There’s absolutely no doubt that the Van Rysel RCR Pro has been the most clicked on bike of the year at Cycling Weekly.
The chassis ridden by the pros of UCI World Tour team Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale has managed to undercut competitors on the market to the tune of a couple of grand. And, the more affordably specced Shimano Ultegra Di2 version is now down by a further £1,000(.01) in Decathlon’s Black Friday sale.
Cycling Weekly tech writer, and former full-time rider, Joe Baker put this build through its paces as part of our Bike of the Year megatest.
Joe did point out that, wearing the Ultegra spec (as opposed to the top of the range Dura-Ace), this isn’t quite such a phenomenal deal at RRP vs competition, with notoriously good value direct-only brand Canyon able to hold its own. However, he did score the bike very well for its low weight (7.28kg) and strikingly good looks.
The RCR Pro was designed in-house by Decathlon engineers, with the frame subject to computational fluid dynamics testing ahead of multiple iterations being run through the wind tunnel. This is, first and foremost, a performance orientated bike, designed to win races – and it’s done a good job of that this season, with the squad clocking up 30 victories.
As you’d expect, the geometry is aggressive, with a stack-to-reach ratio of 1.40, putting the rider into a low, aerodynamic position; however, a longer wheelbase made for stable handling on test.
Considering its racing pedigree, Joe found the RCR Pro to be a “very comfortable bike, doing a great job of evening out the plentiful bumps on my local Oxfordshire roads”, whilst he flagged a lack of responsiveness compared to others in the same category, this did play out in greater stability.
