ENVE, fabricator of swish, aerodynamic and lightweight products have added an aero road handlebar to its growing inventory – and we’ve got one of the first.
At 244g it’s not the lightest out there. Nevertheless, the flared drops – which stop your wrists hitting it when you're sprinting – and the internal cable routing make this a sophisticated piece of carbon engineering. Anecdotally, they feel stiff too.
While there should be no doubting the bars’ aero credentials – that’s ENVE’s raison d’être after all – we’re not sure how comfortable they’d be on very steep climbs and for riders with small hands.
The model we have is a 420mm model centre to centre measure at the drops. The c-t-c distance at the tops is decidedly slimmer – around 370mm – meaning they could feel cramped for broad-shouldered riders. They’re wide too – 50mm at the broadest point so they could be tough to grip on very steep hills.
The compact bars – which were on display at Eurobike last year – cost £375 to UK buyers. Dollar price coming soon.