Rider Profile
Name : Kris
Origin : Belgium
Information : 53 years old, 175cm and 63kg, exploring nature on foot, pack raft, road bike, mtb bike, and gravel bike.
Riding Type : I used to do triathlons in nature and now I'm always searching for new roads and tracks to cycle. My goal is to exceed at least 100,000m per year.
Specifications
Bike
Frameset : Specialized S-Works Crux
Groupset : Sram Mullet Force X01 Eagle AXS
Crankset : THM Clavicula SE
Cassette : 9-52 KCNC
Pedals : Crank Brothers Eggbeaters 11
Handlebar : Darimo Nextum
Shifters : Sram Force
Wheels
Rims : AR25 Disc Hybrid Hook UD Paintless 24H
Hubs : Extralite HyperSmart3 Black 12
Spokes : Black Berd Spokes and 2 White Aside from the Valve, which I colored green to match with the frame.
Nipples : Sapim Aluminium Black
Tires : Tufo Speedero
I have always been searching for the lightest solutions for gear.
In the past, I used to do triathlons in nature and with as much climbing as possible, like the Big Ben Nevis triathlon, a half-distance off-road triathlon where running was up and down Ben Nevis, the UK's highest mountain. Or the long-distance course of the triathlon d'Alpe d'Huez, the Transvorarlberg triathlon, a lot of XTerras in Germany, France, and Spain, and finally also the Inferno triathlon in Switzerland. But now I qualify as an adventurer, always starting from my self-built house in the Belgian Ardennes. I'm always searching for new roads and tracks to cycle, single-day or multiple-day adventures, trying to capture nice views and sunrises or sunsets, and from time to time attack a Strava segment. As my weight is not a limiter, I'm always searching for the lightest solutions for gear, so that adventures can last longer and further, and adequate gear can be taken along on an adventure.
My previous experience of buying ready-built bicycles & parts
I started by buying ready-built bicycles in a time before the Internet when the local bike shop was the only place to get bicycles and parts. Then there came bigger shops where you could see offers on the Internet and exclusive parts became available at interesting prices, so I started upgrading my bikes with those parts. The visit to the shop was often combined with a cycling weekend in that region. And then came the time that everything was available on the internet, so I started building my own bikes from scratch. As you could see from the prices of the parts and the full-built bicycles, it was clear that you could have a much ‘lighter’ bicycle for the same amount of money. When I ordered expensive parts, I tried to find stores where I could still drive to if something went wrong.
I did build myself a road bike for my triathlons with lots of elevation. A Cervélo SLC-SL with Madfiber wheels and THM crank and rim brakes, a Haero handlebar with (removable) integrated time trial position, and Sram Red shifting - in its lightest version around 5.8 kg for a pretty aero bicycle. Perfect for triathlons with lots of elevation. 15 years later, it is still an amazing bicycle to ride. Then a mountain bike with a Scott Scale Premium frame, MMX Podium rims to run even standard tires tubeless, a novelty back then, and Acros AGEN hydraulic shifting, which I’m now trying to restore.
Then I added a gravel bike with a setup to go bikepacking. The frame was ordered directly from China, but import duties made it more costly than expected. I ordered a frame and fork non-painted as this prevented the heavy import duties but the fork that came with the frame was painted… so duties were imposed! A bad experience partially because of the bad English of the seller in China. Nevertheless, the frame still cost less than the exact same frame sold by a Belgian brand.
For my last bicycle build, I wanted to build a superlight gravel bike.
For my last bicycle build, I wanted to build a superlight gravel bike that I could ride mostly on paved roads but also was able to attack gravel and dirt roads. Too far to reach with a mountain bike and not yet been explored by me.
I ended up with a superlight Specialized S-Works Crux frame and lots of light parts, but really light wheels were hard to find. Finally, I found an interesting rim on Light Bicycle. I searched for reviews on them and found lots of good feedback on the bicycle forums. They got an option to send to Europe with tax and duties prepaid, so no surprises when the wheels were delivered. So I contacted them and the conversation was way better than my previous experience with the seller of my frame.
I finally opted for the AR25 rim, Extralite hubs, and Berd spokes. Weight was calculated at 851 grams, and my scale weighed them at 876 grams for the SET of two! It just took longer than promised to build the wheels, but they arrived without any trouble of customs or transport. That made me able to finish my bike and weigh in. 6.2kg for a gravel bike with a pretty big range of gears due to the 9-52 cassette. My first riding impressions are impressive. The bicycle seems to float over the gravel roads. As the Berd spokes are dampening, the small vibrations go out and the bike is unbelievably easy to accelerate after a turn or twist, even faster than my 5.8kg road bike, and the extremely low rotating mass of the wheels must be responsible for that.
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January 15th, 2025 | Light Bicycle
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