Ridley present Kanzo Fast with Classified hub – The fastest gravel bike in the world?
Ridley launches the Kanzo Fast, a competitive gravel bike. With the exciting Classified hub, fully integrated cables, aerodynamic tube profiles, comfort seat stays and perfect power transmission, Ridley calls the Kanzo Fast the ‘fastest gravel bike in the world’. All information and pictures can be found here in the official press release from Ridley.
Plenty of aerodynamic knowledge
Ridley launched the Noah Fast in 2018, their aerodynamic bike with which Caleb Ewan won 3 stages in last year’s Tour de France. That’s why you recognize the F-Tubing tube profile of the Noah Fast in the new Kanzo Fast. The Belgian manufacturer also incorporated some other crucial features of their Noah Fast in this new gravel bike. The transition from fork to frame, the F-Wings at the bottom of the front fork, the integrated cables thanks to the F-Tubing technology and the aerodynamic handlebars are all technologies that already earned their stripes on the Noah Fast.
“Gravel was immediately linked to comfort and bike packing, but more and more cyclists want to participate in Gravel Fondos. With the Kanzo Fast, these cyclists really have the ideal bike for their adventure,” says Bert Kenens, product manager at Ridley. “The bike is reactive, amazing on technical courses. It’s aerodynamic of an unseen level in the gravel world and it makes gravel rides of over 200km even comfortable”.
“Our tests in the wind tunnel show that you can easily save 17 Watts compared to an ordinary gravel bike. That’s a lot of power you can use elsewhere in the race,” Kenens explains. “He even performed fantastic compared to our Noah Fast, with barely 4 watts more resistance across all the YAW angles. So, you have a winner at any point in the race.”
Massive gravel injection
Despite all the aerodynamic technologies, the Kanzo Fast remains a real gravel bike. Smooth gravel geometry, comfortable rear end, 42mm tyre width and one-piece gravel handlebars. “The Kanzo Fast is truly the perfect combination of gravel and aerodynamics. If you look at all the technical features separately, you are perplexed. If you experience all those features while cycling, you’re just blown away,” says Jochim Aerts, CEO of Belgian Cycling Factory. The rear stays of the bike is mounted remarkably low on the seat tube. “By connecting it so low to the seat tube we give the rider a lot of comfort,” says Kenens. The gravel handlebars are perhaps one of the most striking features of the Kanzo Fast. “We really went all-in with the design of this handlebar. The cables are fully integrated. With a short drop and reach, and 16° flared, this handlebar is really designed to make sure you’re always in control,” says Kenens.
All details available so far about the Kanzo Fast
Availablefrom 01.09.2020
Weight Frame 1190 g in Größe Medium
Weight Fork 490 g
Weight Bike 8.55 kg with the Forza Vardar wheels and Shimano GXR Di2 groupset
Available in sizes XS to XL
Available handlebar-stem combinations 38 to 44 cm / 9 to 14 cm
Tire clearance up to 42 mm
In addition to the standard paintwork, a personalised paintwork is also possible via the Ridley Customiser program. The Kanzo Fast is equipped for both electronic and mechanical groupsets and is only designed for 1x groups. The new, exciting Classified-Hub, which we will report on in more detail soon, is used here. It will be exciting!
For more information about the Kanzo Fast visit ridley-bikes.com
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Words & Photos: Ridley
