While mountain biking often takes center stage at Sea Otter, there’s always some interesting road and, increasingly, gravel technology in the mix.
From new wireless drivetrains to custom rigs and smaller details, here’s the best of road and gravel gear from Sea Otter 2023.
FSA K-Force WE electronic drivetrain
FSA K-Force WE wireless drivetrain
Sitting on a very nice Bianchi Specialissima
FSA's landed on a nice lever shape for the WE
And a sleek rear derailleur, which wires into the battery.
The front derailleur is larger, but stays out of the way and out of the wind
FSA also had interesting carbon gravel wheels on display
the Vision gravel i25 are, as you'd exect, 25mm internal and come in 27.5" or 700c options
With FSA's significantly updated hub (the old preload collar is now gone)
FSA VAS stem is also a gravel-specific item
The VAS uses inserts to reduce vibration and fatigue coming through the handlebars
The insert comes in three different durometers, so you can tune the feel to your liking.
FSA is, after years of work, ready to release its electronic, mostly wireless drivetrain into the wild. The 12-speed system is wireless from the shifters to the battery system. The battery, front derailleur, and rear derailleur are connected by wire. The K-Force levers are quite sleek and the shift buttons have a different, much more positive feel to them.
Pinarello
Pinarello had its gravel bikes front and center at Sea Otter
The Granger. Like, gravel ranger.
Shimano GRX keeps the Pinarello on track off-road
Clearance and some curves on the chainstays
The two Dogmas were also showing
Marked by the X on the top tube, to separated it from the F
Nytro gravel adds power with the TQ motor, was also front and center
Nytro, as in "makes you go fast"
Pinarello had its new Dogma (X and F) on display, but the Italian brand’s gravel rigs were front and centre. That includes the relatively conservative, for Pinarello, Granger and the electric Nytro, using TQ’s diminutive but powerful motor.
De Rosa
De Rosa had a stunning gravel bike on show.
Not a stock colour, but hard to stop looking at
Shimano GRX is the gearing of choice for many gravel rigs at Sea Otter
There are changes coming to De Rosa's off-road rig. Stay tuned.
De Rosa wasn’t showing off anything new just yet, but there was a stunning matte maroon gravel bike catching the California sun (and the attention of anyone passing by). It’s not a stock colour but it sure does stand out.
Continental Tires
Continental GP50000 AS come with a reflective strip - that darker band of rubber - that is reflective when it catches headlights or other lights. They're also tubeless ready
Continental offers the AS in a wide range of widths, well into the 30s
The German brand was also showing off its GP5000 TT
The TT stands out among time trial-specific tires as it does include some puncture protection in the tire construction
Narrower, of course, for its very speicific TT use
Looking fast on this Canyon
Continental was showing off road tires on all sides of the volume spectrum. Its GP5000 TT is narrow and fast but still includes some puncture protection. Since TT’s still happen on real roads. They also have the GP5000 AS, a training or wet-weather tire, that comes in wider ranges of volumes that stretch well into the 30cc range and come with a subtle, but effective reflective strip on the sidewall.
4iiii
4iiii's Precision 3 looks the same, but has some updates
It's still available pre-installed for Shimano, road and mountain
Or as a Factory Instal for a wider range of brands and cranks
Alberta’s 4iii had its Precision 3 power meter on display. There are new updates, including better off-road cadence sensing. These are available as free over-the-air updates for anyone that already has a Precision 3. There’s another very interesting and unexpected update coming from the Cochrane, Alta-based power meter brand but they’re staying tight-lipped about details for a little longer.
UDog
Udog is a new Italian footwear brand
On top of eye-catching style, the very light shoe has some more functional features
The Cima is ultralight. On the Tensione those mid-foot cross straps actually wrap all the way around the foot, under the sole. This helps erase hot-spots on the lace-up design.
There's also a gravel/XC version, the Distanza, where that Tension Wrap feature is more pronounced
That also comes with significant tread for traction off the bike
Udog is a new brand from Veneto, from a very experienced founder, bringing Italian fashion to road footwear. The extremely light Cima shoe has a very breathable upper. With a set of straps that wrap all the way around the foot, they also hope to eliminate some of the hot spots that lace-up designs can suffer from. There’s also a gravel/XC version, the Distanza.
Prologo
Prologo carries Pogacar to victory, quite regularly
The "power saddle" uses 3-D molded grip patches, so you don't slide around on the saddle.
The Italian brand also makes gloves with the same technology so you never, ever, have to worry about slipping off the bars
It comes in half-finger and full-finger styles
Prologo was showing off a wide range of new road and off-road saddles in its booth. The brand also noted, several times, that Pogacar sits on its saddles. When he’s not standing on a podium, that is. Among the designs is one that uses a distinctive set of “power gripper” patches so you don’t slide around on the saddle. They also offer gloves using the same design to make sure you never, ever lose your grip.
Kenda 4titude is a near-slick gravel tire
There's some traction, but it's mostly about speed
Centre and side tread are slightly different
High volume, and the ability to run lower pressures when needed, make 4titude the choice for the fastest courses.
The demo rim was laced to Berd's wild non-metal spokes