the total breakdown of the whole lot that’s new within the Astr RS? Learn my in-depth launch protection from earlier this morning, right here.
So, how does the bike truly really feel to experience?
Using Impressions: Sooner on fatter tires
It’s a light-weight race bike, so I shouldn’t have actually been shocked 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 large 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 might 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 received tough, I merely didn’t need to decelerate to really feel like I used to be nonetheless in management.
Race Geometry Evaluation: Tweaked for taller tires
And whereas large tires lent some consolation & confidence-inspiring cush, the body itself felt snappy and responsive. Stomp on the pedals and the quick chainstays rocketed the bike up to the mark. Then, leaning it laborious 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 for the reason that axles are already sitting about 7mm increased off the bottom than the Kanzo Quick due to greater tires, weight stability remains to be a bit increased right here. So, it’s extra the longer entrance heart / improve in total wheelbase that enhances 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 doubtless would have minimize one other cm off the steerer tube if it was my private bike.
Using Evaluation: A quick, however versatile all-rounder gravel race bike
Numerous 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 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 far more steady and comfy to manage.
It’s a noticeably extra impartial dealing with really feel that form of simply disappears beneath you in a great way. Simply pedal and go.
Sure, it is a race bike. And an costly one at that. However it could even be an incredible all-rounder bike for my on a regular basis gravel rides. Quick and simple on informal group rides. And a race-ready rocket when it’s time to pin a quantity on and see how briskly you may put the hammer down.
Weighing the Professionals & Cons
➕ Massive 52mm tire clearance means you may 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 supply higher traction, improved management, and extra all-day consolation. A few years in the past I’d have stated that 50mm tires have been unnecessarily heavy and stiff feeling, however there merely are so many nice high-volume tires accessible now that going wider is a a lot simpler determination to make.
➕ It’s laborious to argue with lightness on a motorbike that you just’ll be always 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 Crimson bike with a powermeter with out pedals (8.24kg with my Eggbeaters and a bolt-on toptube bag), this in an undeniably mild feeling experience.
➕ The identical goes for aerodynamics. Do we’d like all gravel bikes to be aero? After all not. But when you will get even small incremental aero features with out sacrificing consolation or weight, I’m 100% on board. No less than the free watts may offset the marginally wider tire profile into the wind.
➖ However, the excessive value is admittedly laborious to bear right here. With a frameset promoting for 5000€ and the most cost effective full bikes from 7300€, there merely are many far more reasonably priced gravel bikes which might be nonetheless race-ready.
➖ The dearth of mechanical drivetrain compatibility is a foul factor in my guide. 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 overwhelmed observe. Plus, you may 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 just a significantly better worth than this Ridley Astr RS, at lower than half the value. 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 just a extra logical selection, except you’ve got a vast 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 huge unflared cockpit, with a kinda deep 130mm drop & 75mm attain. I nonetheless get the sensation that Ridley is a bit old fashioned 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 device makes it straightforward to get the bike arrange such as you need. Patrons can select their ultimate crank size, chainring measurement, and importantly the perfect handlebar match for them. The 4ZA Cirrus Professional built-in cockpit on this bike additionally is available in a flared model that I would like. And have been I to purchase this bike I might decide the proper 90mm stem, 380mm huge on the hoods, 440mm huge 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 incorporates a tapered 1 1/4″ to 1 1/2″ steerer that’s D-shaped to permit the brake strains to suit contained in the comparatively small higher headset bearing. It makes for a slender headtube and clear appears as soon as the whole lot is in place. However it’s a mechanic’s nightmare to get the whole lot arrange with so little further room to work in, and even altering bar top is a difficult downside to resolve with little room for error.
➕ Customized colours are an effective way to make your bike distinctive, too! In the event you preserve the usual design, choosing your favourite from 37 single colours doesn’t even price any extra. Or for 400-700€ extra you will get much more inventive. The one draw back being that it’ll barely delay how briskly you get your new bike.
➖ The one different practical draw back may very well be restricted mounting factors. Individuals in search of 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 normally 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 subject that sticks in my thoughts is that value. In the event you can abdomen the associated fee, that is absolutely among the best gravel race bikes you should purchase in the meanwhile. It feels quick. It feels comfy. And it’s simply as glad taking it straightforward on informal rides with associates, as it’s when you find yourself driving all-out as quick as your legs & lungs will enable.
Now, I preface this closing assertion with the truth that I’ve NOT truly ridden the far more reasonably priced commonplace hi-mod carbon Ridley Astr.
However I’ve the sensation that it’ll ship virtually precisely in addition to its RS large sibling. The aero shaping is identical. The geometry is identical. And the tire clearance is identical. So, if I have been seeking 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 nice, it virtually makes the worth of the Ridley Astr appear even higher by comparability.
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