The chassis

The Militis Comp is built around a 6061 aluminium frame and full carbon fork; a chassis with a claimed weight of 1300g and both significant contributors to a low weight that we recorded at just over 8kg, without pedals.

Aluminium frames can deliver an overly stiff ride, and while that wasn’t the case with the Militis Comp, it was far from absorbent. Along with the excellent handling, the stiffness of the frame was its most obvious trait.

The geometry promised an engaging ride and we weren’t disappointed. The 73 degree head angle and 45mm fork rake combined to offer quick and accurate steering that accounted for a large amount of the pleasure derived. One of our regular test loops has more than its fair share of descents that end in swooping corners, and on each of these the Militis Comp was a delight.

We’ve spoken already of its liking for the short, sharp inputs typically demanded by crit racing and as much of this prowess we felt was owed to the frame design as the geometry, notably to an oversized downtube and bottom bracket that freed the frame from torsional flex.

We commented on the slender seatstays in our ‘first look’, now standard fare on carbon bikes as designers bid to induce compliance and, with it, comfort. If that was Raleigh’s goal with the Miltis Comp, it was perhaps the one area in which they failed. Aluminium is a flexible material that can be made stiff. The downside can be a lack of compliance, and we found none in the rear triangle of this bike. A bad thing? Only if your purpose is endurance riding. For shorter, more intense efforts, we felt the stiff rear triangle added to the Miltis Comp’s tautness, a desirable quality in a bike for crit racing.