The fourth of the five bikes on test in RIDE Cycling Review #70 is the Fuji sL 1.1.

At 5.014kg for the complete bike, it is the lightest ever tested in our magazine.

This is a special piece of equipment that is not a novelty act created for the scales of a tradeshow and some chest beating by one of the oldest cycling manufacturers in the world; it is a genuinely interesting bike that was a pleasure to ride… find our more by reading Graham Springett’s review, starting on p.202 of RIDE 70.

Click the photo below to begin a slideshow of photos from the Fuji review.

 

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“Like riding air…”

 

(Rob Arnold on the Fuji SL 1.1)

 

“It’s the closest I remember coming to riding air. It pretty much feels like there’s not much there.

“It is a fantastic bike that fits me really well.

“The hoods from SRAM are exactly the right reach. The bars are a good bend. And underneath is an amazing combination of components that come together to make a super light bike – the lightest I can remember riding…

“It’s beggars belief actually. It’s kind of weird to talk about a sub-five kilo bike. And then to say that it actually feels like a great bike is something that surprises me; it actually rides like a very efficient piece of equipment. It’s not like a novelty act at all.

“It’s actually a genuine bike although it is extremely light – and you can help but notice that when you’re riding it.

“You do float along and it has got a very strong resonance, a very ‘carbony’ feel – it’s not a sound, it’s a sort of hum that you get from such light wheels on a light frame and real high pressure in tubular tyres. It’s a lovely sensation to ride.

“There is road feedback, of course – you can’t imagine it not coming through a bike that’s so light. But there’s a combination of things that that really work for this bike: the frame is a fantastic geometry, everything seems to suit each other, it’s a very stable machine, the seat post has got a great clamping mechanism with a mono-beam saddle – which is something I remember talking about at a trade show in Milan about 10 years ago… this design has come out from Ritchey and it’s a really interesting configuration, one that I think a lot of people should look at. It’s easy to fasten, easy to adjust.

“There is a little more feedback through the seat but that’s not what this bike’s about. This bike is about the frame and the wheels – which are very far from cheap!

“These wheels are a talking point all on their own. They’ll get a big write up in the review. But this bike is something that’s going to be a lot of fun to test. I’m sure Graham is going to enjoy it around the roads of Wagga.”

 

 – Rob Arnold