ROAD & GRAVEL

Which bike suits you?

The differences at a glance

Positioning Road Gravel Positioning Road Gravel

Which bike is the right one for you?

You can get all kinds of road bikes from high tech sports machines to daily commuter bikes. With the following categories, you can find the bike that suits you best.

Road Bike Rennrad
Race

You can reach high speed and best times with a race road bike. They are super light, aerodynamic, and mainly out of carbon. If you want to win every sprint and are into high tech, then a race road bike will be exactly the right choice for you. They love sporty challenges but are just as well for fast rides after work. Their character is formed with one target: push to a maximum of speed, that’s why the rider needs to be in an aerodynamic, lower position. Racers love the IZALCO MAX.

Road Bike Rennrad
Endurance

Your goal is to be fast on long-distance rides? Do you want to ride a marathon or long tours on the weekends? If yes, you need a road bike that combines comfort and speed. Such bikes can be found in the endurance category. Thanks to an ergonomic and more relaxed riding position, you will find yourself comfortable even if you have been in the saddle for hours. The frame itself can flex more than a super-stiff race bike. Like that it takes care of your back and protects your muscles from tension.

Rennrad Gravel
Gravel

No road bike category is growing as fast as the one of gravel bikes. The reasons are easily understandable: their wide tires and the comfortable more upright riding position make them very versatile. Gravel bikes are bikes for your adventures, they often offer mounts for mudguards and racks. Just the same, they are perfect for bike travelling or bike packing and even daily life. Of course, they still roll smooth on tarmac, are home on gravel roads and can be used for easygoing trails as well.

 

Which road bike will be the right one for me?

Mit keinem Bike kannst du so schnell unterwegs sein, wie mit einem Rennrad. Dazu musst du kein:e Tour de France-Rennsportler:in sein, auf den schmalen Reifen erreichst du auch auf deiner Sonntagsausfahrt Höchstgeschwindigkeit. Und machst nebenbei jede Menge Kilometer. Rennräder sind aber genauso die richtige Wahl für Marathonfahrer:innen, Passkönige und Passköniginnen.

IZALCO MAX vs. PARALANE

How other riders use the bikes

 
Seating Position Seating Position

WHICH RIDING POSITION IS GOOD FOR ME?

For beginners, all the riding positions on road bikes may appear the same. Of course, you will not find a bike which brings the rider in a more sporty and stretched position than a road bike. But even in the road bike category, there are clear differences.

It is important that the riding position of your road bike fits you and your plans. Racers and everyone who wants to ride fast, benefit from an aerodynamic and more stretched position on the bike. That demands a lot from your body but will push you to high speed as well.

More comfort is important for all the riders, who want to ride long tours. They prefer to sit more upright and relieve the spine. But comfort does not come with the connotation of cosiness: still the geometry and construction of the frame will support you and reduce pressure on your body. That’s perfect for touring as well as for long-distance rides.

 
 

SHOULD I CHOOSE A ROAD BIKE FRAME OUT OF CARBON OR ALUMINIUM?

This question will come up for every buyer of a road bike: Should I buy a frame out of carbon or aluminium? For a long time, carbon road bikes were standard. Aluminium road bikes are renowned for being cheaper and more robust. So they can be an option for beginners or for cyclocross and gravel bikes.

At FOCUS we mainly have road bikes with frames made out of carbon fibre. With the aerodynamic carbon frame of the IZALCO MAX the rider gets all the profit: the lightweight as well as the possibility to form the tubes aerodynamic, both is made possible by carbon. But not only weight and aerodynamic benefits of the qualities of carbon. In the meantime the fabric allows more comfort and ergonomic parts as well – that’s why the material is popular for endurance bikes like the PARALANE. 

 
 

Group set

The gear shifting for your road bike works differently from the one of your trekking bike or mountain bike because it is combined with the brake levers. In the meanwhile there are hydraulic and electronic shiftings available for road bikes as well. They are mainly used for high-end bikes.

When you talk about shifting for your road bike, the term groupset is used. The three big players Shimano, Sram and Campagnolo rule the market. For our FOCUS bikes, we use Shimano and Sram. Each brand offers different classes of groupsets. In general, you can expect a more expensive groupset to be lighter than a cheap one.

The characteristics of a groupset depend decisively on the range. As standard two chainrings are used today, for gravel or cross bikes there are options with just one. A good choice for road bike riders is a chainset with 52 and 36 teeth, and a cassette with a sprocket of 11 to 30 teeth. If you are riding a lot in the mountains or prefer light gears, you can easily add a wider cassette or choose a compact chainset with 50 and 34 teeth and an 11-34 cassette.