The evolution of road bikes is very fast. Since disc brakes replaced rim brakes, the magic box has been opened, and designs that were once unimaginable have begun to appear. Lightweight, aerodynamic, and comfortable have become within reach.

1. The integration of hill-climbing road bikes and pneumatic road bikes

In the past few years, the boundary between hill-climbing road bikes and pneumatic road bikes is very clear. Starting in 2019, major brands of hill-climbing (large groups) road bikes have undergone aerodynamic updates. At the same time, aero road bikes pay more attention to light weight. The boundary between the two began to blur, until the Specialized Tarmac SL7 clearly integrated the two, we can call this type of vehicle a lightweight aero road bike. This type is most suitable if your riding environment has climbing and flat roads.

However, after UCI relaxes the tube shape restrictions, a type of TT-style aerodynamic road vehicle appears, which is equivalent to attaching a handlebar to the TT road vehicle. A new trend can be thought of. In the future, TT and pneumatic road bikes will use the same frame, and the handlebars will be replaced according to different scenarios. As a result, the pneumatic road bikes that were separated from TT will eventually return to TT.

2. Wider wheels, wider tires

Thanks to disc brakes, road bikes have lifted the limitation of tire width, wider wheels can increase cross-wind stability, and now there are light, fast and stable pneumatic wheels. With wider tires, 25-26mm has become the mainstream of racing road bikes. When they are mounted on wheels with an inner width of 21mm, the actual width can reach 27 or even 28mm, which greatly improves the comfort. Wide tires with low pressure increase comfort and reduce rolling resistance. This concept is accepted by more and more people. The best racing tires are also available in 25, 28, 30 and 32mm sizes, so that riders of different weights can choose the right tires and use low tire pressures (75-85psi).

This also provides an option for those who want to use a racing road bike to ride bad roads, just change to wide tires to reduce tire pressure. Of course, a better choice is tubeless tires, which it is 5psi lower than the tube/clincher tires under same tire width, and at the same time it prevents snake bites and blowouts. You can use low tire pressure to improve comfort more safely. The hookless tubeless tire pushes the concept of low tire pressure to the extreme, and its maximum tire pressure is only 73psi (ETRTO standard).

In this way, the boundary between racing road bikes and endurance road bikes has become unclear. A better way to distinguish them is geometry. The geometry of endurance road bikes is more relaxed.

3. Lightweight gravel bike appears

This year's lightweight competition gravel began to prevail. There is no tire width limit for disc brake road bikes, so some modifications can be made to road bikes to increase tire capacity and adjust geometry, thus giving birth to a new model.

For example, Cannondale launched EVO SE on the basis of SuperSix EVO, increased the tire width to 45c, and used a slower head tube angle (71 degrees) to improve the stability of non-paved roads, but its chain stay length did not have the original length. The gravel is as long as possible to ensure flexibility and can even be used for CX (road off-road).

This type of bike fills the gap between racing road bikes and gravel bikes, and the geometry is between the two. Therefore, they have a very wide range of adaptations. By changing the wheel set and tires, they can meet the riding from paved roads to gravel roads, and geometrically soothing and easy to control. If there is no need for competition and you like to ride around, this type of bike is very suitable for weekend riders and occasional long-distance riding.

4. A better road bike era

It can be seen that the boundaries between TT, aerodynamics, endurance, gravel, and CX have become blurred, and cross-border models appear. How should ordinary riders choose? The first is to look at your riding style and route, and the second is to look at the geometry you can control. Lightweight pneumatic road bikes are a very good choice, which can adapt to most road routes by changing wheels (or tires). If you feel that the geometry of the racing road bike is too radical, you can choose an endurance road bike or a lightweight gravel bike, which greatly increases the playability. If you are playing very wild, there are also heavy gravel options.

As mentioned earlier, the boundaries between different types have been blurred, and road bikes have become more versatile. In the past, you needed to climb road bikes and pneumatic road bikes. If you want to ride fire lanes and gravel roads, you also need an XC. Now a road bike can meet all the needs by changing the wheel set and tires, which actually saves money. Nowadays, road bikes have a lower threshold and become more comfortable and easy to handle. If there is no shortage of stock and price increases, it can be said that it is a better road bike era.