BikeLIVE Bath - Come and test ride a huge range of bikes from Canyon, Giant, Vitus, Liv, Sven Cycles and many more at our demo day

Since last February the staff at road.cc have ridden and reviewed about sixty bikes; and while you’d probably struggle to do all that in a day, we’re offering you the chance to give it a go with our first demo day of 2018, BikeLIVE Bath!

Back in February of last year we had a range of brands including Canyon and Giant who brought just shy of 100 different bikes with them for you to ride around the traffic free, 1.5km race circuit that is Odd Down and it’s happening all over again in just a few weeks.

Buy your ticket for BikeLIVE Bath here

The range was massive too, everything from your first ever road bike through to those mega money dream machines that your mates will happily remind you that, “You could buy a car for that money.”

Our sister site ebiketips will also be hosting the event alongside us so there will be plenty of e-bikes available for you to have a play on too. Everything from road machines, utility bikes and if you like your riding a little bit on the dirty side we’ll be running the ever popular e-MTB off-road rides led by ebiketips staffers.

This video from BikeLIVE Bath 2017 shows just how much fun it was............

Who’s coming?

We’re going to be announcing the brands over the coming weeks but we’ll give you a sneaky peak of some of the highlights that’ll be there on the day.

Canyon

Canyon have always been a popular brand amongst you and it was probably one of the busiest stands at Odd Down last year.

Being a German based, direct to consumer retailer getting a test ride on a Canyon isn’t as simple as popping to your local bike shop for a quick spin so this is a great opportunity to chuck your leg over the latest machines to gauge sizing and spec levels.

Read what models Canyon will be bringing to BikeLIVE here.

Giant

No demo day would be complete without the largest bicycle manufacturer in the world, Taiwanese brand Giant which is why they'll be at BikeLIVE with their huge range of road models and e-bikes designed with various different types of riding in mind.

What a range it is too, we took a look here at the full 2018 lineup including prices but we'll give you a little run through of the models likely to be available on the day.

TCR Advanced

The TCR Advanced bikes are performance road bikes that are designed to be lightweight, stiff and agile, roughly the equivalent of a Trek Emonda or a Specialized Tarmac.

All the TCR models are made from carbon fibre in various grades, and they come in race geometries: low and stretched.

Propel 

Whereas the TCR bikes are designed for stiffness-to-weight, the Propels are all about aerodynamics. 

Giant has added disc brake Propels to the lineup in 2018 for the first time.

Defy

The Defy is Giant’s carbon fibre endurance/sportive road bike lineup, designed to be comfortable over long distances while still providing plenty of speed. The Defy bikes are shorter in the top tube than equivalent TCRs, for example, and have taller head tubes to put you into a ride position that’s a bit more relaxed and back-friendly.

Contend

The aluminium-framed Contend models are built to almost exactly the same geometries as those of the carbon fibre Defy bikes (above), although they have shorter chainstays. They also come with tapered head tubes and steerers for accurate steering, and a D-Fuse seatpost that’s designed to damp vibration.

Vitus

BikeLIVE Bath will be the first time Vitus have come to one of our road.cc LIVE organised events and we’re excited that they’ve signed up.

Vitus' bikes have always scored well in our road.cc tests offering a quality ride and great value for money. Bikes like their Zenium SL Disc and the knobbly tyred Energie Cyclo X have both scored four and a half stars overall recently and this could be your chance to give us your feedback.

As with Canyon, Vitus bikes sold through Chain Reaction Cycles and wiggle are an internet only affair so this is a great chance to get as many laps in of the Odd Down track to find out if the bike is right for you.

Vitus will be bringing;

• E-Sommet E MTB
• E- Sentier 
• ZX1 
• Vitesse Evo
• Vitesse Evo disc
• Venon disc
• Substance Gravel     

Liv

​Liv is the women specific range from Giant and it covers everything from endurance style bikes with the Avail or if racing is your thing then you'll probably want to take one of the Envie models for a spin.

The Envie bikes are essentially women’s versions of rim brake Propels. Like the Propels, they’re divided up into different categories. There’s no SL version but there are Envie Advanced and Advanced Pro models along with an Envie Advanced Tri.

The Liv Avail bikes are pretty much women’s versions of the Giant Defys and Contends. It’s a large range containing 10 different models, covering both carbon fibre Advanced models and aluminium-framed bikes. 

Sven Cycles

If off-the-shelf isn't your thing what about a bespoke bike handbuilt in the UK?

Sven Cycles are based down in Weymouth, Dorset and Darron Coppin has been building bespoke bikes for private customers since 2012. As demand for his bikes grew, Andrew ‘Mog’ Mogford joined the business. Together, they have established Sven Cycles as a respected builder of high-quality bicycles; winning numerous Bespoked Bicycle Show awards for their work. 

Alongside their bespoke range Sven Cycles also offer a semi-custom option. They have created an exacting range of Rohloff Touring bikes and Roadsters, designed to deliver a distinctly efficient and enjoyable ride — and built to last a lifetime.

Componentry and finishing touches can be individually customised from a range of options. 

The team will be on hand at BikeLIVE Bath to discuss the finer details of that special bike you've been dreaming of as a little 'to me, from me' present. 

​Maxxis Tyres

​It’s not every day that you have such access to a leading tyre brands top experts, but BikeLIVE visitors will have just that and will be able to ask the Maxxis team everything and anything that there is to know about road, cyclocross, BMX and mountain bike tyres.

The team will be able to offer in depth insight into the innovative technologies that the Maxxis tyres are made with, as well as tailored advice to help riders find the perfect tyre to
suit their needs.

As well as Q+A’s, Maxxis will be giving you the chance to see its newly released tyres including the Relix BMX, High Roller II, Minion DHF and the Wide Trail model of the Minion DHR II, all of which will be on display at the events.

Some tyres will even be involved in demonstrations and will be used as OE on some fantastic bikes which will be available to ride on throughout, so that you can experience the quality of Maxxis tyres for themselves.

​fi'zi:k

Once known primarily for its saddles, Italian company fi'zi:k successfully branched out with a range of high-end road shoes several years ago, and for 2018 it has completely overhauled the range with some brand new tech and a new naming convention. There are new saddles as well with the added option of pressure reducing holes and channels.

fi'zi:k first launched a range of shoes in 2010, and the range has evolved hugely in that time. Remember the original R1s made from kangaroo leather with sail cloth straps?  In the pursuit for better performance and comfort, fi'zi:k has been pretty aggressive in its redesign of its shoes over the years, and there’s little to link these latest shoes back to those originals.

It's more than that though, fi'zi:k also offer a range of components which will also be available to view and get your hands on at BikeLIVE.

Pirelli tyres

Plenty of hype, two years of development, over 100,000km of test riding: a lot of work has gone into the development of Pirelli’s PZero Velo road tyres, marking the legendary brands’ first entry into the cycling market for almost a century. 

Believe it or not, Pirelli are actually deeply routed in cycling history - they produced the first ever tubular tyre for road racers in 1895, going on to supply many riders in early 20th century editions of the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia. At BikeLIVE you'll be able to take an in depth look at the three new tyres, the PZero Velo, PZero Velo 4S and PZero Velo TT.

The Venue

• Odd Down Circuit, Bath, BA2 2PR
• Sunday, February 18th 2018
• 10.00 to 17.00 

As we’ve already mentioned we’ll be using the excellent Odd Down closed cycling circuit on the outskirts of the city of Bath for you to test ride the bikes and with the event village being right next to it you won’t have to mix with any traffic at all.

The track itself has a mix of short and long straights with both flowing curves and some tighter technical bends chucked in for good measure so it’s the perfect place to put any bike through its paces if handling and braking are high up on your list of priorities.

If you fancy a more relaxed ride around to test out the latest hybrids or e-bikes then the track is plenty wide enough for you to cruise around too.

Alongside the stands full of bikes and components the event village will be full of local food vendors to keep your energy stores replenished for tapping the miles out through the day.

Odd Down also has plenty of facilities on offer as well with toilets and changing rooms at your disposal.

And what will all this set you back?

A full days riding and much more is just £15, so why not treat yourself and buy your ticket here at the BikeLIVE website.  

 Also, just by turning up you'll be receiving a free goodie bag which includes £6 worth of Nuun hydration products and Clif Bars amongst other things.