We get a close look at Alexander Kristof’s new bike

By Simon von Bromley

Published: Thursday, 04 July 2024 at 10:00 AM


Team Uno-X is riding a radical, unreleased aero road bike at the 2024 Tour de France.

Produced by Taiwanese brand (and Uno-X team sponsor) Dare, the bike bucks the prevailing trend for all-rounder bikes, instead taking a hyper-aero approach with little apparent consideration for weight.

Prior to the race start in Florence, Italy, we got a close look at the new bike at the Uno-X team hotel.

Could this be the bike to help the Uno-X team take its first victory at the sport’s biggest race?

Return of the aero bike

Dare’s new road bike bucks the current trend for lightweight, all-rounder road bikes. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

In recent years, we’ve seen a number of prominent brands ditch dedicated aero road bikes in favour of models that balance aerodynamic performance with low weight.

Specialized, for example, famously put its S-Works Venge out to pasture when it released the S-Works Tarmac SL7 in 2020, while Trek’s recently announced eighth-generation Madone SLR spelled the end of its Émonda.

Likewise, the release of a lightweight Giant Propel Advanced SL in 2022 has seen the brand’s iconic TCR relegated to only limited use in the WorldTour.

Downtube close-up on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
The down tube appears to indicate this bike is called the ‘Velocity Ace’. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

Dare looks to be taking the opposite approach, with a design more akin to other all-out aero road bikes such as the Cervélo S5, Ribble Ultra SLR and Cannondale SystemSix Hi-Mod.

As far as we can tell, Dare’s new aero road bike appears to be called the ‘Velocity Ace’, as this is printed on the down tube.

It’s most likely an update to the brand’s existing aero bike, the VSRu. The new bike doubles down on the aerodynamic optimisations, though, with deeper aerofoil tube shapes all over and a build focused entirely on speed.

Deep-section tubes all-round

Head tube close-up on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
A head tube this deep wouldn’t look out of place on a time trial bike. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

The head tube is one of the most striking parts of the Velocity Ace.

It uses a deep, truncated aerofoil profile and rises from the top tube to meet the rear of the bike’s new integrated handlebar (more on this later).

At the lower end, the head tube is sculpted to control the airflow off the fork crown.

Viewed head on, the head tube is hourglass-shaped – narrowing between the upper and lower headset bearings to further reduce drag.

DT Swiss ARC 1100 Dicut DB front wheel on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
The aero-optimised fork is more aggressive than before. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

While the fork on the VSRu tapered slightly towards the bottom, the narrow bladed legs of the new fork stay deep all the way down.

Where the down tube on the VSRu had a small cut-out for the front wheel, the Velocity Ace has a straight down tube with a deeper, wider truncated aerofoil profile.

Elite Vico Carbon bottle cages and Uno-X team bottle on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
The deeper, wider down tube might provide more shelter for round bottles on the Velocity Ace. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

Unlike the new Trek Madone SLR, the Velocity Ace uses standard, non-integrated bottle cages with round cycling water bottles.

It may be that the redesigned down tube provides greater airflow management around this area than before, however.

At the rear of the bike, the aerofoil profiles of the seat tube, seatstays and seatpost have also been deepened significantly.

Seat tube cluster close-up on Downtube close-up on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
The seat tube cluster has been reprofiled with deeper aerofoil tube shapes all-round. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

Whether this has any impact on compliance remains to be seen. Dropped seatstays aside, though, it doesn’t appear that Dare has made many concessions to comfort.

Like some time trial bikes, the seatpost appears to have multiple saddle clamp locations, enabling a rider to adjust the effective seat tube angle – an important consideration for fit purposes.

One of the deepest handlebars we’ve seen

Dare handlebar on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
This is one of the deepest aerofoil sections we’ve seen on a road bike handlebar. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

Beyond the head tube, the bike’s new aero handlebar is also remarkable, thanks to its use of an exceptionally deep and thin aerofoil profile on the tops.

Expectedly, the handlebar uses an integrated design, with the hydraulic brake hoses fully concealed within the bar and running into the frame unseen.

Close-up of the headset on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
The headset top cap on the Dare Velocity Ace looks to help smooth the airflow from the handlebar to the frame. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

The top tube rises to meet the rear of the stem, while the headset top cap has been cleverly profiled to smooth out the junction between the two.

Overall, Dare’s new bar appears to take the opposite approach to Ribble’s ground-breaking Ultra handlebar (which features on the Ultra SLR). The Ribble bar uses a similarly deep aerofoil profile, but is much more bulbous, as it’s designed to manipulate the airflow hitting the rider behind it.

Notably, Trek says the updated handlebar on its recently launched, eighth-generation Madone SLR does something similar (albeit on a smaller scale).

Rear shot of the new handlebar on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
The new handlebar on the Dare Velocity Ace is exceptionally deep and thin up top. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

The Dare handlebar, in contrast, looks to be designed simply to reduce its impact on the airflow as much as possible.

As with rear-end comfort, there doesn’t seem to have been much consideration for a rider being able to hold the tops of the handlebar. As with the rest of the bike, it looks to be all about maximising aerodynamic efficiency.

Measuring the handlebar width on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace at the 2024 Tour de France
Kristof’s cockpit dimensions are the same as at last year’s Tour. – George Scott / Our Media

On this bike, which belongs to four-time Tour de France stage winner, Alexander Kristof, the cockpit combines a 120mm-long stem with a 380mm-wide handlebar (measured centre to centre at the brake hoods).

The frame also has a logo noting the headset contains CeramicSpeed’s SLT (Solid Lubrication Technology) bearings – which are claimed to provide exceptionally long lifespans, reducing the frequency with which the front end requires servicing.

A speed-focused build with personal upgrades

DT Swiss ARC 1100 Dicut DB rear wheel on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
Kristof opts for DT Swiss deep-section rims. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

The rest of the build sees an uncompromising focus on speed.

Like last year, Kristof’s wheelset of choice is the DT Swiss ARC 1100 Dicut DB, with 62mm-deep rims.

These are wrapped with Schwalbe Pro One TLE tyres, in a 700 x 28c size that measures up at 27.9mm-wide on the DT Swiss rims.

As with last year, the tyres have conspicuous blue accents that don’t come on the versions of the Pro One TLE available in shops.

Schwalbe Pro One TLE tyre on Alexander Kristof's Dare Velocity Ace
Kristof’s bike was again equipped with blue-branded Schwalbe Pro One TLE tyres. – Simon von Bromley / Our Media

Having spotted these last year, we asked Schwalbe if this was a new, updated version of the German brand’s highly-rated tubeless tyre. Unfortunately, the brand declined to shed any light on the subject.

According to our well-informed YouTube audience, though, these could be special-edition, race day-only versions of the tyre – something faster, lighter but potentially less durable than the standard tyres, for example.