Van Rysel has a slew of new road and gravel bikes – and it’s an impressive line-up

By George Scott

Published: Saturday, 22 April 2023 at 12:00 am

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Decathlon has a new range of Van Rysel road bikes, including an aero bike, gravel bike and endurance road bike, launched with an aim of re-establishing the European mega-retailer as a major force.

Van Rysel is Decathlon’s premium bike brand, sitting above the B’Twin range of entry-level bikes.

According to Peter Lazarus, Decathlon’s business development manager, the objective is clear for Van Rysel – to become a “top five global bike brand”. As you’d expect, pricing remains very competitive across the board.

We’ve just seen most of the new range at the Sea Otter Classic, covering:

• RCR – an aero road bike, with a WorldTour-ready version to follow in 2024
• FCR – an aero road bike pitched at criteriums
• GRVL GCR – a carbon gravel race bike
• NCR – a carbon endurance road bike
• GRVL Ti – a titanium gravel bike

The bikes will be available through Decathlon in Europe, while in the US, Van Rysel is establishing a dealer network. All should be available in the next couple of months, apart from the GRVL Ti, which is part of the existing Van Rysel range.

Let’s take a closer look.

Van Rysel RCR

The RCR is Van Rysel’s new aero road bike, designed, according to Lazarus, in-house by the brand in conjunction with Onera, a French aerospace company.

It sports a broadly familiar aero shape, with truncated tubes, dropped seatstays, a rear wheel cutaway, aero seatpost and internal cable routing.

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While aero is the name of the game here, the RCR is designed to offer all-round appeal, with the claimed weight of this SRAM Force build coming in at 7.2kg.

The cockpit is a two-piece affair, aiding adjustability and fit, while the stem has been co-developed with Deda. The cables run out of the handlebar, under the stem and into the headset.

The bike on display at Sea Otter features a SRAM Force eTap AXS groupset, Zipp 404 Firecrest wheels and 28c Michelin Power Cup tubeless tyres, though there’s room to fit a 33c tyre in the frame.

And the price? $6,999 in the US and €4,700 in Europe. UK pricing is to be confirmed.

WorldTour-ready RCR coming in 2024

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Van Rysel also has a WorldTour version of the RCR coming in 2024, though it’s also on display at Sea Otter to whet the appetite.

WorldTour-ready, you say? Well, Van Rysel is planning to enter the men’s WorldTour next year and, while Lazarus remains tight-lipped on what team that will be, the rumours – and they are rumours – point to AG2R Citroën. It is a French team, after all.

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This version of the RCR uses a different carbon layup, with the primary aim of boosting stiffness around the head tube.

The claimed frame weight is 810g – impressive for a disc-ready aero bike – and the complete weight for the bike drops to 6.8kg, according to Van Rysel.

That’s thanks primarily to the Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 speed, according to the brand. The frame weight itself is said to be similar to the Force-equipped RCR.

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Elsewhere, there’s a one-piece cockpit with integrated cable routing up front, and SwissSide Hadron 500 wheels.

Van Rysel’s intentions for this bike are clear. The top tube graphics read: “UCI 2024 World Championship – Ready To Win”.

Van Rysel FCR

Van Rysel

Okay, this bike isn’t on show at Sea Otter but we did spot it on Van Rysel’s Instagram account this week, so we asked about it out here in California.

It’s another aero road bike but there are subtle differences to the frame shape compared to the RCR, including the integrated fork crown, straight seat tube (with no cutaway) and some additional shaping around the top of the seatstays.

Van Rysel

Van Rysel’s representatives at Sea Otter were pretty honest about this bike – it’s an all-out race machine, with few concessions to comfort.

Whereas the RCR is more of an aero all-rounder – and the bike to be used by Van Rysel’s new WorldTour team – the FCR is designed for shorter efforts. Think criteriums, not stage races. FCR stands for Fast Racer, so there’s a clue there.

The bike we’ve spotted on Decathlon’s UK website costs £3,599.99 with Shimano Ultegra Di2.

Van Rysel GRVL GCR

Let’s move on to another race-ready bike, but this one is set for the gravel arena – the Van Rysel GRVL GCR.

This is a performance-focussed gravel bike, Lazarus says, so there are no rack or mudguard mounts.

Van Rysel is also planning to launch a “pro-level gravel bike” next year, according to Lazarus, ready for any of its WorldTour riders who also dabble on the gravel circuit.

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The GRVL GCR has clearance for 42c tyres in the carbon frame.

Claimed weight, with a 1x SRAM Force eTap AXS drivetrain, Reynolds carbon wheels and Hutchinson Touareg tyres, is 8.3kg in a size medium.

It’s priced at $5,699, with a SRAM Rival eTap AXS version (with alloy Fulcrum wheels) also available for around €3,000 (US price TBC).

Van Rysel NCR

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Next up is the Van Rysel NCR.

This one is pitched as the entry point into the premium Van Rysel range.

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It’s a carbon road bike with endurance geometry – expect a more relaxed, upright position than the RCR – and generous tyre clearance, up to 35c.

Van Rysel has kept things relatively straightforward here, with a round seatpost, a standard two-piece handlebar and stem, and exposed cables – that’s no bad thing on a bike like this and keeps maintenance simple.

The bike on show here features a Shimano Tiagra groupset, Mavic wheels and Hutchinson Fusion 5 tubeless tyres for $2,499 (UK and EU prices are to be confirmed).

Van Rysel GRVL 900 Ti

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Finally, as far as this round-up is concerned, we’ve got the Van Rysel GRVL 900 Ti.

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This one is actually part of the existing Van Rysel range but it’s well worth another look, as the brand’s titanium gravel bike.

It’s made in Italy in limited quantities from Dedacciai tubing, according to Lazarus.

There’s clearance for 45c tyres and, all things told, it’s designed to take a rougher path than the more race-focussed GCR.

This Shimano GRX 1x build, with Fulcrum wheels and Hutchinson Touareg tyres, costs $3,999.

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