Orbea’s association with the pro ranks went on hiatus with the collapse of the bright Basque orange of Euskaltel. It’s returned with the French Cofidis team that includes 2014 Giro d’Italia Points jersey winner Nacer Bouhanni, who sadly exited this year's TdF during Stage 5 following a crash that included five of the Cofidis outfit.
- Highs: Precision handling from a magnificent chassis
- Lows: Average wheels don’t belong on such a classy frameset
- Buy if: You want a pro-level bike with an amazing frame and fantastic drivetrain – and you already have a set of quality wheels
The new Orca is a departure from the previous model. The older one had a swathe of curvy sculpted lines with beautifully machined and fluted alloy inserts; the new Orca looks positively understated, with the emphasis on slender and angular through the flattened top tube, triangulated head tube junction and thin seatstays that broaden at the dropouts.
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The Orca’s beefy bottom bracket shell flares out to huge squared off chainstays
The new fork is aero-bladed and offers a minimal frontal area. The only part of the frame that looks as powerful and purposeful as the old bike are the hugely deep, squared off chainstays.
Hop aboard and it feels every bit a stiff as its predecessor, yet more lithe, light and flickable. The new chassis is more than 20 percent lighter, with the frame close to 900g and the fork around 300g. That’s a saving of over 250g over the old bike on the frame alone.
You can read more at BikeRadar.com
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