The German lightweight carbon experts at Bike Ahead Composites have 3 all-new components out today – BiTurbo RSX wheels, The Frame, and The Hypersaddle. Each plays on their strengths in different ways. The saddle is hyperlight, but surprisingly made for comfort. The XC Frame is unsurprisingly light, but almost half the price of Bike Ahead’s premium wheels thanks to Portuguese manufacturing. And the new top-tier 6-spoke MTB wheels are wider and lighter than ever, yet still rated for XC to downcountry…
Bike Ahead Composites keep getting more advanced
The new full-carbon The Hypersaddle is hyperlight at just 70g. But with a cover for more traditional comfort and feel. The Frame is a new XC hardtail that’s of course light. But thanks to made-in-Portugal production it’s much cheaper than we expected, without cutting corners. And new BiTurbo RSX mountain bike wheels take the monocoque full carbon 6-spoke platform to new levels with a 33mm internal width, yet still a few grams shaved off.
The Hypersaddle
There are already enough ultralight, ultra-stiff, unpadded full carbon saddles for the weight weenies of the world. But what’s unique here, is that Bike Ahead says they’ve made a 70g full carbon saddle with a focus on comfort. But how you ask?
Bike Ahead says their 369€ The Hypersaddle uses innovative injection bonding manufacturing tech for max strength between shell, rails and top. All with minimal gaps between materials. It also helped create hollow carbon longer rails for more position adjustment.
A complex layered carbon structure and the “generous central drop” recess in the shell allow Bike Ahead to tune flex & stiffness for improved rider comfort. Then an optional laminated synthetic Alcantara cover provides a comfortable, non-slip finish.
The 245mm long saddle comes in 135mm or 146mm widths. The narrower has a claimed weight of 70g, 74g with the microfiber top. 76 & 80g, respectively for the wider Hypersaddle.
Bike Ahead’s The Frame light carbon XC hardtail
Bike Ahead Composites really like to put the The at the front of the product name.
The Frame is the result of some behind-the-scenes industry development we’ve been following since the new factory opened in 2020. A new company Carbon Team was set up a few years ago to bring advanced carbon manufacturing back into the EU. Behind it were a few Portuguese companies, a big Taiwanese design backer, and the German carbon specialists of All Ahead Composites – Bike Ahead’s parent company.
Essentially, leveraging Bike Ahead’s tech skills, with lower but still European overhead costs, and efficiency-of-scale, Carbon Team creates an ultralight XC hardtail made in Europe that sells for just 1979€.
Targeting modern cross-country racers, The Frame is built to be light and stiff at just 795g (M). Bike Ahead’s hardtail features contemporary fast XC geometry with a 68.5° headtube, 74° seattube, 430mm chainstays, and middle-of-the-road Reach. Nothing extreme. And 4 sizes available (S-XL).
The Frame gets 2.4” tire clearance, regular unguided internal cable routing in the side of the headtube (wireless only 34.9mm droppers), Boost spacing, a UDH, BB92 bottom bracket, post mount brake, and an Intend Corona external seatpost clamp.
The true monocoque carbon 29er hardtail is made by Carbon Team in Portugal, and matte finished by Bike Ahead in Germany. It is EFBE TRI-TESTed for category 3 (MTB-XC). So rated for cross-country and marathon mountain bike riding with 100mm forks (up to 120mm), for riders up to 115kg with gear.
Bike Ahead BiTurbo RSX light monocoque carbon MTB wheels
Equally interesting and even more eye-catching. Fully made back at homebase in Germany, the new Bike Ahead BiTurbo RSX wheels get wider for modern riding with new 33mm internal width. Plus, they even made them lighter, although saving only twenty grams.
Essentially the calling card of Bike Ahead, the mountain bike all-rounder BiTurbo wheels get another generation upgrade to go faster. And at a whopping 3600€ for the new BiTurbo RSX wheelset!
A refined carbon layup let Bike Ahead widen to a 33mm internal hookless rim profile (5mm wider than the RS) while dropping 20g off the pair in either 27.5” or 29” diameters. They also now are stronger, making them approved for heavier riders up to 115kg with gear. That’s actually a 20kg increase over the RS, which should be confidence-inspiring to riders looking to push these beyond ultralight XC race bikes.
Officially, the 6-spoke monocoque Bike Ahead BiTurbo RSX wheels are rated for cross-country, marathon, and downcountry mountain biking. They feature a 24.5mm rim depth, DT Swiss hub internals available in all the MTB freehub standards, and come with wheelbags & tubeless valves. Claimed wheelset weight is 1279g for a 27.5 pair, or 1329g for 29” wheels.
The three new products expand Bike Ahead’s line-up, and are available now via their regular distributors.
