Rouleur Live might not always have the freshest gear and tech on display, but it's always been a nice way to cap off the year in an intimate setting. Taking place from 13-15 November, the show has become world-renowned for showcasing the industry's finest products to journalists and the broader public. As such, it offers a smorgasbord of tech highlights from myriad manufacturers, Live Talks with industry figures, and professional riders.
There was a lot on display, including a Colnago curation outside the venue. The entry hall to the event was adorned with storied exhibitions of bikes and trophies from yesteryear, including the Willier that Mark Cavendish used to win his 35th stage of the Tour de France, and the Pinarello that Geraint Thomas rode down the Champs-Élysées in 2018.
Between the hustle and bustle of the jam-packed halls and impromptu meetings, the Cycling Weekly tech team managed to capture a selection of ultra-premium bikes, components and gadgets.
So put on the kettle and make a cuppa, or crack open a beer – you're going to love this one.
Passoni Titanio unveiled the stunning AT-01 at a private event prior to the show. Interestingly, titanium is used for the frame’s lower triangle, while a monocoque carbon construction is used for the upper triangle
17 races. 12, 000+km and no need for a service. CeramicSpeed was naturally flaunting the bottom bracket used throughout the season by Tobias Mørch Kongstad of PAS Racing, proving the benefits of ceramic bearings
A beautiful sight to behold. The Pinarello Dogma F10 X-Light Geraint Thomas used to win the 2018 Tour de France
The custom-painted Wilier Filante SLR Mark Cavendish used for his 35th Tour de France stage win
Mathieu van der Poel's 2019 Amstel Gold-winning Canyon Aeroad
Q36.5 and SRM had the ultra-low stack pedal and shoe system on display. We covered all the details of collaboration between Q36.5 founder Luigi Bergamo and SRM’s Ulrich Schoberer last week
The stunning, customised Cannondale SuperX Lab71 of Saddleback's Richard Mardle was also on display
DT Swiss launched the ARC 1100 SPLINE 38 CS wheels, its first wheelset ever to utilise carbon-fibre spokes
Princeton CarbonWorks unveiled its latest hubset
Zipp’s 303 SW and 353 NSW wheels blend aero technology, redesigned rims and an electronic tyre pressure sensor to create one of the smartest wheelsets on the market. The display featured several cutouts showing carbon thickness and the wheel's tensile properties
Can you spot anything new in the picture from SRAM? Let us know in the comments. We aren't at liberty to say...
The new Colnago T1Rs track frame claims to be more aerodynamic, stiffer, versatile, and features a geometry tailored for bunch races, individual events, and sprinting
This BMC on DT Swiss's stand featured a wrap made from a photograph of a glacier. Wraps aren't new, and are very familiar to car fans, but we've never seen one quite so well executed. The joins are invisible, and only just detectable with the tip of a finger. The way the pattern matches all the way around the tube, and at the join, is a level of detail in the application of the wrap you just don't see.
DT Swiss representatives on the stand also claimed it's lighter than paint.
Field the Sheffield based handmade custom bike company were showing the breadth of their skill and ambition with this immaculate titanium and carbon 'lugged' construction bike.
We're getting quite familiar with this kind of construction thanks to company's like Atherton who make mountain bikes using titanium lugs bonded to carbon tubes, but what's different here is the level of attention to where the two materials are deployed.
Where superior stiffness is required, for example in the head tube junction, Field is using carbon fibre junctions, but where titanium can be used to dampen the ride or provide better feedback from the road, titanium takes it's place.
Argon 18's new Nitrogen aero road bike has to be seen in the flesh. It really is a fantastic looking bike up close.
Pashley, British hand made bike manufacturers, were showing off a very 90's special built around their recently launched Wildfinder bike. This 'gravel bike' is all MTB save for a wildly flared drop bar. Hope anodised parts and even custom painted Rock Shox completed the really whacky build, that could be a hugely versatile bike for the adventure rider.
SWI the Swiss carbon experts had the bikes that Andrew Feather has been riding all season to various hill climb victories. The frame which it describes as 'monocoque' is made in two pieces in a clam shell, and bonded along the centre of the frame, creating what it says is a superior structure.
It certainly looked immaculately made, with one of half of the clam shell on display.
Lightweight were showing off their latest Meilenstein Art wheelset, which features a bonded carbon construction technique, which it says delivers superior stiffness characteristics and feature a ribbed construction process inside the rim. They're not cheap, starting at almost €6000 a set.
Lightweight bucks the recent trend for speccing narrower, bladed carbon spoke designs. The spokes are travel through the hub and are bonded into the rim at either end.
Sturdy Cycles stamps each well considered, in-house designed and manufactured part with his 'D' logo, as if its not obvious who made these wonderful parts and details. The brand even produces upgrade lever blades in titanium, and will anodise them for you if you ask.
Lael Wilcox's 'Top of the World Time Trial' bike was on display, based on the new Diverge we spotted earlier this year at Unbound, on the SRAM stand.
The TT endurance event is 685 miles (1100km) with 33,000 feet of climbing (10,000 metres), and is adorned with stickers depicting the famous Chicken that gives the location for the race it's name.
The bike is running Zipp 303 wheels and SRAM Red AXS XPLR. And save for some pretty well worn in tyres, the bike looked like a decent second hand buy, despite the high mileage.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.