Titanium bike specialist Van Nicholas has announced an update of its entry-level Ventus, designed to bring the bike in line with current design trends.
So that means – you guessed it – disc brakes in place of rim calipers and 12mm thru-axles instead of quick releases. Tyre clearance is upped too, so you can fit 28mm rubber (though that is still fairly conservative for a modern disc-equipped road bike).
"The flat-mounted disc brakes with 160mm rotors were another key feature we chose to incorporate," says Ralph Moorman, general manager at Van Nicholas.
“Not only do they offer much better stopping power over conventional rim brakes in all weather conditions, but the flat mounts improve the aerodynamic potential at one of the ‘messier’ points – for wind disturbance, that is – on the frame.
“We wanted to pack our budget road bike full of the very latest innovations so it would stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the more expensive bikes in our collection."
New fork and headset
Van Nicholas says the geometry of the Ventus is designed for fast, competitive riding, making it ideal for racing, club runs or training.
The ride quality of titanium and wider tyres should also make it comfortable for long days in the saddle.
Besides the flat-mount brakes, Van Nicholas has taken other steps to improve the new Ventus’s aerodynamics, including internal cable routing through the down tube.
Other new features include an integrated headset and a new all-carbon fork with internal cable routing through the left leg.
The changes bring the Ventus in line with the more expensive bikes in the Van Nicholas range, like its Skeiron model.
“Taking what we have learned when designing our top-of-the-range models and ‘trickling down’ that knowledge is a crucial part of our design process," says Moorman.
"Ultimately, improving one of our bikes, should help to improve all of our bikes."
Availability of the new Van Nicholas Ventus is slated for November, with frames sizes from XS to XL (48, 51, 54, 57 and 60cm).
Complete builds will be priced at €2,499 with Shimano 105, €2,799 with Ultegra or €4,099 with Dura-Ace.
There’s a frameset-only option with carbon fork priced at €1,499 and Van Nicholas’s online configurator also lets you select your own spec, including Shimano, SRAM and Campagnolo groupsets, and numerous upgrade options.
We've included the specs of the 105-equipped model below as an example of what's available.
Van Nicholas Ventus 105 specs
- Frame: Ventus titanium
- Fork: VNT SLR Carbon
- Groupset: Shimano 105
- Gear ratios: 50/34t, 11-34t (other options available)
- Wheels: Shimano RS-171 Disc
- Tyres: Continental Grand Sport Race 28mm
- Bars: VNT Alloy 6066 Wingshape
- Stem: VNT Alloy 6061
- Seatpost: VNT Alloy
- Saddle: VNT Leather
- Claimed weight: 9.7kg
- Price: €2,499
- Availability: November 2020
