VO2 Vesp Tiagra road bike

Don't be fooled by the monochrome colour and rather subdued graphics, the Vesp from Kent based VO2 is an exciting bike to ride. This is a proper race bike with an excellent frame that responds well to being pushed hard.

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The Ride

The Vesp has a very tight feel to it. Accelerate hard away from the lights or stomp on the pedals to reach the summit of the climb and the VO2 responds without any feeling of flex from the frame or fork. All well and good but that isn't the Vesp's defining characteristic, what stands out above all else is how it manages to deliver that tightness and power transfer without being overly stiff and uncomfortable.

My biggest gripe with many carbon frames is the way they can resonate over rough road surfaces especially as the speed increases. You get none of that at all from the Vesp as the layup of the carbon manages to damp out all but the worst vibration which bearing in mind our build comes with 23mm tyres pumped up hard and all alloy components, is pretty impressive. In fact it has more of a steel or titanium-like feel to the ride.

When a bike feels as solid as the Vesp does on the road it gives the rider much more confidence if things get technical. When descending or pushing hard through roundabouts, dicing with rush hour traffic the VO2 sticks to whatever line you put it on, though should you need to tweak that trajectory the sheer level of feedback means it's never a tricky manoeuvre. The 73° head angle gives the handling a snappy edge to it making for direct and quick direction changes, fun on twisty descents.

With an all up weight of 8.15kg (17.9lbs) the Vesp is not exactly featherweight but it's impressive for the price, taking the mid-range points into account, especially the heavyweight Shimano wheels. The bike responds well to acceleration with little in the way of drag and once up to speed it maintains it on undulating terrain without calling for huge increases in effort.

The Vesp is just as much fun in the hills. I've always found certain bikes respond better to seated climbing but the Vesp works well when you're out of the saddle, honking on the narrow bars like a seasoned pro taking a lone stage victory, again nothing feels like it's being wasted energy wise.

Although designed as a race bike the Vesp isn't extreme in its position. Our 54cm comes with a 547.7mm effective top tube with a 148mm tall head tube (555mm stack, 378mm reach) which allows you to get a decent aero tuck on the hoods or drops without having to test your limits of flexibility.

The steepish 73.1° seat angle allows you to put out the power when crouched in the drops without compromising your breathing, ideal for those long, straight roads or rides when you just want to get down and smash the miles out.

Frame & Fork

Trawling through the usual Chinese retailers' websites you'll find the frameset used for the Vesp. VO2's Jimmy George plays a straight bat on this. He says: "The VESP frame is an open module however it is only available to trade and not the public. This is the shape of the frame however, our design engineer develops the carbon lay up along with the carbon and resin used. This means we can be specific on the strength of the frame, the weight and how the frame will handle."

I've ridden plenty of rebadged open mould frames with some being a lot better than others but you can definitely tell some proper materials knowledge has gone into this frame, something I could feel from the first time I rode the Vesp which was a few weeks before having the above information from VO2.

As mentioned above the frame is stiff with good power transfer through the bottom bracket area and downtube. Following the usual trend these areas and the chainstays have seen significant increases in material to cope with the loads being put through them.

The compact frame style gives a small rear triangle which also increases stiffness at the rear end while the pencil thin seatstays allow a little flex to absorb the road buzz and stop the back wheel skittering about on washboard surfaces.

Up front the Vesp uses a tapered head tube and corresponding carbon fork steerer which is what gives the frame its direct and tight handling. The use of an integrated headset gives a clean look as the profile of the fork flows into that of the frame.

The frame will take both mechanical and electronic groupsets thanks to internal routing for cables or wires. The two gear cables disappearing into the top of the down tube did divide opinion aesthetically but for one thing you won't be suffering any cable rub on the head tube.

With a claimed 970g frame weight for the smallest in the four size range the Vesp has an impressive balance of weight, value and stiffness. VO2 carry out various factory and field testing so by the sounds of it that low weight doesn't come at the expense of longevity.

Components

The £999.99 build tested here comes with a full Tiagra groupset which is a decent specification for a bike of this price. Tiagra is a great value for money groupset and while the shifting hasn't got as nice a click as 105 and above it's far from sloppy.

The chainset is a 52/36 '' aka semi-compact '' which with the 10 speed 12/25 cassette gives a more accommodating spread of gears for a bike of this type than a traditional 53/39 would. Each Vesp is assembled to order, so should you fancy something different then just ask.

The weak link in the Tiagra line up is the dual calliper brakes. It's a combination of things mostly down to the hard compound of the brake pads which seriously lack bite in dry conditions let alone in the wet. The calliper body itself is flexible too which is really noticeable when you grab a handful of lever. Definitely an upgrade beckons here to at least some new pads.

The rest of the finishing kit comes from ITM. The stem, handlebars and seatpost are alloy and offer excellent stiffness and weight for the money. It's nothing flash but the bars have a nice shape with plenty of hand positions and well within spec for the budget of the bike.

Selle San Marco provide the ASP saddle which is on the firm side but still a decent platform for aggressive riding and laying the power down. It may be a little firm for all day epics but as always saddle choice is very individual.

Shimano supply the wheels with their R510's which are from the budget end of their range. Don't let that put you off though, they are decent performers if a little on the porky side and are perfect for the training/winter bike the Vesp is being pitched as. Other test bikes we've ridden with these have shown good reliability over various terrain and weather conditions.

Wrapped around the R510's are a pair of Continental's Ultra Race tyres in a 23mm width which again keep in with the theme of the Vesp, solid and dependable.

Grip in the dry is good although in the wet things can be a little skittish which is worth remembering before banking the bike over too far. Puncture proofing and wear rates are pretty good to boot.

Overall

On the whole I rate the Vesp as a very good bike. I like the fact you get what you ask for, a race bike, whether that be for competition use or training. They haven't tried to shoehorn in bigger tyres so that you can ride on gravel or added mudguard and rack eyelets to tour or audax on it. You want a race bike so you buy a race bike and the Vesp fits that bill perfectly right down to those rock hard skinny tyres.

At its heart is an excellent frame. I've ridden some Ribble's and Planet X's around this price point but the feedback and feel of the Vesp is far superior and is ripe for a few upgrades, especially the wheels, to really exploit the light weight of the frame and fork.

Overall it's a great value entry to fast and competitive road riding.

Verdict

Everything the budding racer needs: a lively ride from excellent frame adorned with solid finishing kit