Avant, highly commended

After two years of developing our endurance competition bicycle, the best-selling and most influential road cycling magazine in the United Kingdom has put the Avant to the test once again. The result is that Cycling Plus has given the Avant its “Highly commended” seal, with a score of 4.5 out of 5.

“On the road it feels wonderfully at ease, the ride is smooth, the steering light and accurate. It’s not race-bike Sharp, but it is a decent climber,fast and beautifully balanced,” indicates Cycling Plus, recommending it especially for “for sportives, challenging days”: “If you want to get in those big, long miles in comfort, Orbea’s lightweight endurance bike should be written in big letters somewhere near the top of your bikes-to-consider list,” they conclude.

Cycling Plus reminds us all that times have changed since the only distinction was between competition bikes and bikes for “amateurs”: the explosion of the sports cycling culture, with increasingly higher level events, has opened the door to endurance bikes like the Avant. Road bicycles are now more comfortable for long days of pedaling, and they do not ruin cyclists’ backs with the extreme positions of racing bikes, with a longer distance between the axles.

In terms of the evolution of the Avant, Cycling Plus highlights the polyurethane inserts that we have introduced in the frame construction process, “whichitclaimsalleviate stress and reduce vibration, resulting in a marginallystronger and lighterstructure”

The British magazine didn’t skip over the less obvious, but important details in the Avant’s design, either, such as the fork.“Ratherthanlengtheningthe head-tube to raisethefrontendfor a semi-uprightdistancefriendlyriding position, Orbea has lengthenedtheforkby 10mm. This has the added advantage of increasing tyre clearance,” they indicate.

From the Avant’s components kit, like in the first test, Cycling Plus emphasizes its Shimano disc brakes, which provide “.smooth and progressive stopping power whatever the weather, with little drama or noise”

Disc Bike of the Year 2014

Like many of you cyclists who don’t look at the odometer when training, Cycling Plus fell in love with the Avant a long time ago. In 2014, it named it “Disc bike of the year”, defining it as “A trulystunningframesetwhichdelivers a beautifulridewithexcellentbraking.”

The British magazine described the sensations of the Avant on the road as “spectacular.”“The geometry suggest a stable, predictable and ‘possibly’ dull straightforward sportive bike, what you actually get is a steed that’s bursting with fun.”

Cycling Plus extolled numerous details about the Avant back in 2014, when we were one of the pioneers in producing a road model with disc brakes. As of today, this knowledge has enabled us to develop the new Avant model, as well as the disc version of the Orca.

A short while ago, we were at the Tour des Flandres Cyclo, and we told you about how we were seeing more endurance than racing bikes. The idea of what a competition bike is changing. If you have a long day ahead, if you ride on roads in poor condition or on cobblestones, if you are one of those who wins by elimination, if resisting is winning and victory depends on resisting, Avant is a bicycle that is going to help you.