As a gravel bike with a one-by drivetrain, hydraulic disc brakes, electronic shifting, tubeless wheels and 45c tyres, this Pinnacle Arkose may have appeared as a concept bike on the booth of some forward-thinking brand at a trade show ten years ago. What was a gravel bike ten years ago, anyway?
Fast forward to 2017 and bikes like this are not only a reality, but they’re quickly growing in popularity. This Arkose is a representation of Pinnacle’s most up-to-date thinking, launched in this 10th Year Limited Edition spec to celebrate a decade in the business for the British-based bike brand.
It’s for that reason that the Arkose is the first entry into our new weekly series, Something for the weekend, which showcases our pick of the latest tech to land at RCUK HQ.
The Arkose is Pinnacle’s adventure platform, with a refreshed 6061 aluminium frame at its heart. Pinnacle helped pioneer this type of do-it-all bike, with the Arkose first launched way back in 2010 and the frame updated earlier this year.
It’s got more of an off-road bias than ever before, with a lower bottom bracket, slacker seattube angle, lower wheelbase and bigger tyre clearance. It’s a machine designed for the road, bridleways, trails and everything along the way.
While four bikes make up the regular Arkose range, this 10th Year model, launched last month, is a tricked out machine, that’s for sure. Launched alongside a limited edition Dolomite road bike and Lithium commuting bike, ‘these bikes are our expression of what each model category could be if we went a step or two further,’ according to Pinnacle.
A one-by drivetrain has become almost default for off-road riders in recent years, since SRAM launched the XX1 gruppo in 2012, and the Arkose pairs a FSA Gossamer Pro 40t single chainring and Shimano M8050 Deore XT Di2 mountain bike rear derailleur with a 11-46t cassette. That’s powered by a Shimano R600 climbing shifter mounted onto the right-hand TRP Hylex hydraulic brake lever.
Tyres have been getting progressively wider in cycling, whether that’s pros moving from 23mm rubber to 25mm, weekend riders making the jump up to 28s, or curious adventurers looking to take the road unknown on bikes like the Arkose, which has clearance for the 45c WTB Riddler tyres mounted here. In fact, the Arkose is one of the few bikes with clearance for tyres this big, along with the likes of the Mason Bokeh and Kinesis Tripster AT.
Tyres that wide enable the Arkose to truly push the boundary of what’s possible with a drop-handlebar bike and we’re looking to finding out exactly where those limits are, both on and off the road. This is a bike built for adventure and, one thing is for sure, we’ll have some fun along the way.
Website: Evans Cycles
Something for the weekend showcases our pick of the latest tech to arrive at RoadCyclingUK. You can see more here.
