Five cool things coming soon from Specialized, Rapha, Assos, Pas Normal Studios and Vielo

I talked about summer last week and then it rained for the majority of it, so I won’t do that again! This week we’ve got a gravel bike for you to feast your eyes on, a cheaper version of a saddle that’s still rather expensive, and some kit for both the boys and the girls including a very brown pair of bibs. Check out some of the highlights that you can expect to see reviewed on road.cc in the coming days and weeks…

Specialized Power Pro with Mirror

£290.00

We first saw this mirror technology on the top-of-the-line S-Works Power saddle and Mat was a big fan. In fact, he only had two criticisms, number one being the difficulty of cleaning it and number two – the price. Since then Specialized has put the price of that one up to £390, but its 3D printing technology has trickled down into the Pro saddle. This one forgoes carbon rails and gains 61g according to our scales, and it also gets a price tag of £290... so although 'cheaper', it’s certainly not cheap.

> Review: S-Works Power mirror saddle 

> Specialized brings mirror saddle tech to Power Pro

Is this titanium railed saddle a better buy than its carbon big brother? Stu has been finding out and will be sharing his findings soon…

 www.Specialized.com

Vielo V+1 gravel bike

£4599.00

This is in fact the second generation of the V+1, it’s optimised for a 1x drivetrain and sits on the performance side of gravel rather than trying to be a dropped bar mountain bike. The most striking thing about the bike when we unboxed it in the office is just how chunky the downtube is where it approaches the bottom bracket, and just how slender the seat stays are. That and the pastel colours…

> Vielo releases 2nd Gen V+1 performance gravel bike

The bike comes with plenty of claims of stiffness where you need it and “built-in compliance”. As we’ve come to expect from new bike releases, the V+1 is available in four colours, two different carbon lay ups and as both a frameset and complete bike. You can get a sneak peek by reading our tech news feature on the bike above and our full review will be dropping shortly.

www.vielo.cc

Rapha Brevet bib shorts

£215.00

The Brevet bib shorts are just a bit of a classic really, not to be confused with the actual ‘Classic’ shorts that Rapha also makes. This latest generation features a pocket on the side of the leg, large reflective detailing to increase your chances of being seen and a chamois designed for consistent comfort on round-the-clock endurance rides.

The shorts are Rapha’s ‘Classic Fit’, so should be close but relaxed, and the main body of the shorts is made from 58% recycled nylon. Steve Williams has been putting the kilometres in wearing these, has he found them to be comfortable? Read his full verdict coming soon to find out…

www.rapha.cc

Assos Womens UMA GTV Jersey C2

£165.00

Assos says that its new GTV jersey sets “a new standard for premium comfort in the female-specific equipment range.” Big claims then, and an equally large price tag of £165. 

The GTV jersey technically falls into Assos’ RegularFit category, but they point out that the materials and tailoring give the jersey a wrinkle-free fit more common with race-fit clothing. Has Assos managed to make women’s race clothing comfortable? Suvi has been trying this one out and will be delivering her full review soon.

www.assos.com

Pas Normal Studios Men's Mechanism Bibs — Bronze

£200.00

You’ve probably already made your mind up about these! If brown (sorry, 'bronze') isn’t doing it for you then there are another five colours to choose from, making these some of the most colourful shorts on the market. We’ll be delving deeper than just the navy blue, dark or light olive, black or ‘terrain’ colours and it’s been my job to put the miles in to see how they perform.

At £200 this is Pas Normal Studios' signature performance bib short which is designed for “the hardest days on the bike”. They're hand-assembled in Italy and there are plenty of buzz words on the product page such as “race-fit”, “aerodynamic” and “Anatomically fitted Chamois”. I’ll be cutting through the jargon and delivering my verdict soon. In the meantime let us know if you’d buy/wear a set of brown bib shorts in the comments below…

www.pasnormalstudios.com

For all the latest road.cc test reports, head over to our reviews section. If you want some more advice before splashing the cash, check out our buyer's guides.