Modern Road – Cervelo Caledonia

Author: David Richards

Road bikes have evolved!

Remember your first road bike? It was a great way to explore more? Or carry you through your first race? Perhaps even through the backstreets to get to school.

I remember mine! It was delivered on Xmas morning, but in a slightly non-operational way. Santa’s helper had no idea about limit screws for the rear derailleur, and upon test riding it on Xmas Eve, managed to put the rear derailleur into the spokes. Lets just say it had to go to the bike shop before I got a ride. However I remember, it looked the same as the race bikes but I didn’t race.

That was well before Chris Froome, Cadel Evans, Lance Armstrong, Miguel Indurain, Greg Lemond and even Bernard Hinault! Road bikes have certainly changed in that time. What people are wanting to do has certainly changed too. People are looking to do more than aim for the top step of the podium on the Champs-Élysées at the Tour de France.

Modern Road is many things to different road cyclists. We need to redefine the road bike for the modern cyclist.

Enter Cervelo Caledonia.

It’s for those ‘Big Stupid Rides’

Cervelo were looking at how the modern cyclist uses their bike. Where do they ride? Why do they ride? How do they ride?

Caledonia is the answer to those questions. Caledonia doesn’t fit in a box nicely, and Cervelo like it that way. It was conceived on their Thursday night rides—routes that often play fast and loose with ‘road ride.’ As Cervelo tried to stuff bigger tires into our R5s and streamline Cervelo Asperos, a new kind of bike was born.

This is the bike that most people riding on the road – SHOULD ride. Its for all your ‘Big Stupid Rides!’ You know the ones. Role out early in the morning, ride through all sorts of weather and across all types and quality of roads, before rolling in the front door, legs empty but really satisfied. You know – the ‘Big Stupid Rides’.

What makes Caledonia the go to bike for most of us?

First up its comfortable. It’s the bike for those long days in the saddle where both Performance and Comfort are vying for top billing. Let’s face it, we all know that long roads have a real mixture of road surface to deal with and this is where Caledonia comes into its own. You might start out with some smooth bitumen, then lets take the longer loop out the back of The Dandenongs through Macclesfield or Gembrook, where the road might be a little more cut up. Back in The Basin, so let’s do another climb, but not the 1:20. Let’s head up Basin-Olinda Road and tackle the dirty 1:20. Over the top and smooth bitumen home. Caledonia can tackle all of that comfortably..

Ticked every box, completed with performance and most importantly – comfort

Now its not just a recreational road bike. Look for Team Sunweb racing this bike at Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. While it is comfortable, it is also race bred. It combines Cervelo’s history of aerodynamics, couple with durability and lightness. This road bike eats cobblestones for breakfast. Its frame design allows for a wider tyre than most road bikes. In fact it will comfortably allow 34mm tyres, which is sure to install confidence in every rider on every road surface.

Which Caledonia should I pick?

Caledonia comes in two level choices of frame. To get more detail on all of the models below speak to us or check out Caledonia-5 or Caledonia

Caledonia-5

Caledonia-5 is the top level of frame and package configurations. This level of frame comes with four different packages, all of which come with the new Santa Cruz Carbon Reserve 32mm wheel set. All models (except Ultegra Di2 come with a power meter integrated into the package, which is Cervelo elevating itself in terms of value to the rider. All finished off with a beautiful integrated cockpit for aero cable management to hide unsightly cabling.

Let’s refer to these models as ‘Nothing to Upgrade’.

Caledonia-5 Dura Ace Di2 Carbon/Chameleon: RRP $15,000

Caledonia-5 Red Etap AXS Blue/Carbon: RRP $14,500

Caledonia-5 Force eTap AXS Purple Carbon: RRP $10,500

Caledonia-5 Ultegra Di2 Silver/Black or Red/White: RRP $9700

 

Caledonia

Caledonia is the next level down, and principally is the same frame as Caledonia-5 without the integrated cockpit and aero cable management. Along with the integrated accessory mounts for the likes of mudguards, lights and bike computers, this is your go to model for anything the weather throws at you.

Caledonia Ultegra Di2 Black/White: RRP $6900

Caledonia Ultegra Maroon/Red or Black/White: RRP $5400

Caledonia 105 Black/White or Indigo/Walnut: RRP $4300