![]() Handling leans toward the more stable end of the spectrum. If you’re really after a cushy feel, it’s worth noting that most 28mm tires will squeeze through as well. But that was largely remedied by swapping to 25mm tires – we recommend these for most riders for their faster roll and surer grip, anyway. Road texture comes through more prominently than on most full composite chassis we’ve ridden, particularly up through the bars. ![]() That being said, the Ritchey’s titanium main frame doesn’t soak up small-amplitude, high-frequency buzz in the same way as carbon. It’s a feature we especially appreciated while riding unfamiliar roads in far-off lands. Whereas most carbon bikes stiffen up on especially rough surfaces, such as washboarded dirt roads, the Ritchey eats them up with barely a whimper. The upside of the softer backbone is additional comfort, which the Ritchey offers in spades. Likewise, we’ve certainly piloted bikes that handled more precisely but the Ritchey still felt confidently planted at speeds approaching 75km/h (47mph). In most conditions that extra flex wasn’t much of an issue – we generally used the Ritchey for more steady-state rides, not full-blown hill repeats. There’s a similar degree of flex from the rather traditionally proportioned front end when you’re sprinting out of the saddle. That’s particularly the case on steeper climbs when you’ve got no choice but to muscle away ruthlessly. There’s noticeable flex in the drivetrain when you really put the power down, and a subsequent delay between effort and output. Despite the carbon rear stays and included all-carbon fork, it’s quite a different feel from the all-carbon chassis that dominate the current landscape. It was showing 13lb 11oz on average, but once they got it straightened out, it consistently came in at 15lb 10oz.True to form, the Ritchey Break-Away Road Ti/Carbon delivers a classic titanium ride, with a resilient and springy feel under power and a distinctly smooth quality on rough roads. ( Note: Ritchey’s reps just emailed to say they noticed a glitch in their scale at the show when we were at the booth. The carbon tubular wheels certainly helped, but still. The complete bike here with SRAM Red 22 and SuperLogic build came in under 14 pounds at 15lb 10oz or a full size folding travel bike. Production bikes will be made in Taiwan, not hand built by Tom, but will still be hand made. It uses a standard threaded BB and straight 1-1/8″ head tube. That gives it a smooth ride while also making it a bit more ding resistant. ![]() So, the tubes are smaller diameter than what’s found on modern race bikes, with a thicker walls. Tom wanted a bike that focuses more on ride quality than absolute race performance. It uses all carbon tubes cut to size and bonded to aluminum pivot hardware. As in this particular model was hand built by the man himself. The new Carbon Breakaway is the first carbon fiber bike built by Tom Ritchey. Streak through for more pics and a look at the insanely lightweight Carbon Breakaway road bike… ![]() ![]() UPDATE 2: Price on Carbon Breakaway officially lowered to $2,999.95. UPDATE 1: Weight corrected for carbon road bike. Rear also uses a quick release skewer rather than a thru axle. The 1-1/8″ head tube will stay, and the fork will likely remain QR. This one’s a one-off fillet brazed prototype, but production frames will be TIG welded. The tubing is their triple butted, heat treated Logic tubing. It’s a 170mm rear end for now, but they’re still playing with it and may go to 190mm. Price is TBD (likely around $1,100), as is some of the final spec. The new Ritchey Commando fat bike prototype is headed for production, likely coming out this winter. It’s not often we want to see someone get fat and go commando, but we’ll give Tom Ritchey a pass. ![]()
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