Steve Smith

#newbikeday
This one has been in the works for a long time. The Factor guys gave me a peak at Bardet’s prototype of the new Elara back at Santavall. I was smitten.

This is a one-of-one paint job in the most gorgeous burnt orange you can imagine. It has an almost mirror finish. Otherwise it’s a stock 54cm frame with a 36x120 bar — nice and narrow. And of course it needed the 64 Gravel wheels combined with 55mm tires makes the bike look like a motorcycle.

The entire bike is over-the-top so I finished it with Campagnolo Super Record X — I’ve been on the 2x13 Super Record group on the road for over a year and it has been phenomenal so I figured it’d be amazing off-road as well. In the first couple hundred km it has been flawless: shifts are snappy, brakes are spot on, everything is whisper quiet and the lever ergonomics are my favorite.

First rides confirm the expected straight line speed. What I didn’t expect is how snappy and quick it is whether in tight single track or high speed descents. It just wants to turn in without being overly twitchy. I set it up with my road position so it’s the most aggressive I’ve ever gone on gravel but so far I’m loving it.

A huge thanks to @robgitelis for the special paint and for making this bike that is going to change how the world races on gravel. Well done 👍

Shout out to @pedromerendero for the build and @pocispix for the amazing pics.