Kinesis KR210 Youth's road frame + fork

Junior or women racers aren't always that well served by off the peg road bikes which is why we were so keen to test the Kinesis KR210 road bike - a frame designed specifically with junior and women racers in mind. Many manufacturers either don't produce bikes in small enough sizes or if they do they are simply scaled down versions of the larger models which can mean compromises in terms of fit and quite often that the bikes are heavier than they need to be which is a big handicap for a smaller rider.

Because this bike is designed with smaller riders in mind (the largest size is a 49cm, the smallest 40cm) Kinesis use smaller, lighter diameter tubing than normal for the chain and seat stays and SPF thin wall tubing for the front triangle – the geometry is also tweaked for smaller riders with a shorter top tube. On paper at least it sounds like it should be just the thing for junior riders.

Bear in mind though that this is designed to be a good race frameset, simply built with smaller lighter riders in mind – so it costs about what you would expect to pay for such a piece of kit. How much it costs to built up is very much going to depend on what kit and componentry you already have to hand, but you may well want smaller bars and shorter cranks - not necessarily the sorts of things you might have just lying about - finished with new kit, we'd expect this to come out at somewhere just over £1000. To put it to the test we gave one to aspring racer Peter Kibble, aged 12. Here's how he got on…

"Since last summer I've been testing the Kinesis KR210 Youth bike. I raced on it at The Omega Thruxton Series and Castle Combe Summer Series. From racing the bike and riding it through the country lanes around Wiltshire I got a pretty good gauge on how the bike performed.

The KR210 looked striking from the moment I saw it. I couldn’t get over how light it was. I was eager to stick a leg over it and ride it! On my first ride, I put it to the test going into corners faster than I usually do. It was quick and the acceleration was good. It had an air of confidence about it and I couldn’t wait to race on it.

My first race was at Castle Combe. The bike was good for getting on the wheels. It was also sturdy at high speed and very fast in the sprint; great fun! It also made a few people turn their heads at the frame's striking looks."

Verdict

I enjoyed riding/racing this bike and would be happy to own it!