New from Bowral Classic bike partner Cervélo is this – a 2022 take on their all-time classic aero race bike, the Soloist.
Many will remember the original Soloist from the early 2000s – the bike Team CSC often used with the likes of the Schleck brothers and Jens Voigt powering to victory aboard. It was a frame credited with kicking off the aero revolution in bike design, and in 2022 it takes up where it left off in 2008.
Cervélo are positioning the new Soloist as an affordable, and practical bike for the ‘week in, week out amateur racer’ and place it between the S5 and R5 in their lineup. The company say it is around 250 grams heavier than the S5 and a similar amount lighter than the R5. On aerodynamics, they claim it to sit between the two.
‘The Soloist … It’s a name from deep in our history, but immediately familiar to anyone with bike racing memories extending back to the early-2000s,” say Cervélo.
“It was the weapon of choice for top World Tour contenders on CSC and the Cervélo Test Team, and we’re bringing it back for a new generation. It balances light weight and aerodynamic advantages to deliver a bike that really is ‘just right’. Soloist comes in a hair lighter than S5, but significantly more aerodynamic than R5, and borrows the threaded bottom bracket standard you find on the R5-CX. It’s a race bike that can accommodate mechanical and electronic shifting, can hammer out the training miles in all weather, and yet still has the chops to leap off the front at that decisive moment.”
The bike is listed on the Cervélo website in various build options including Ultegra Di2, SRAM Force, SRAM Rival and Shimano 105. Australian pricing will be available soon.
