Agree, that the tires are a strange choice. My other immediate disappointment is no 36cm bar option, I'm not a limit pushing aero nerd, just a small person that ideally should be on a 36cm bar and 165mm cranks for best outcomes. I run a 38cm bar on my gravel bike (36cm on road), it wouldn't kill me to run 38cm but like the mid-tier at best tires, if spending this much on a new bike, it would be disappointing to need to swap the tires and bar/stem combo to have things dialled. This is certainly not an issue that is unique to Factor but hopefully brands are moving towards 36cm bars being at least an option on bikes that do allow you to choose your bar stem dimensions. My overall impression of this bike is a solid Cervelo R5 competitor, likely similar weight but slightly more aero. Whereas my rides/races generally are
Love what Factor has done here. It speaks to what I believe will be trickle down tech and manufacturing for all its models (especially the Ostro). If I weren't trying to get off the road and into gravel, or lived where the roads are safer to ride (than Los Angeles) I'd be taking a very hard look at this bike. Look forward to your review and another kliller vid. Cheers.
What a surprise Ben, it's been a while to see a review of a pure road bike. And what a bike! A marvel, a gem! You got us envious. Not to mention the beautiful scenery of bikes' paradise -in my humble opinion- Boulder, Colorado!! The bike is beautiful, angry, scary, fast and crazy light. It begs to be ridden hard and upwards. Believe competitors like Specialized should come with a very revolutionary item (SL8?) to beat this! Real enjoyed the video Ben, it was a sight for sore eyes as recently I am on big stress and no time to see a quality video. Thanks!
Sounds right about they need to at least offer some tire options or a no tire option with a discount. One pays $10k and then immediately ~$200 extra to swap out the tires. Why not make it more customer friendly?
Beautiful bike, I'd love to own one but probably not shelling out $12K for the build as shown. I will be watching to see how this compares to the upcoming Tarmac SL8 in the race for the perfect "do-it-all" bikes. Certainly, some could argue that the Cannondale SuperSix EVO and a few others could also fall into this category.
I agree with you. The Goodyear tires just don't live up to the pedigree of the actual bike. Tires are the cheapest upgrade that can be had. The devil is in the details. Especially when you're paying 13k plus for a ride......
It’s only a a handful of years ago that the first big brands shocked the world by launching bikes with 100K €/$ price tag. Suddenly you’re barely getting a Force/Ultegra spec for that money. I can’t help but feel sad for anyone who is new to the sport, the money you need to get started now is just insane.
Neither Chris Froome or Darryl Impey are riding TDF, is this bike the "mechanical issues" Chris referred to as the reason he was not riding TDF this year? The last model was a wet noodle, soft and flexy, are any of the team actually riding this bike in any of the stages or is it all in on the Ostro?
Lightweight climbing bikes need NOT consider aero as a priority in my opinion. Especially if it causes the price to go crazy like this. For comparison, FELT FR FRD frame weighs 780 grams but costs $4300 compared to $6300! They probably should have released an updated, more affordable, standard O2 to present a more financially sane option.
Graham says this and Graham says that. Graham does this and Graham does that... Ben, your journalistic integrity is challenged by your commercial ambition. Really wish you would give us your independent opinion, something I value hearing from you, instead of repeating the supplier's talking points, something much of the rest of the cycling RU-vidrs are doing and that we don't need more of.
It’s called attribution. I don’t have any third party data to cite for a bike that just launched and that I haven’t ridden. If and when I get a test bike I will give my opinion like I always do. What is the commercial ambition that is challenging my integrity? I don’t appreciate the insult, but if your goal was to get my attention then you succeeded.
@@TheRidewithBenDelaney It's also called earned media. The bike supplier gets free attention while the channel gives it to them to get more views, likes, and subscribers, which in turn, leads to more ad and sponsor revenue for the channel. Why else do a video for a bike before you've ridden it and have an opinion about it? Why not wait until you do? Come on Ben, you know how this works. You're better than this. I've enjoyed and valued your opinion and take on cycling gear in your past roles. Help raise the bar in the RU-vid world as well.
