At Eurobike this summer, Bike Ahead Composites debuted an all-new ultralight carbon The Superfast gravel bike, one-piece monocoque The Cockpit handlebars for road or gravel, and a new Classified version of their 6-spoke BiTurbo Gravel Aero wheel for racers who want to combine the 2-speed Powershift hub with a 1x drivetrain for tighter gear spacing. Plus, they had a unique dream build of their The Frame HT cross-country hardtail dubbed The One for its uncompromising European build, attention to detail, and unique custom finishing…
Bike Ahead The Superfast carbon gravel bike
Bike Ahead Composites calls their made-in-Germany The Superfast, the new ultimate gravel bike. Gravel bikes are the quintessential do-it-all bike, so to make a perfect gravel bike, you have to make a bike that will make everyone happy. Obviously, that’s an impossible task. But Bike Ahead had a smart idea how to solve it.
Developed directly as a result of a survey of their potential customers, this is the: race-focused, raw carbon, fully integrated gravel bike with internal storage that the market was asking for. Survey participants didn’t clearly agree on tire size, so Bike Ahead went with 50mm, or 1x vs. 2x so they work with both to make almost everyone happy. They also couldn’t agree on a pressfit or threaded BB, so Bike Ahead offers both! Only on seatpost clamping did Bike Ahead take the executive decision that a traditional clamp is smarter than any integrated solution!
And to make sure that every rider got the perfect fit – beyond the four stock frame sizes – Bike Ahead also developed their new The Cockpit integrated bar at stem at eth same time, with 50 different possible size & shape combinations!
“In fall 2024, Bike Ahead launched its unique project, THE SUPERFAST. The goal was to create the ultimate gravel bike made in Germany. The bike was not to be developed behind closed doors, but with input from the community. Through social media surveys, anyone interested had the opportunity to vote on the important key points, including basic questions such as the range of use, but also details such as the type of cable routing. The results were incorporated directly into the development process. Everything was completely transparent. Every step in the creation of the bike was published on Instagram and Facebook, as well as in blog posts on the Bike Ahead website. Now the bike is ready for series production. Production will start in Würzburg at the end of July.”
The Superfast – Tech details
- One-piece monocoque construction
- fully integrated internal cable routing
- optional sealed, removable internal frame storage (locked from the top, drops from the bottom)
- PressFit OR threaded T47 bottom bracket option
- 50mm max 700c tire clearance (54mm on the bike shown here)
- 1x or 2x with patented, removable & “fully variable” front derailleur hanger
- UDH standard derailleur mounting options
- hollow titanium bottle cage bosses (1.06g each)
- 789g frame & 388g fork weights (claimed)
- user-customizable The Cockpit dimensions (see below)
- complete bike weights from 6.85kg without pedals (claimed)
- 4 stock sizes (S, M, L, XL)
- straight-out-of-the-mold finish, no paint needed
- 100% made in Germany
Bike Ahead The Superfast – Pricing, options & availability
The new made in Würzburg Bike Ahead The Superfast gravel bike is available now both as a frameset and in 5 customizable complete builds. Framesets are available in 4 stock sizes (S-XL) from Bike Ahead dealers for 4200€.
Complete bikes start around 7610€ with SRAM Rival Xplr 1×13, 8010€ with Force Xplr, 9779€ with Red Xplr, or 8260€ complete with Shimano GRX Di2 either as a 1×12 or 2×12 setup.
Bike Ahead The Cockpit one-piece carbon bar & stem
Featured on The Superfast, The Cockpit is an ultralight, 100% made-in Germany one-piece monocoque carbon handlebar and stem combo with fully internal cable routing. It is a cockpit co-developed with Stoll (whose bikes are made by Bike Ahead in their Würzburg, DE factory) to offer more personalized cockpit fit options without compromising on “lightweight construction, riding comfort, ergonomics, and stiffness”. So, what really sets The Cockpit apart is the wide range of sizing options offered by Bike Ahead thanks to their unique modular molds.
Bike Ahead lets The Cockpit pick your flare, stem length, and bar width – with all combinations possible:
- straighter 7° flare Race road-oriented drops with 80mm reach & 125mm drop, or..
- more angled 11° flare Gravel drops with more compact 75mm reach & 120mm drop
- 5 virtual stem lengths: 88, 99, 111, 122 & 133mm stems are all -10°
- 5 bar widths: 36, 38, 40, 42 & 44cm measured center-to-center at the hoods
The Cockpit is made in Germany with weights from 299g, and has passed the standard ISO testing, plus the tougher ASTM-2 by the EFBE test lab (max 100kg/220lb rider weight). It is designed for IS52mm Acros/FSA integrated headsets, with bearing top covers available from Bike Ahead to match many modern integrated bikes. It sells for 900€ starting in late August, including a topcap and a 9.5g carbon CarbonWorks out-front GPS mount.
BiTurbo Gravel Aero Classified rear wheel
With the rise in 1x-specific frames, wider tires, and more gravel riders adopting Classified Powershift rear hubs to bring black closer gearing steps, Bike Ahead created a new Classified-specific version of their BiTurbo Gravel Aero rear wheel to fit the unique geared hub internals inside. You get the same iconic 6-spoke monocoque carbon wheel with 26mm hookless internal, 39.5mm aero profile & its carbon hub, but now designed to drop a Powershift setup into it.
The One 7.75kg Dream Build
Bike Ahead’s dream build of their recent ultralight carbon The Frame HT aims to highlight the cross-country hardtail’s EU origins with an appropriately lightweight European build kit and German custom finishing. Starting with the frame produced in Portugal in Bike Ahead’s cooperation with Carbon Team, it gets a mix of kit from Bike Ahead in Germany, Hope in the UK, Zirbel in Switzerland, Gemini in Spain, plus a nice dose of German Hopp customization.
The result is a wildly light yet trail-ready 7.75kg (17.09lb) total bike weight (without pedals) that makes no compromises on performance or durability. Just don’t ask how much it would cost to build at retail pricing!
Standard “more affordable” 8kg complete builds with an XX SL spec are still available starting at 8500€.
The One Complete Build Spec List
Frame, fork & wheels
- custom finishing: deep dark red glaze treatment with gold lettering by artist Johnny Steinert of XS Design in Chemnitz, Germany, much of it over forged carbon laminate inserts
- frame: Bike Ahead’s The Frame HT, 794g one-piece monocoque carbon hardtail made in Portugal, finished in Germany
- fork: 120mm Cannondale Lefty Ocho Carbon; custom polished, glazed & sealed carbon body
- rims: Bike Ahead SafeWing 30, 30mm internal patented rounded carbon rim bead, hookless tubeless, made in Würzburg; polished & glazed with painted graphics
- spokes: PiRope textile Vectran spokes handmade in Chemnitz from 300 individual woven filaments, 2g each; black with two gold spokes per wheel beside the valve stems
- hubs: Nonplus Components, 45T engagement with 4x more freewheel contact area than typical, made in Stuttgart; custom finish with painted graphics
- tires: 29×2.25″ Schwalbe Racing Ray front & Racing Ralph rear, tubeless
Drivetrain
- derailleur: SRAM XX SL Eagle Transmission, tuned with Hopp full carbon upgrade made in Berlin, including brand new Hopp Carbon derailleur cage with carbon derailleur pulleys
- shifter: Zirbel Bike Twister AXS, ultralight and sleek thumb shifter with hidden controller inside the bar, 46g (external shifter, internal electronics & battery), made in Switzerland
- crankset: SRAM XX SL Eagle T-type; polished, glazed & sealed with painted graphics
- chainring: 34T Gemini Rigel, asymmetric carbon body over aluminum skeleton, handcrafted in Barcelona; lacquered with painted graphics
- cassette: SRAM XX SL Eagle T-type 10-52T
- chain: SRAM XX SL Eagle Flattop T-type
- bottom bracket: Hope MTB PF41, sealed stainless steel, 77g, made in Barnoldswick, England
Brakes & contact points
- brakes: Hope XCR Pro X2, light CNC-machined body and carbon levers, 199g including rotor, made in Barnoldswick
- cockpit: Bike Ahead The Unit ICR, fully integrated one-piece monocoque carbon, 205g, made in Würzburg; glazed with painted graphics
- grips: Procraft SG1 silicone grips, 75g
- seatpost: Bike Ahead The Straight, full carbon including clamp yoke, 140g, made in Würzburg; glazed with painted graphics
- saddle: Bike Ahead THE HYPERSADDLE, 76 grams, made in Würzburg; glazed with painted graphics
