Portland, Oregon-based builder Zen Bicycle Company proves that steel doesn’t have to be synonymous with ‘old’ or ‘slow’. The company’s simply named ROAD frame pairs a thoroughly modern Columbus HSS Spirit oversized niobium steel tubeset with an Enve carbon fork, Zen’s own convertible dropout design, and disc brakes at either end for a quintessentially springy and lively ride that’ll quickly help you forget about those extra grams.
Feedback and personality galore
If you love the magic carpet feel of many carbon road frames, you can stop reading now because the Zen ROAD most definitely is not the droid you’re looking for. Instead, the oversized, thin-walled tubing is highly communicative of what’s going on down below, faithfully transmitting road texture and bumps as if reading braille.
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The Columbus Spirit HSS tubing imparts a wonderfully communicative ride quality
That’s not to say that the ROAD is harsh, and in fact, it’s anything but (in most situations). The blacktop might very well be constantly speaking to you but it’s more like a helpful narrative, not someone screaming obscenities. There’s heaps of springiness, ‘snap’, and ‘pop’ to the ride quality, and the oversized pipes are admirably responsive under power.
However, that directness can be a bit much at times, particularly on dirt roads with lots of washboard or on especially poor pavement where I would have appreciated a more muted ride. Keep in mind that this is all with ultra-supple (but relatively narrow) 24mm-wide Specialized Turbo tubeless clinchers installed on Enve carbon rims and although it’s a rather tight fit, Zen officially says there’s room at either end for 28s. Going with that higher-volume size certainly goes a long way toward smoothing out small imperfections but it does add a bit of rotating weight.
Old-school steel but modern alloys with contemporary shapes and features
Verdict: A great choice if you’re looking for something a little different
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