Ridley Kanzo Fast review

The Ridley Kanzo Fast is the fastest gravel bike in the world! At least that’s the Belgian bike brand’s claim. Can the aerodynamic gravel racer come out on top against the competition and what about its all-round characteristics? We put it to the test.

A quick overview of this group test: The best gravel bike 2021

With the Kanzo Fast, Ridley have expanded their gravel bike range to include an aerodynamic race bike. Based on their aerodynamically optimised road bike, the Noah Fast, the Belgian brand have adopted several key design features for gravel. The transition between the fork and frame, the F-Wings at the bottom of the carbon fork, the fully integrated cable routing and the aerodynamic, one-piece carbon cockpit are well-known features of the Noah Fast. The carbon frameset offers clearances for up to 700 x 42C tires and is compatible with the innovative Classified geared hub, which is out to make the front derailleur obsolete. You can find our detailed review of the Classified geared hub here. With the Customizer option, Ridley offer numerous configurations of the Kanzo Fast. You can choose from a total of 42 colours, 7 designs and a wide variety of groupset options. The frame is only compatible with 1x drivetrains. With the custom paint job, our test bike is priced at € 5,684.

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Size	XS	S	M	L	XL
Seat tube	470 mm	495 mm	520 mm	545 mm	570 mm
Top tube	522 mm	547 mm	565 mm	587 mm	601 mm
Head tube	115 mm	144 mm	168 mm	197 mm	221 mm
Head angle	71.0°	71.0°	71.5°	71.5°	72.0°
Seat angle	74.5°	73.5°	73.0°	72.5°	73.0°
Chainstays	425 mm	425 mm	425 mm	425 mm	425 mm
BB Drop	74 mm	72 mm	72 mm	70 mm	70 mm
Wheelbase	1,001 mm	1,017 mm	1,026 mm	1,044 mm	1,053 mm
Reach	372 mm	380 mm	385 mm	393 mm	400 mm
Stack	537 mm	563 mm	587 mm	613 mm	638 mm

Lactate threshold here we come. In flat terrain, the Ridley invites you to put the pressure on. The gravel mile millionaire.

Weighing in at 8.56 kg in size M, the spec of the gravel bike consists of a 1×11 Shimano GRX RX815 Di2 groupset with Rotor ALDHU aero cranks, a Forza Vardar db wheelset and Ridley’s Aero G1 cockpit. Both the one-piece carbon cockpit and the proprietary Forza aero seat post are available in different sizes so you should be able to find a suitable riding position that fits you. That said, the one-piece cockpit limits the adjustment options to a certain extent. The bike’s competitive genes are also evident in the choice of rotors: 160 mm up front and just 140 mm at the rear. However, the tire choice doesn’t match the bike’s ambitions as in our big gravel tire group test, the WTB Venture Road TCS tires were among the models with the highest rolling resistance.

The bike’s competitive ambitions are ever-present aboard the Ridley Kanzo Fast with an aggressive and stretched riding position. However, the 168 mm long head tube offers a bit of relief, allowing you to stay in this position for longer rides that don’t involve the pressure of a ticking stopwatch.

Another aspect that contributes to the gravel bike’s long-distance comfort is its compliance. High-frequency vibrations and small knocks are pleasantly absorbed, though moderate to large vibrations are noticeably passed on to the rider. However, the Ridley always remains predictable and it’s generally stiff and direct character doesn’t lead to any surprises. Getting on the pedals, the bike is extremely responsive and willing. Its acceleration is particularly impressive at moderate speeds. On the other hand, the S-Works Diverge and the ARC8 feel significantly more light-footed when getting going from a standstill and on steep climbs. When considering the bike’s efficiency on flat terrain, we have to keep in mind that the Ridley suffers from the high rolling resistance of the WTB tires. Apart from that, the combination of the frameset with its aerodynamic features, the deep carbon rims and the aggressive riding position is very efficient. The Kanzo Fast feels particularly comfortable on gravel motorways and poorly maintained asphalt roads. As long as the ground is compact, it can play to the strengths of its stability and the balanced agility of the front and rear. In these situations, the bike instils the rider with confidence. However, it hasn’t got enough reserves for rougher and more technical terrain, where its stiff and direct character quickly reaches its limits.

Tuning-tip: faster rolling tires with a bigger volume for improved efficiency and comfort

Conclusion

With the Ridley Kanzo Fast, ambitious gravel fans will find a fast bike that delivers impressive performance on compact surfaces with its composed handling and good damping. The extensive online configurator is a great tool for customising the bike. For gravel riders who also like to veer off-road, the bike’s stiffness will be a limiting factor.

Not sure which gravel bike you should buy? This guide will help you for sure: gravel bike buyers guide.
You wonder what tires to put on your gravel machine? We recently tested the best gravel tires against each other in our gravel tire group test.

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More information here: ridley-bikes.com

The testfield:

Get an overview of this group test: The best gravel-bike 2021 – 13 models on review

All bikes on review: 3T Exploro Race EKAR 1X13 (Click for review) | ARC8 Eero (Click for review) | BMC URS 01 ONE (Click for review) | Cannondale Topstone Carbon Lefty 3 (Click for review) | Canyon Grail CF SLX 8 eTap (Click for review) | Fustle Causeway GRX600 (Click for review) | OPEN WI.DE. (Click for review) | Ridley Kanzo Fast | Ritte Satyr (Click for review) | ROSE BACKROAD FORCE ETAP AXS LIMITED (Click for review) | ROSE BACKROAD AL GRX RX600 1X11 (Click for review) | Specialized S-Works Diverge (Click for review) | Trek Checkpoint (Click for review)

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Words: Photos: Valentin Rühl