With the launch of a new Ekar groupset from Campagnolo, a €1,500, alloy, cable-actuated set, it but once more has me questioning the place the model is heading. The final course for Campagnolo has been erratic lately. There’s now no WorldTour presence for what was as soon as essentially the most storied part model on the market, and moreover this new Ekar (the affordability of which is up for debate), the lion’s share of latest releases from the Italian componentry model have been on the very excessive finish.
Within the phrases of Davide Campagnolo, grandson of founder Tullio, it’s aiming to turn into a ‘sports activities luxurious’ model, which is ok as a enterprise mannequin, however to my thoughts it makes much more sense for Gucci, the place couture objects on the catwalk promote belts and purses on the excessive avenue, than it does for bicycle parts.
The brand new Ekar confuses me
Should you’re available in the market for a recent gravel groupset, why would you spend €1,500 on this new model of Ekar, when you may spend €200 much less and get SRAM Apex XPLR. For €200 much less you’re getting wi-fi shifting and an influence meter. What are you sacrificing? Ekar comes with a wider vary of chainring choices, certain, however SRAM cassettes, whereas solely 12sp quite than 13, supply a wider gear vary.
Taking the very extremes of huge and small chainring prospects, Ekar can provide you 24-105 gear inches, which is admittedly a strong vary. Apex XPLR can solely supply 25-100, however use the cash you save and swap the rear finish out for an Eagle setup and you may go as little as 21. You could have a barely decrease top-end chance, however by way of sheer hill climbing, spinning skill, SRAM takes the cake.
Positive, 13 sprockets provides you extra choices in a single setup, however if you’d like extra choices then Shimano is on the market flying the flag for the double, and doing it with aplomb. In my view, 2x GRX remains to be the gold normal for gravel groupsets.
In comparison with its rivals it’s a tough promote, however oddly versus the earlier carbon model of Ekar, it’s additionally difficult to justify. Sale costs aren’t consultant, however given you possibly can choose up a carbon Ekar groupset for below £900 at present, why would you go for the heavier setup?
Are we due a brand new Ekar carbon?
The truth that the unique Ekar wasn’t digital from its inception was noteworthy, however not hair-raising on the time. Now, although, its lack of digital shifting makes it appear outdated. The truth that the brand new Ekar is priced equally to the present providing, mixed with the £4,500 worth of the brand new SuperRecord EPS makes me suspect that there’s a new Ekar EPS within the pipeline for the close to future, priced someplace within the center, increased than the present carbon set.
That is additional bolstered as a principle by the shortage of differentiation between the carbon and alloy Ekar groupsets we’ve now. The one substantive distinction is the fabric, plus some chainring and cassette choices, so there must be an even bigger level of distinction within the vary.
Sports activities luxurious and WorldTour presence
Campagnolo was once the title in race bike componentry. Slowly however absolutely its presence on the high stage of racing has diminished. Final 12 months only a single crew, AG2R-Citroen, was operating the Italian parts, and for 2024 there are none.
Campagnolo itself has spoken about its need to turn into a ‘sports activities luxurious’ model. Luxurious manufacturers, the likes of Gucci, Versace, and Prada are likely to function on a transparent mannequin of manufacturing unattainable, luxurious couture merchandise for the catwalk (on this case, Tremendous File EPS), which incentivises prospects to purchase into the model with cheaper price level objects; a Gucci belt, Prada sun shades, Armani denims.
The issue is, biking isn’t excessive vogue, and from what I’ve seen of top-end bikes currently, Campagnolo just isn’t the pattern du jour.
In a single telling instance, Colnago lately launched some new colors for its ‘Made in Italy’ C68 assortment, and opted for a full Dura-Ace construct for the media pictures. Do prospects need a ‘luxurious’ groupset, or would they like to purchase right into a model that has a confirmed document on the high stage of racing? The truth that the model has put seemingly no effort into updating its mid- and low-tier (akin to a low-tier Campagnolo groupset exists in any respect) groupsets akin to Centaur and Potenza additionally feels just like the sports activities luxurious factor simply is not working. Individuals can’t purchase in on the decrease finish, even when they wished to, as a result of the parts haven’t saved tempo with fashionable tendencies.
Possibly it’s the £4.5k price ticket for a groupset that makes me assume Campagnolo has misplaced the plot a bit, however it appears needlessly unattainable. I already considerably detest when bicycle parts are packaged in luxurious methods (may you think about a timing belt on your engine packaged like an iPhone?), and so perhaps it’s merely that Campagnolo is not for me any extra, however it was once.
No mid-range updates
Gone is Athena, the one Campagnolo groupset I’ve ever owned. Again then Campagnolo was so fascinating that I managed to promote the entire groupset wholesale in below per week to a clubmate earlier than I made the change to Ultegra. My need to work by myself bikes as a lot as doable was flummoxed by needing particular, costly instruments. That is nothing new, however I used to be recent out of college, mechanically incompetent, and broke.
Gone, too, is Potenza. Billed as an OEM competitor to Ultegra, it by no means actually gained the required traction and has been largely consigned to the massive mechanic within the sky. What we’re left with now, in response to the Campagnolo web site, is an eye-watering Tremendous File Wi-fi, a still-very-expensive Tremendous File EPS, and cable-actuated variations of File, Refrain, and Centaur.
Not like Shimano and SRAM, Campagnolo has thus far been reluctant to trickle its wi-fi shifting right down to decrease tiers. It leaves me questioning who these decrease groupsets are for. Not having a silver possibility for not less than one among them (although you possibly can nonetheless choose them up if you already know the place to look) for the neo-retro rebuild gang appears a disgrace, however not a drastic oversight. The one remaining purpose I can see to go for a lower-level Campagnolo groupset now’s that you really want Italian parts. It’s a coronary heart resolution, not a head one, to make use of a wildly stayed cliché.
One other problem is compatibility. The one take a look at bikes I’ve had in my complete time at Cyclingnews that function Campagnolo have been Italian bikes, and top-spec ones at that. Colnago C68, Basso Diamante and the like. Excessive-end bikes aren’t delivery with Refrain, and if you happen to purchase a high-end frameset these days, it’s probably solely appropriate with digital groupsets, so that you couldn’t construct a motorcycle your self. Centaur remains to be rim brake solely, in order that guidelines out most new bikes, and caters solely to the “I’ve purchased a retro metal DeRosa body off eBay” crowd.
It’s been eight years because it was up to date, too, which makes me suspect it by no means will probably be once more, that means components will turn into extra scarce.
Now not forward of the curve
Credit score the place it’s due, Campagnolo was the primary to 10, 11, 12, and 13-speed groupsets, however because the years have marched on, the demand for extra sprockets appears to be waning. I’m certain on the time folks claimed that having greater than 5 sprockets was pointless, however the transfer from 12 to 13 actually looks as if pointless oneupmanship; innovation for innovation’s sake, and it doesn’t appear to be one thing Shimano or SRAM are clamouring to comply with go well with on.
The unique Ekar was actually a well-performing possibility, and using a 9T sprocket actually avoids using an enormous dinner plate cassette to realize such a selection of gears, however its lack of electronics feels dated already. At its launch, Shimano and SRAM had been already deep into digital shifting, and the opposite main releases from the model within the type of new Hyperon and Bora wheelsets really feel a bit like window dressing than something groundbreaking. Different releases just like the €2,000 gold corkscrew really feel extra like a parody than anything.
The New Bora Extremely WTO wheels do supply a wider inside width than the model has provided beforehand, at 23mm, however for a 60mm deep wheel, it makes no particular aero claims. In the meantime, the 35mm WTO Extremely mannequin stay barely heavier and narrower than the similar-priced Zipp 353 NSW, which launched nearly three years in the past in April 2021.
I nonetheless get excited seeing a shiny set of Campagnolo wheels, however again within the day the Bora Extremely wheels had been fascinating not solely as a result of they had been flash, but in addition as a result of they featured on the pointy finish of racing. Now, like Tremendous File Wi-fi, they really feel like they’re turning into a luxurious merchandise merely to indicate off. With the remainder of the business focussing on wringing out each final watt, it’s novel to see a model make no particular efficiency claims, and far as I like premium goodies the model feels prefer it’s throwing many years of racing heritage apart to chase these riders with extremely deep pockets.
I feel I’m being important now as a result of I’m really a Campagnolo fan. Final 12 months I visited the Colnago manufacturing facility and was proven into the loft-cum-museum and was genuinely excited to see innumerate Italian classics decked out with Campagnolo groupsets from many years passed by. Delta brakes, skeletal entrance derailleurs, and even the gaudy gold-plated bits stuffed me with pleasure.
Tough as my very own Campagnolo expertise was, even early in my biking profession I felt like I used to be driving one thing with heritage. With the shift to ever-more-premium choices that now not have any racing acumen, it signifies that expertise is denied to much less prosperous riders, and the attainable luxurious and sure je ne sais quoi (sure, I do know that’s French) provides option to gauche, brash, and ostentatious.
To make use of boats as an analogy, to my thoughts Campagnolo was once the Riva Aquarama; a phenomenal symphony of polished cedar and mahogany, powered inexplicably by two V8 engines, given it was solely large enough to hold two folks with suitably flowing headscarves. You would have a look at that and nonetheless think about your self in a single. It’s beautiful, it’s a bit bit daft, it’s iconic. Now, neatly sufficient, Campagnolo is like the fashionable choices that Riva is placing out; fibreglass gin palaces that match higher on the Dubai worldwide boat present than the shores of Lake Garda.
I feel it’s essential to finish on a be aware of warning. All of us see Campagnolo as a part of the componentry panorama; it’s at all times been there, and it’ll at all times be there. Nonetheless, historic part manufacturers of the previous have fallen by the wayside, and it may occur to Campagnolo too. Should you’ve ever owned an outdated street bike you’ll have seen Simplex and SunTour components, however you don’t see them on any new bikes. SunTour was the premier Japanese componentry model within the 70’s, earlier than being eclipsed by Shimano. Am I upset I can now not afford to suit Campagnolo by myself bikes? Positive, however I’ll be a rattling sight extra upset the model ceases to exist.
