Stevens isn’t a name that immediately springs to mind if you’re in the market for a new bike but they’re a huge brand on the other side of the English Channel, with a particular presence in the cyclo-cross world.
Now that Hargroves Cycles are bringing them into the UK, we’ve finally been able to swing a leg over one of the bikes that has always raised an eyebrow on trips to the Continent. Our introduction to the range is the Ventoux, a bike named after one of the most feared mountains in Europe.
The German brand has pitched the Ventoux at the sportive market, with a smart looking and functional carbon fibre frame, a complete Shimano Ultegra, smooth-running groupset, and Mavic Ksyrium Elite wheels. Finishing kit is a mix of Stevens’ own brand Scorpo cockpit, a Ritchie carbon seat post and a Selle Italia SLR saddle.
As for the ride, I gave it the daunting task of going into battle with a race straight out of the box. A couple of short rides to asses the fit and it was a trip up to Liverpool for the Eddie Soens. Here, on a sodden wet day, with an average speed well over 30mph on a silky smooth road surface, the Ventoux was magnificent: fast, a quick turn of pace, good handling, assured and steady.
Those smooth roads and lack of hills weren’t the most complete test however, so out into the Surrey Hills and deep into Kent I went in pursuit of some climbs and rougher roads to really see what the Ventoux was capable of. Climbing was just a delicious experience, thanks to the low 15lb weight, but it also had as much to do with how effectively and cleanly the frame transfers power. There’s a very direct and tight feeling on steeper out of the saddle climbs too.
The Ventoux comes a little unstuck when the roads get rough, as they tend to around these parts, with a harsh feeling through the handlebars. It just doesn’t seem able to dampen those high frequency vibrations that certain road surfaces cause, rippling through the forks, stem, handlebars and into the hands and arms. Which is a shame because the skinny stays and 27.2mm seat tube do a decent job of smoothing ripples and crinkled road surfaces out back.
I enjoyed riding the Ventoux. Although it’s billed as a sportive bike, the geometry wasn’t too compromised for the rider who likes a position leaning towards aggressive and aerodynamic. The front is a little higher than a race bike, but not unduly so, and there’s a couple of spacers for tuning the height of the handlebars.
Rather strangely for a ‘sportive’ bike, the Ventoux is supplied with a standard (53/39) chainset. Fine by me; I prefer a standard chainset unless I’m heading into the Alps, but with most bikes intended for the hundreds of sportives across the country, you would expect a compact to be fitted. This suggests the Ventoux isn’t a bike the company expects to be ridden slowly, but rather to be ridden in earnest at speeds that this bike is easily capable of.
So this isn’t a sportive bike, then. It’s essentially a race bike with a slightly less racy fit. And if that’s you, and you’re after a light and fast bike that will excel in sportives, long distance events and handle some road racing, the Ventoux could be the bike for you.
