Rondo Ruut CF1 G2 review: a fast, fun and forgiving gravel bike that stands out from the crowd

Rondo’s design and styling certainly stand out in a world of identikit bikes derived from tech-driven design tools such as CFD (computational fluid dynamics) and CAD systems.

Whether that distinct approach is successful depends a lot on personal taste. Many will like that Rondo does things differently; the challenging tube profiles and radical silhouette certainly mean it’ll never be mistaken for anything else.

The Ruut is a striking gravel bike that's hugely capable and versatile. It’s a serious rival to more established brands and less contentious designs.

Currently, it's configured with 1x drivetrains, although you can run a 2x setup with a front derailleur adaptor arm (available separately).

The CF1 G2 is priced at £4,199 / €4,999.

Rondo Ruut CF1 G2 frame details

Radical tube shapes, the flat-fronted head tube, sharp edges, a kinked top tube and super-low skinny stays interrupt the seat tube connecting the bottom bracket, resulting in a diamond-shaped back end.

This is intended to create a shock-absorbing configuration, much like a leaf spring.

When Rondo unveiled the design, it was unique. Since then, we’ve seen Specialized launch its flat-bar Sirrus with a similar approach. More recently Orbea’s Diem urban ebike adopted a similar soft-tail back end.

Tyre clearances are 47mm for 700c wheels and 54mm for 650b wheels. Rondo specifies 650b wheels on its smallest XS-sized bikes.

The frame comes with a T47 bottom bracket shell – a smart choice given that T47 is compatible with 30mm-spindle cranksets, 29mm DUB (SRAM) and 24mm Shimano cranks, using either inboard or outboard bearings.

At the rear dropouts, Rondo has adopted the Universal Derailleur Hanger standard. That means you can run current derailleur designs, including SRAM’s tough off-road specific T-Type rear derailleurs or the very latest Red XPLR AXS groupset.

The frame comes with triple bottle bosses and top tube bento box mounts. Rondo provides bosses for gravel mudguards front and rear.

The fork comes without bosses for luggage, but it has internal brake-hose routing and routing for a dynamo.

Rondo Ruut CF1 G2 geometry

It also features Rondo’s pioneering TwinTip design. This means that with a quick flip of the dropout insert and brake adaptor, you can change the handling character of the bike in a few minutes.

In the higher position, you increase the fork offset by 10mm and shorten the trail by a tad over 15mm. It steepens the head angle by 0.7 of a degree and lowers the cockpit by 5mm, adding half a degree to the seat angle. The final change is adding 7mm to the reach.

In its more aggressive, racy high position on a size-large, that’s a 71.7-degree head angle, 73.7-degree seat angle, a low stack height of 594mm and a long 417mm reach. There's a short 59.5mm trail figure.

In its low position for rougher terrain, it changes to a 71-degree head angle and 73-degree seat angle, with a more upright ride position comprising a 599mm stack height and 410mm reach. This is rounded off with a stability-providing 74.6mm trail.

In context, that makes the Ruut’s geometry in Hi mode akin to a very racy bike – close to a full-out gravel racer such as BMC’s Kaius (410mm reach, 595mm stack).

In Lo mode, it's closer to a great off-roader such as Santa Cruz’s Stigmata (600mm stack, 420mm reach), or GT’s latest Grade Carbon (603mm stack, 425mm reach). Both bikes use a shorter stem than the Ruut’s 90mm unit, making the effective reach very similar.

Rondo Ruut CF1 G2 build

This CF1 G2 model sits below the CF0 model with SRAM’s Force XPLR AXS and an exclusive limited-edition Ruut Loco G2 with SRAM’s new Red XPLR AXS and Zipp’s 303 XPLR SW wheelset.

The build here is based around SRAM’s Rival XPLR AXS groupset with a 42-tooth chainring and 10-44 12-speed cassette.

The bike rolls on a wheelset that’s a collaboration between Rondo and Hunt. This pairs Hunt’s 25mm-wide internal tubeless-ready alloy rims with Rondo’s cartridge-bearing hubset.

These are wrapped in Vittoria’s dry-condition specific Terreno Dry tyres in a 40mm width. The complete wheel package weighs in at 1.62kg front and 2.14kg rear, including tyres, tubes, rotors and cassette.

Completing the build is Rondo’s own carbon 27.2mm seatpost with a 10mm setback, topped with a Selle Italia Novus Boost saddle.

Up-front, Rondo’s own angular ICR stem enables the brake hoses to be routed internally. This clamps to Spank’s Wing 12 bar.

This gravel-specific handlebar has a flattened top section, 12 degrees of flare, a shallow 110mm drop and a short 72mm reach.

It features a Vibrocore foam core designed to provide vibration damping, making it a good pairing with the Ruut’s diamond-shaped back end.

All in, the bike weighs 9.55kg.

Rondo Ruut CF1 G2 ride impressions

Running the Ruut in its more aggressive position makes the bike feel very much like a fast endurance bike – the steering is quick and it feels agile on tarmac and smoother gravel. It’s every inch the match of the Ridley Grifn RS and Ribble Gravel SL Pro I've also tested.

The SRAM wireless drivetrain is quick to shift and the 42-tooth chainring is welcome when the speed rises – as is the wide 10-44t cassette on steeper roads.

The brakes offer bags of power and lots of progressive feel. The tyres are fast both on the road and off, albeit in the dry.

When it comes to more adverse conditions, such as mud, the shallow tread doesn’t cope well. At the very least, you’re best advised to reserve these fast gravel tyres for summer and look to something designed specifically for wet conditions, while taking advantage of the Rondo’s 47mm tyre clearance.

It’s when you switch the bike's fork down into its more technical off-road focused Lo setting that the Ruut comes alive, though.

That subtle change in the steering geometry, paired with the frameset and cockpit, gives the Ruut a composure over unbalanced surfaces that’s hard to fault.

The Ruut delivers a strong sense of control when the going gets rough, with a similar feel to the Kinesis Tripster AT+. However, at more than a kilo lighter than the rugged alloy all-roader, the Rondo has more urgency.

It accelerates quicker and responds in kind when you attack an off-road ascent.

Even with relatively modest 40mm tyres, the Ruut’s vibration-damping abilities are impressive. It dealt well with dry dirt doubletrack with a surface of hard-baked tractor tyre tracks.

The diamond-shaped rear end gives the same kind of buzz-smoothing cushioning you get from the likes of Cannondale’s pivoted Topstone, GT’s Grade Carbon and Specialized’s adjustable Diverge STR.

The Spank bar does a great job of nulling vibrations that can leave your fingers tingling and hands buzzing at the end of a rough-surface descent.

The stable handling and chatter-conquering ride quality come together to make the Ruut a very capable bike.

That capability translates into excitement when it comes to riding off-road quickly. It’s certainly a bike to push your limits on – and have lots of fun along the way.

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Rondo Ruut CF1 G2 bottom line

As much fun as the Ruut provides in both geometry configurations, it offers something of a stripped-back ride.

It has mounts that are good for year-round riding, but some will bemoan the lack of fork bosses and the reduced dimensions of the front triangle limit frame bag sizing. The tyres excel in the dry but come unstuck quickly in the wet, making them an option only for summer use.

That said, the Ruut is designed to deliver a fast yet forgiving (and fun) gravel riding experience. On that score, it’s up with the very best, with the changeable geometry another feather in its cap.

If luggage carrying isn’t a priority and the radical design appeals, I’d recommend the Rondo without reservation.