9 Secret Road Bikes We're Hoping To See In 2024 | Cycling Weekly
2023 has been a great year for new road bike releases with some popular models seeing a refresh, however, it feels as though 2023 has been the year of the endurance bike with many other categories not seeing many updates. Sam Gupta has done some digging and has pulled together a number of different models which he believes will be updated on 2024 and it looks like we're set for a year of light weight climbing bikes. What road bikes are you excited for in 2024?
Transcript
00:00 I've done some digging online
00:01 and I've pulled together a number of models
00:03 which I think could be due for an update,
00:05 as well as some bikes which personally,
00:08 I would just love to see hit the market.
00:10 Now, before we go any further,
00:11 you may have noticed that my face
00:13 is looking a little bit funny.
00:15 And that's because I was in a fight,
00:17 not with a person, but with a wasp.
00:20 I was out riding and it stung me on my face, not ideal.
00:23 So if you can excuse the swelling,
00:25 then let's jump into the video.
00:27 (upbeat music)
00:30 We'll start with a bike, which to my mind,
00:34 has to be a bit of a no-brainer.
00:36 And that's because I kind of expected it
00:38 to actually come this year.
00:40 In March, we saw the launch of the new Cannondale Super 6,
00:43 the brand's do-it-all road race bike.
00:46 At the same time, it also launched the Lab 71 Monaca,
00:49 which stands to be the brand's top of the range bikes,
00:52 utilizing a higher grade of carbon fiber.
00:55 After the Super 6 was launched,
00:57 it also released a gravel going Lab 71 Topstone.
01:01 Clearly, it's fairly easy to put the new carbon fiber
01:04 into existing molds.
01:06 So, a Lab 71 System 6 should be on the cards.
01:11 However, the System 6 in its current guise
01:14 is a bike that has been around for quite a while.
01:17 In fact, it's been around since 2018.
01:20 So it's well overdue an update.
01:23 The change in UCI rules mean Cannondale
01:26 could potentially have something really wacky in the works.
01:29 Perhaps the brand will lean into the elongated head tube
01:32 like the Specialized SL8,
01:34 or it may just leave the System 6 behind altogether.
01:39 It's not out of the question
01:40 that the brand could just let the System 6 fade away
01:43 and halt production of the model.
01:45 The lack of an aero bike could then be countered
01:47 by making the next generation of the Super 6 even more aero
01:51 and take on more of a Specialized SL8 design ethos,
01:54 with more aero features at the front
01:56 and more lightweight features at the rear.
01:59 One bike I'm very confident will be coming next year
02:06 is an update to the CAD 13,
02:08 and logic dictates that it be called the CAD 14.
02:12 This is a bike that I am really excited about.
02:15 I've not hidden the fact
02:16 that I love a premium aluminum frame.
02:19 I love how they feel to ride
02:21 and the fact that with the right specification,
02:24 they are just as light as their carbon counterparts,
02:26 but for a fraction of the cost.
02:29 My hope for the CAD 14
02:30 is that Cannondale do something similar to Trek,
02:33 who revamped its Émonda ALR
02:35 by giving it a slightly more aggressive frame geometry,
02:38 stripping out a load of weight from the frame,
02:40 and also really refining the tube shapes.
02:43 It also maintained a classic-looking frame shape
02:46 with no-drop seat stays,
02:48 which from an aesthetic point of view, I really enjoy.
02:51 I'd love for Cannondale
02:52 to go back to a classic-looking frame,
02:54 much like the CAD 12,
02:56 and also work on making the frame a lot lighter,
02:59 ideally around the 1,000-gram mark.
03:02 My second hope for a potential CAD 14
03:05 is that the brand also releases a Lab 71 model of the bike.
03:09 Now, in my mind, it would have the Lab 71 paint job,
03:13 the Momo-designed bars with the top-end RSL wheels,
03:17 with the same fork as found on the Lab 71 Super 6,
03:21 a Dura-Ace groupset,
03:23 and of course, a ceramic speed bottom bracket.
03:26 Would it be overkill?
03:27 Absolutely.
03:28 Would it make much sense?
03:30 Not really, but would I absolutely want it
03:33 and be prepared to pay for it?
03:35 100%.
03:37 Quite frankly, it would be one of the coolest bikes
03:40 out there, so if anyone from Cannondale is watching,
03:43 please make it happen.
03:45 (upbeat music)
03:49 Quite recently, Giant updated its endurance bike,
03:52 the Defy.
03:53 It made the bike a whole lot lighter,
03:55 made it slightly more performance-orientated,
03:57 and supposedly made it more comfortable.
04:00 What struck me most was the former, though,
04:02 that big reduction in weight.
04:05 It demonstrated what Giant is capable of
04:07 when it sets its sights on making something light.
04:10 To bring a Defy frame weight in at a claimed 785 grams
04:14 really shows just how light a new TCR could be.
04:19 It's highly likely that a potential new TCR
04:22 could come in at the low 600 gram region.
04:25 The weight saving could also go further than just the frame.
04:28 With the brand's own components and K-Dex wheels,
04:31 it has the ability to strip out weight
04:33 from every part of the bike,
04:35 and full builds could be landing in the region
04:38 of the low to mid-six kilos.
04:40 The current top-end TCR comes in at a claimed 6.7 kilos,
04:44 so seeing this drop by a few hundred grams
04:47 is certainly a possibility.
04:50 One question looms, though,
04:51 that being would it really make any difference?
04:55 Probably not.
04:56 Having a reliable and versatile bike
04:58 is certainly more valuable,
05:00 but if Giant were able to combine all of these attributes,
05:04 then that would be a pretty exciting proposition.
05:12 After Trek launched the new Madone back in 2022,
05:15 it's safe to say that it turned a lot of heads
05:18 with the Isoflow hole in the seat tube.
05:20 Now, though, I think most riders
05:22 are pretty well accustomed to the look of it,
05:24 and I believe it's been pretty well accepted
05:26 into cycling design.
05:28 Isoflow to one side,
05:29 the Madone itself is a wicked bike to ride.
05:33 It's incredibly fast,
05:34 and we love the care and attention
05:35 that Trek put into the bike as a whole
05:37 to keep the rider going as quickly as possible.
05:40 And it's for these reasons
05:42 that I'm getting pretty excited
05:44 about a potential new Émonda.
05:46 As the Émonda sits in Trek's range
05:48 as a do-it-all climbing race bike,
05:50 I do not think it would be out of the question
05:53 to see an Émonda also get an Isoflow hole.
05:57 It would aid in the bike's aero performance,
05:59 and since Trek also claimed that it helps save weight,
06:02 then that very much matches the Émonda's ethos.
06:06 I see the new Émonda as potentially becoming a baby Madone.
06:10 A bike which perhaps has a slightly less
06:12 aggressive position, but is still race-orientated,
06:16 naturally, it would be lighter,
06:18 and would perhaps try to get close
06:20 to the Specialized SL8 in terms of weight.
06:23 Since the Madone does require
06:25 a decent level of flexibility and skill
06:27 to deal with a fast steering feel,
06:29 a slightly softer version of the bike
06:32 in the form of an Émonda
06:33 could be the perfect road race bike
06:35 for a much larger segment of the market.
06:38 (upbeat music)
06:41 Pinarello has been mighty active in the past year
06:46 with its launch of two brand new ranges of bikes,
06:49 that being the X-Series and the F-Series,
06:52 which replace the Prince and the Paris, respectively.
06:56 We also saw the new Dogma X quite recently,
06:58 which now sits as the top of the range model
07:01 in the X-Series range.
07:03 However, the brand's flagship race bike,
07:06 the range-topping Dogma F, was last updated in 2021.
07:11 So perhaps we could have a 2025 bike launched next year.
07:16 I'm not sure what Pinarello would aim to do with the bike.
07:19 It would likely be a very iterative update
07:22 rather than being something drastically new.
07:24 So I'd expect to see these updates
07:26 along the lines of a bike being slightly lighter,
07:28 stiffer, and more aero, as per usual.
07:32 (upbeat music)
07:36 Launched back in 2020 was the Cervelo Caledonia,
07:40 the brand's road-going endurance/all-road bike.
07:44 It's a category of bike that has really hotted up
07:46 in the past few months,
07:48 since Canyon's Endurace and Specialized Roubaix
07:51 have also taken to the same space.
07:54 Cervelo, though, does have the opportunity
07:56 to bring an updated version of the bike to the market
07:59 that really rivals that of the market leaders.
08:02 We gave the bike four and a half stars when we reviewed it,
08:05 with our only Quam being tied up
08:07 in the price compared to competitors.
08:09 So if Cervelo can come in
08:11 alongside the other options on the market,
08:13 it could land as a fantastic option for the customers.
08:17 I'm guessing Cervelo would likely increase tyre clearance
08:20 from the current 34 millimetres,
08:22 and perhaps build in a greater amount of frame storage.
08:25 But in terms of rideability and current geometry,
08:29 we are already big fans of what it's created.
08:32 (upbeat music)
08:35 Sticking with Cervelo for one more bike,
08:39 and the R5 is also potentially coming
08:41 to the end of its product cycle.
08:44 The R5 does sit along the S5,
08:46 so you either have your climbing bike or your aero bike.
08:50 And the brand has previously said
08:52 that it doesn't want to dilute either of them.
08:55 The R5 is already pretty light,
08:57 as the frame comes in at a claimed 700 grammes,
09:00 which is very good.
09:02 So perhaps, if it were to be updated,
09:05 we may only see a marginal improvement in the weight.
09:07 However, refining the frame shape
09:09 to potentially become a little bit more aerodynamic
09:13 without stepping on the toes of the S5,
09:15 could net a greater improvement,
09:17 while also making it a little bit stiffer.
09:20 Again, I think that this would be an iterative update,
09:23 but it will be a very exciting one
09:26 when it's underneath Team Jumbo-Visma.
09:28 (upbeat music)
09:32 Last on my list is the Scott Addict.
09:35 Scott launched the incredibly aerodynamic foil
09:38 less than 18 months ago,
09:40 and so it's clear that the brand has no intention
09:42 of creating a do-it-all road race bike,
09:45 which means we could be in for yet another
09:47 stripped back specialist climbing bike.
09:50 I've always thought that the Addict looked great,
09:53 and previous generations of the bike
09:54 have been a pleasure to ride as well.
09:57 So, if the current model were to be replaced
09:59 with something that's even lighter and stiffer than before,
10:02 then in my eyes, that is only a recipe for success.
10:06 (upbeat music)
10:08 So, there we have it.
10:09 This year turned out to be the year
10:11 of the new endurance bike,
10:13 and perhaps next year could be the year
10:15 of the super lightweight climbing bike.
10:17 Let me know down below,
10:18 which bike are you most excited for to come next year?
10:22 If you enjoyed the video, then please do drop it a like,
10:24 subscribe to the channel for more content,
10:26 and I will see you again very soon.
10:28 [MUSIC PLAYING]