I was never averse or resistant to a modern, carbon fibre bike. In fact, I’ve secretly wanted one ever since I saw a Kestrel 200 SCi back in the 1990s, even with all the horror stories of their fragility or even “melting in the sun”. Of course there will be problems if you knock it over, or strap it badly in a rack, and I could never really afford to be that careful.
Now, times are different. I wanted a bike that’d be fast and light, and my Bianchi M Alloy Pro just wasn’t cutting it anymore. Sure, it feels quick, but objectively it’s no lighter than my Bianchi Ti Megatube, and it certainly is harsh on anything but the smoothest road surface. As much as I like that bike (and I do), and all the compliments it gets on the street (because it is pretty), I wasn’t looking forward to picking it up off the wall like I used to – on nice days, take the Megatube, and for variation, take the steel Colnago.
I decided it was time. I loaned the Olmo to a friend (and I’m not too bothered about getting it back, as long as he rides it a bit), and I’ve put the Bianchi M Alloy Pro for sale. I tore down and parted out “Old Heavy”, the Bianchi Sprint 76, selling off just about everything but the frame. This gives me a bit of space in the shed for something new.
Now… what to get? I did my homework and accepting that I cannot afford a new Bianchi XR3 or XR4, my eyes landed on the 2017 “Aero Bike of the Year”, the EC-130E from Planet X. Sensibly-mounted brakes (i.e., not behind the front fork or underneath the chain stays), a threaded bottom bracket, internal cable routing, a well-reviewed SRAM Rival groupset, and decent entry-level wheels (Fulcrum 900), for less than half the price of an XR3 and one-third the price of an XR4? Less than 8kgs (with pedals) for a “large” frame? Yeah, that’ll do nicely, thank you very much!
How does it ride? Light, fast, smooth. The acceleration is better than my other bikes (the Megatube and the Colnago); however, it does highlight how nice those bikes are, as they are both equally smooth and comfortable. I was expecting a little more harshness from the EC-130E, but no, it is not at all, absorbing imperfections in the road quite nicely.
Three main road bikes in my stable, I have a nice range to pick from depending on my mood, the weather, the distance, and the terrain. If I had to pick just one? Still the Bianchi Ti Megatube, it’s a fantastic material and a beautiful machine. But new carbon definitely matches titanium, and can be engineered into a weapon for the road.
