The new Basso Sempre Veloce road bike is designed with everyday riders in mind, rather than the pros.
Basso says that because it doesn’t provide a WorldTour team with bikes, it’s free to design road bikes that respond better to the needs of amateurs.
At the Sempre Veloce launch, Basso CEO Alessandro Basso said: “The process is always to develop a bike for the WorldTour and then adapt the bike to the customer. In our case, we don’t have this problem – we don’t have a WorldTour team. And therefore, we were able to really put the customer in the centre of this whole product development.”
A rider-focused performance bike
The Sempre Veloce – Italian for ‘always fast’ – is designed to fit the gap between road race bikes and all-road bikes.
This is a gap many might understand as being occupied by endurance bikes, but the Sempre Veloce's geometry and 35mm tyre clearance point toward all-road while the carbon layup and shape are more like a race bike.
Basso says the Sempre Veloce fills the gap between race and all-road bikes by combining “race-level performance with adaptability and comfort that everyday riders demand”.
To achieve its vision of a bike that straddles racing and all-road performance, Basso began the Sempre Veloce’s design process with market research.
Basso considered bike fit and what a person buying a high-end bicycle would want.
“We used AI to run deep research on what the customer’s needs are. What does the typical customer that’s looking for a high-end bike, what does he look for when he’s researching what bike to buy?” explained Alessandro Basso.
Basso also based its research for the Sempre Veloce around four riders. These profiles covered different ages and genders – from Mike, a former professional, to Zang, who is ‘totally addicted’ to cycling and enjoys the sport for its social aspects rather than performance, even if she still likes going fast.
Alessandro Basso says that by considering these riders: “We were able to draw a picture of what SV is”.
Prioritising comfort and fit
To find the right fit for its target audience, Basso developed the Sempre Veloce in collaboration with 4Performance, a bike fitting studio, analysing biomechanics and ergonomics tailored to amateurs.
Basso says: “True performance is only realised when comfort and fit are prioritised, allowing every rider to fully enjoy and maximise their experience on the bike.”
Compared to Basso’s typical geometry, the Sempre Veloce has a higher stack, a shorter seat tube and sloping geometry.
When paired with the short seat tube and sloping geometry, more of the Diamante seatpost is exposed, which is said to aid flex and compliance, enhancing comfort.
The Sempre Veloce will smooth out rides thanks to the second-generation 3B seatpost clamp, which has an anti-vibration function.
Basso says the seatpost can accommodate a wider range of rider heights on a single frame size to achieve the optimal fit. The seven frame sizes have overlapping ranges to “ensure flexibility and a tailored fit for every rider”.
The Sempre Veloce also comes with two cockpit options for different needs.
The Fuga cockpit is optimised for aerodynamics and riders with narrow shoulders, while featuring an ergonomic shape for better hand positioning.
Originally released in 2023, the Levita cockpit has a more conventional shape to “manage and improve both aesthetics and functionality”.
Don’t forget low weights, aerodynamics and up-to-date tyre clearance
With prices ranging from $8,995 / €7,949 to $13,295 / €11,999, the Sempre Veloce has many of the hallmarks of a modern high-end road bike.
Basso says the bike has “enhanced aerodynamics”. The frontal area of the Sempre Veloce is 16 per cent smaller than the Basso Diamante SV race bike, while the front wheel integrates with the down tube to minimise airflow and Kammtail tubes are used throughout.
“We are proud to say we’ve built the lightest aero frame on the market,” said Alessandro Basso in the bike’s presentation. The Sempre Veloce’s frame weighs 780g in a size 53cm and the top-spec build with Shimano Dura-Ace weighs a claimed 6.7kg.
Basso says the stiffness of the bottom bracket and head tube has been enhanced on its new bike for everyday riders compared to its other premium bikes.
Basso has also specced its latest bike with Microtech Solid Oil Bearings in the headset, which promise three times the durability of typical bearings.
The Sempre Veloce is the first bike from Basso to come with a five-year warranty.
