Ridley

Fenix C10 Disc Ultegra Complete Road Bike - 2016

Though its non-disc cousin now comes in a Super Light model, Ridley's latest Fenix C10 Disc Ultegra Complete Road Bike retains the sharper lines, straight top tube, and carbon construction of its predecessor. Retaining these features is no more a downgrade than the bike's race-ready, Shimano Ultegra drivetrain, though. There are currently more than a few of these frames with similar builds kicking around the Competitive offices and the original Fenix appeared on the podium of at least one spring classic — that Flandrian one, to be precise. If your racing pedigree demands a better platform than the Belgian peloton, then you're probably not buying your own frames, anyways; however, if you're a self-sponsored cyclist in the hunt for reliable, lightweight, stiffness, then the Fenix is your firebird.

Instead of the Fenix SL's blend of 30 and 24t carbon, the C10 Disc features a layup of 100% 24t unidirectional carbon. Since it's not as stiff, the 24t-only frame requires more material to hit target responsiveness for a claimed weight gain of around 170g in size medium. Potholes, cobblestones, and other road hazards are all still as smooth as crosswalk paint on the Fenix Disc, and the oversized bottom bracket and burly chainstays mean comfort doesn't come at the cost of efficiency. If you ever get tired of wantonly plowing over obstacles, the stiff, tapered head tube nets sharp handling to dodge through debris with ease.

We're confident that disc braking is the wave of the future because it takes more power input to lock your wheel, so you can accurately modulate braking force over five times the power range. They also catch virtually immediately, even when wet or dirty conditions would force rim brakes to complete an entire debris-clearing revolution before grabbing the brake track — exactly the kind of reliability you'll want whether racing the Belgian classics or hammering through spring intervals on your own local loops. Though the integrated brake/shifter levers and brake calipers on Fenix C10 aren't labeled Ultegra, they're virtually the exact same as Shimano's 6800 levers with the addition of hydraulic functionality.