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TECH NEWS
Pro bike: JLT Condor team reveal new look bikes and kit
JLT Condor, a British UCI Continental team, have just revealed their new look kit and race bikes for the upcoming season. With Rapha ending their involvement with the team at the end of last year (a team which they helped launch in 2006), Mavic have stepped up as clothing and equipment supplier.
The biggest change to the team since that launch sees a fresh new look to the bikes and kit. The design still retains the black colour that the team first launched with way back in 2006 (when they were then known as Rapha Condor), but Mavic’s yellow corporate colour is used on the sleeves and collar of the new jersey, and on the shorts too, along with yellow shoes and black helmets. It's a good look.
There’s a splash of Mavic yellow on the new look Condor bikes, with the London-based bike shop of 60-years continuing to back the team. The team will have a choice of three bikes; the regular Leggero, the new Leggero SL, and the Super Acciaio. The Leggero above belongs to under-23 development rider Ed Laverack.
The team will race the Leggero, Condor’s flagship race bike. While the name is the same, the frame has changed a lot in the last nine years. The Leggero is an Italian made carbon frame, using a tube-to-tube construction process, with a combination of unidirectional and directional high modulus carbon fibre. The latest version features internal cable routing and is fully Di2 and EPS compatible.
The Leggero will be painted in the familiar gloss black with grey fork tips and white and grey rear stays, and yellow flashes on the inside face of the fork and stays, and a panel on the seat tube. Fizik will supply colour matched saddles to complement the frame finish.
Once again the team will ride Campagnolo groupsets, with the latest Record 11-speed mechanical groupset being used. Wheels will also come from the Italian brand with the Bora One, a 50mm carbon fibre tubular wheelset, pictured in the released photos. They’ll use Continental years and Fizik handlebars, stems and seatposts.
Revealed at the Cycle Show last year was the Leggero SL, a new lightweight version of the frame with a claimed 900g frame weight. Some of the team were using it last year already, at the US Pro Challenge and Tour of Britain. The Leggero SL is naturally suited to hilly and mountainous race courses, and for any rider who prefers the lightest possible bike between their legs.
The Leggero SL is the result of 18 months development with the team involved - Kristian House was racing a development mule last season and even used it at the USA Pro Challenge race in Colorado. It has all the hallmarks of the regular Leggero, such as the BB30 bottom bracket, tapered head tube and internal cable routing, but they’ve utilised more advanced carbon fibre to make the claimed weight savings. Now on sale, the Leggero SL will cost £2,999.99 with a Columbus carbon fork, headset and seat clamp).
The team will be able to choose which bike they ride, and another bike from Condor’s range they’ll have at their disposal will be the UCI approved Super Acciaio. First launched in 2012 - but tested in races since 2010 - its release prompted a surge of interest in performance racing steel bikes. A Columbus tubeset in the latest version, featuring oversize tube profiles and a BB30 bottom bracket and 44mm head tube provides race-ready stiffness. And with a circa 1600g frame weight, a light build is a realistic option.
Okay, so maybe not the first choice in a race through the mountains, but on a flat and demanding criterium circuit, the Super Acciaio has proven itself a worthy choice. In fact, a development model of the latest version of the frame was raced through the 2013 Tour Series by James McCallum.
The team made their 2015 racing debut at the recent Mitchelton Bay Classic in Australia, and will be targeting races that have brought the team success in the past.
Team manager John Herety said: “We will be targeting both the domestic calendar, which is gradually strengthening year-on-year, as well as international stage races, like the Tour of Normandy and the Tour of Korea, where we have enjoyed success in the past.”
David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes.
Latest Comments
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Interesting. I would have expected someone else (wearing gloves) to handle the swab and administer the test to minimise that sort of contamination....
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Lol at this article. The only reason Orro are well reviewed by roadcc is because they're all mates. This brand has zero "kudos" or a good...
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No problem: Trump's going to fix it. The same way the tories fixed the NHS, only much, much worse.
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Yes, and plenty of people 'drive as correctly' as him on the roads round here, tbh I always expected this outcome, simply because of my experiences...
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The bus should have been bigger and brighter coloured. How are drivers expected to spot a bright yellow double decker bus on our roads?...
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BBC news article on this implies anyone cycling on the road, rather than using the cycle area, is riding incorrectly! ...
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This story on its own says that's not true ....
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14 comments
I'm surprised they went with Campag wheels given their new sponsor.
An altogether lovely steed though either way
I'm looking for a companion for my very well used Fratello. Tempted with the Super Acciaio, but I'm leaning more towards the Squadra.
All in all though, that Leggero looks stunning!
Are the yellow arm stripes a little bit of a dig at Rapha perhaps?
All in all I really like the kit, and the bikes look great, a bit more exciting than all black, but not too over the top.
I still really want a Super Acciaio, although I don't think they're stainless steel are they? (or is there another new version?)
There is a stainless Acciao (Columbus XCR, very nice) but not a stainless Super Acciaio. They have different geometries.
I used to want one, but on both my trips to Condor recently to drop money on a frame I was roundly ignored so took my money elsewhere.
We must have something in common. I recently stood at the bar of an almost empty pub for a full two minutes while the owner, who was in plain view, blanked me and carried on checking his bank statements.
My wife was a little surprised when, minus drinks, I collected her from the table and marched her back to the car.
I'd rather be abused than ignored and will never darken his doorstep again.
I'm really surprised you were ignored or felt ignored. I've used Condor on and off for over 20 odd years and find the staff very helpful and one thing I do not see them do is ignore customers.
Not once, but twice. I got over it quite quickly though and bought elsewhere.
That is unfortunate, sorry to hear it. I've always booked ahead before seeking to buy a frame/bike because they are notoriously busy. You're given the red carpet treatment if you are organised like that.
customer service is not their strong point I'd say, and I have bought two Condor bikes there, so speak of experience. I've noticed over the years (it's better now) that not all their staff are equally knowledgeable and some of them have a snobbish attitude if you're not deemed 'serious' enough.
I think you're right that the customer service has improved over time. I've bought three bikes from them in the past few years and have been impressed by them every time. One thought is that Condor is more likely to attract experienced cyclists than newbies, and the former are more likely to know what they want and prefer browsing without being pestered. The staff are probably sensitive to this.
Walking past and not returning a 'hi' or standing around en-masse fawning over a Rapha clad girl talking mudguards and ignoring everyone else is not being in tune to a buyers needs IMO, a shame as they sell great bikes.
Perhaps I just caught them on a bad day both times.
> Are the yellow arm stripes a little bit of a dig at Rapha perhaps?
Not at all. It's keeping some of the brand identity the 'men in black' have already but updating it for a new title sponsor. Things change, teams change, people move on, it's just the way of the world. I know there is still lot of love between Condor and Rapha.
They were kind of the full-on 'boutique brand' outfit, weren't they? Being paid to ride Condor/Campag and wear Rapha is pretty darn cool. Only to be surpassed, perhaps, by a team riding Parlees and wearing Assoss!
Looks fantastic. If they release one in the same colours, I may just be tempted.