Cervelo Aspero-5 Red AXS 1

The Cervelo Aspero-5 Red AXS 1 is as racy as a racy thing. It’s not meant for Sunday saunters down the towpath, it’s there to be ridden in anger in UCI gravel races – as long as it’s not muddy or wet.

If a gravel race bike is your bag, then this machine hits the brief brilliantly. But if you want something that’s capable on anything other than champagne gravel, such as multi-day events where you might need to carry more than a banana, you might be better putting your money towards a slightly different bike.

Cervelo Aspero-5: Ride

The essence of what constitutes a gravel bike is becoming increasingly difficult to identify. The lines between mountain, gravel and road bikes are blurring evermore, with some brands taking their ‘gravel’ bikes to either end of the spectrum. ‘Grountain’ bikes, for instance, are becoming increasingly common – those with suspension, dropper posts, and wider tyre clearances.

But at the other end of the spectrum is the out-and-out gravel racing bike. Naturally, how that might present itself depends on what kind of race you’re doing. But for the purpose of the Aspero-5 audience, think Gralloch, UCI Gravel World events and WorldTour riders.

> Does gravel racing have an aero problem? Why some are saying the need for speed is ‘killing’ cycling’s newest discipline

The Cervelo Aspero-5 is by definition a racing gravel bike. It’s designed for fast riders, racers and those who give a damn about aerodynamics even when they’re off-road. Before I dissect the marketing claims about it being 37 watts faster than its predecessor, let’s discuss the ride quality.

So, how does it ride? On the road, or on hard packed gravel roads that make Yorkshire look like Girona, it’s superb. Climbing is enjoyable, and you can feel the stiffness of the frame when dancing on the pedals but without it being harsh. It feels pretty road-esque, if you get what I mean by that. It’s not sluggish on asphalt, and the fairly narrow (38cm) handlebar without overly flared drops helped me to develop confidence flinging it into corners and on descents pretty quickly.

‘But what about off road?’ I hear you ask. Well, I’m not at all saying that the Aspero-5 is not a gravel bike, nor that it couldn’t be a versatile racing machine with the right choice of components. Namely, the tyres. This bike is shipped with slick 42mm tyres, and it didn’t exactly inspire confidence if the ground had anything more than a spot of rain on it. I found myself having quite a few squeaky bum moments on what I’d call pretty tame bridleways. You know the type, the grass up the middle, bit of a dip on either side from the weight of the farm machinery, and sheep poo speckling the hard packed ground.

If your response to slipping and sliding is just to put raw power down and rely on that to get you out of sticky situations then you might be fine. And I’m aware that cyclocross riders have to make do with much skinnier tyres in much worse conditions and they all get on just fine. But, I am not a cyclocross rider. On my own gravel bike I run 50mm knobbly tyres, I ride mountain bikes with 2.2in and 2.4in setups, and I’m used to having a little bit of traction beneath me when things get sloppy.

I just struggled to find the enjoyment in riding this bike off-road that I’d expected to be there. I can’t fault the drivetrain, the brakes, or even the finishing kit. But the cloud of fear of encountering anything other than perfect weather hung over me as I rode through picturesque moors.

Luckily, I’m in an area where there is quite an abundance of ‘decent’ gravel, so there were miles upon miles of feeling fast and really putting the hammer down to see how much I could get out of this bike.

So overall, the ride quality gets a thumbs up from me, but it would be vastly improved with more season-appropriate tyres.

Cervelo Aspero-5: Frame and fork

As gravel racing develops, aerodynamics becomes more important. Just like in road cycling, bike brands are now redesigning frames, tube shapes, handlebar setups and more all to get that edge. Cervelo claims that the new Aspero-5 has a 37-watt saving over its previous generation and is ’34 watts faster than the nearest competitor’.

Sadly, I have neither access to a wind tunnel nor an aerodynamicist to back these claims up but looking at the differences in the frame design from the older Aspero to this one, there are some key changes that may contribute to this claim.

The carbon fibre tubing is slightly wider, and the fork is significantly more bladed than the 2019 model. The down tube uses the brand’s triathlon storage to keep your tools and essentials out of the wind and inside the frame.

The shape of the seat tube features the traditional Cervelo curvature, paying homage to the S5. While it looks great and makes it recognisable, it doesn’t really lend itself to off-road riding where riders might want to put in a dropper post or even just a different seatpost to the aero-inspired one offered.

It’s plain to see the inspiration from Cervelo’s road bikes, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that; if you’re buying a gravel bike from a brand that has historically focused on road riding, it’s unreasonable to expect anything else. Cervelo isn’t going to go and hire ex-Santa Cruz designers to come and build it a long, slack, low BB gravel bike. Instead, it focuses on what it already does well, which is produce fast bikes that win races.

And it certainly is fast. If we look at the geometry, you can see the bottom bracket height has been lowered by 4mm from the last model, which helps to increase stability off-road, and the chainstays remain relatively short – on my size 51 test bike they are 422.5mm.

The 377mm reach and 525mm stack are shorter and lower than the previous edition, although still reasonably long for a road-orientated gravel bike. Cervelo has changed the angles slightly, with the head angle 0.4 degrees slacker at 71.1 and the seat tube angle now at 73.6 degrees from 74.

Interestingly, Cervelo offers two geometry charts as the Aspero-5 can be optimised to run a 40mm front and 44mm rear tyre. Why? According to Cervelo, that’s to optimise the aerodynamics and ‘sharpen handling for less-technical courses’. My test bike, however, came with 42mm tyres fitted front and rear.

Cervelo Aspero-5: Groupset and finishing kit

If you’re a serious racer, you’ll want serious kit. And that’s exactly what the Aspero-5 Red AXS 1 aims to deliver. With SRAM’s top-end electronic groupset and an included power meter, there’s not much you can upgrade on this speed machine.

Cervelo has taken advantage of SRAM’s pick’n’mix T-Type system, with Red AXS E1 shifters and cranks, combined with XX SL derailleur, chain and cassette.

My test bike came with a 48-tooth chainring and a 10-52T cassette. Personally I wouldn’t normally reach for a 48T up front, but this combination worked quite well – I didn’t find I was undergeared on the flat or on a descent, and only had to use the 52T sprocket sparingly, even in the North Yorkshire Moors.

There are six frame sizes to choose from (48-61), and each size gets its own stem length, handlebar width and – something I find refreshing – crank length. On SRAM-equipped models, you get 165mm cranks on the smaller two sizes, but Shimano models stick with 170mm through to size 56.

My size 51 test bike came with a 38cm bar, which is on the narrower side for a gravel bike, but something I welcomed as I usually run 36cm bars on the road. And of course, this will only benefit the aerodynamic riding position. In fact, Cervelo claims that the HB16 Carbon cockpit saves almost 6 watts over the previous setup.

Some further positive changes to the spec include the Universal Derailleur Hanger (UDH) compatibility, which future-proofs the bike somewhat – until the industry develops yet another standard. One thing I particularly like is the threaded BB over a press-fit option as it’s easier to replace at home (unless you have the tools).

I’ve already talked about the Vittoria Corsa Pro Control tyres and the, erm, lack of control they offer; if I was buying this bike, these slick tyres would be the first change I’d make. But the Reserve 40mm and 44mm wheels offer an excellent platform for the rubberised skates. They use DT Swiss 240 hubs so I probably wouldn’t run them in winter, but I probably wouldn’t run this bike in winter anyway.

Cervelo Aspero-5: Value

At £10,000 the Cervelo Aspero-5 Red AXS 1 has a lot to live up to. Yes, top-end race bikes are generally in this region, but it’s still a massive chunk of cash to part with. In fact, it’s one of if not the most expensive gravel bike we’ve reviewed on road.cc. So how does it stack up against competitors?

We’ll have to look outside of the road.cc review archive for up-to-date race machine comparisons, although Stu did test the Aspero Apex XPLR AXS 1 back in February and thought it was good, though it suffers the same pain points as its rather more expensive racing cousin. It’s less painful on the wallet, though, at £4,200.

The Factor Ostro Gravel is another race-specific machine, with a stiff frame and aerodynamic riding position and a SRAM Red AXS groupset. But it actually costs a little more than the Aspero-5, at £10,399.

The Trek Checkmate is actually a decent rival for the Aspero and costs a little less for the Red XLPR AXS-equipped model, at £8,950. It’s Trek’s ‘fastest and lightest gravel race bike’, too.

So is the Aspero-5 good value for a racing-specific machine? You can certainly get a lot of bike for less money, but it depends what matters to you. If you want an aerodynamically optimised frame without the adaptability of a more adventure-orientated frame, then it may suit, but for the vast majority of us it’s probably a lot of buck for the wrong sort of bang.

For more adventure-ready rides, check out our guide to the best gravel bikes.

Cervelo Aspero-5: Conclusion

Has the Aspero experiment worked for Cervelo? Marianne Vos has won gravel races on it, and while Vos could likely win races on a rusty Carrera, there’s no denying the Aspero has some racing pedigree.

But will we be seeing it as a staple of the professional gravel peloton? Or at least the privateers who aren’t contracted to riding a particular type of bike?

I just fear that it’s not progressive enough for the current pace of development we’re seeing in gravel racing. Its 45mm tyre clearance, for example, in my opinion is probably not enough – even many professionals are choosing 50mm to race on across the world.

The ride quality is hard to beat, and Cervelo definitely knows how to design a fast bike – that’s not in dispute here. But whether there is a big enough market for this potentially niche machine outside of the pro peloton remains to be seen.

Verdict

Gravel racing machine that’s fast and nimble but let down by tyre choice

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