Introducing the Specialized Aethos…

Have you heard? Specialized have a completely new model in their road bike range.

Introducing the Specialized Aethos…

The first thing you’ll notice is that the silhouette of the bike looks distinctly different to the type of high-end road bikes that are currently being launched. The latest generation of performance road bikes are firmly focused on aero-efficiency with each tube profile shaped to cut through the air and with fully integrated components and cables being the norm; Specialized themselves have recently relaunched their iconic Tarmac model as a more aerodynamic, complete do-it-all road racing bike that climbs brilliantly but is super-aero too, the Aethos completely bucks this trend.

So what’s the Aethos road bike for and more importantly who is this new model aimed at?

Specialized say that this bike has been made simply for the love of riding; for once they admit, they’re not in it to win. They focused instead on the vast majority of cyclists out there who ride for the love of the sport and the freedom they feel while riding. This time around they didn’t listen to their cohort of professional athletes currently racing at the highest level and focused solely on ride quality for every-day riding, a bike for dancing up your favourite climbs, completely at one with your bike or carving sweeping downhill bends on perfect road surfaces.

By ripping up the established rule book which typically leads manufacturers to design modern, contemporary competition-focused road bikes, Specialized achieved a ground-breaking frame design and manufacturing process which gave the Aethos its feather-light weight of just 585grams for the frame, making it the lightest production disc frame ever made.

The techy bit….

While the Specialized engineers were not obsessing over aero-tube profiling this time around they were still very focused on the shape of each tube profile, albeit for other, initially less obvious reasons. Their lead engineer Peter Denk was running countless computer simulations when he found that true performance lies in the shape of the frame and its tubing, not the materials it is made of. The frame’s shape is what drives performance in terms of stiffness and responsiveness and Specialized discovered that tubes with subtle, elongated conical sections deliver the highest stiffness-to-weight ratio; they called this new approach their ‘Continuous Curvature Design’ strategy.

Once the Specialized engineers had refined their tube profiling they found they could further improve ride quality by clever carbon layup, enabling them to eliminate traditional stiffness layers and reducing the carbon fibre plies by 11% when compared to their Tarmac SL6. By using unbroken plies every fibre becomes structural helping to dramatically reduce weight.

Is it UCI legal?….

..Well most cyclist’s response is probably going to be ‘who cares!’ and of course Specialized make a big thing of this. With a frame weight so low, depending on the build of the complete bike, it may be difficult to meet the UCI (professional cycling’s governing body) strict minimum weight limit. UCI rule 1.3. 019 states that race bikes in UCI-sanctioned events must weigh at least 6.8kg (14.99lb). Yes, this road bike might just be too good for professional cyclists; for the rest of us though we can enjoy a light, stiff and balanced road bike that handles brilliantly. The lightest disc road frame ever produced builds up to complete bikes as light as 5.9kg; with key features including hydraulic disc brakes throughout the range, convenient threaded bottom bracket and clearance for tyres up to 32mm wide Specialized’s Aethos is the perfect option for those road riding purists who seek out the perfect riding experience and don’t obsess about all things ‘aero’.

This Specialized Aethos Pro is in store now at Wheelbase North East and features SRAM’s brilliant Force eTap AXS wireless groupset and Roval Alpinist CL carbon wheels.

Check out the Aethos Pro available online now