I had a wander in to one of the only two van Rysel outlets open today. Fair play to decathlon, we get a lot of stuff from there, kids winter wear and other bits and pieces but they’ve done a great job with the store.
Turns out this store sells more bikes than any other decathlon in the world which is why it was the first boutique.
Amazing to see the value they are bringing to the market
Very nice and surely Van Rysel and Decathlon is going to give a lot of brands a freaking hard time, at first in EU - but they could easily apply a Canyon D2C model globally, if they want to.
From a business POV, this is a big game changer, as Decathon has such financial muscle. Very interesting to follow next years - thanks for sharing!
It’s not just the financial muscle, Decathlon has one of the finest supply chain management processes in the world, however the cycling industry operates with supply chains that were already outdated 25 years ago - hence many of the post covid issues in the industry. Van Rysel / Decathlon has a tremendous advantage and could well become a significant disrupter in the cycling industry
It’s a really nice bicycle but storage and hydration options would all be aftermarket product additions as far as I can tell. Also, the price isn’t much different from a Canyon which has nicer solution for that.
There supposedly is a triathlon version coming with an integrated storage for tools but I haven’t found a lot of information online.
However, the distribution that Decathlon has is incredible and a big differentiator. A lot of people want to get their bicycle in a shop not online.
I suppose its UCI legal for the GT teams to use it for TT?
Hence yes, storage & hydration is aftermarket
They’re still very beholden to the component manufacturers. Many Decathlon bikes (still) have supply issues because of Shimano, and they did some side variations with Microshift.
Denis chevrot, an french triathlete is already racing with it since some month. If anyone intereset he already have the bento box prototype on his instragram. Hard to say where will be the toolbox. Triathlon version may be available near kona (as rumours says).
In EU time trial version was already available and out of stock
True that on their SC, not knowing the details of that. But a very well run machine, seen from the outside, for sure.
Chevrot and AG2R already on Van Rysel bikes for a while, and my guess is, that we will see their teams grow in cycling and tri.
BTW: Surprised with their mid-range (and top-range) cycling apparel. Super nice quality at very reasonable prices (Bib around 90 eur for Pro-level quality).
And I hear their new KipRun branded carbon shoes are really good too.
Well, in 2* dura ace group, the price is 7,5K€ for the Van Rysel, 11K€ for the speedmax. +3,5K€ is very different in my opinion.
Agreed on the internal hydration/toolbox.
Van Rysel’s €7.5k is in Ultegra di2. Comparable Speedmax is €9k in same group set but there are differences in the components.
Van Rysel comes with Swiss Side in DT Swiss 180 hubs (ceramic bearings) and Deda extensions, which are more in line with current aftermarket solutions. My guess those upgrades are worth over €1.5k.
On the other hand, for a tri user, you would lose all the integration, bento box, etc.
You’re right, I don’t know why I thought the XCR had the dura ace group.
I’m hoping the integration on the tri version will be nice, but I’m afraid it will just be a bento box on the top tube. Will have to wait Kona I guess.
The answer from a Decathlon employee to a question of a user on the FAQ of the Decathlon website says (Google Translated):
For the Triathlon version, the definitive technical sheet is not yet available as it has not yet been presented. It should change due to the presence of a tool/food compartment integrated into the upper part of the bottom bracket.
By the way, browsing different Decathlon language websites can at times provide additional information. Currently, the geometry doesn’t appear on all Decathlon websites: https://contents.mediadecathlon.com/p2765145/k$802b1e6ead8a8715eb5e9bf4db6d6cb8/sq/xcr-uci-ultegra-di2-carbone-brut.jpg?format=auto&f=2400x2400 from https://www.decathlon.fr/p/xcr-uci-ultegra-di2-carbone-brut/_/R-p-343769
From Denis Chevrot’s Instagram, it doesn’t seem integrated at all. Maybe it’s just braze-on bolts on the top tube and an attached bento box
For me it’s alright. I’m not interested in integrated bladders. I’d rather have a lighter frame
The mystery of integrated storage is solved!
This write-up offers a closer look at the storage:
My guess is that this will survive throughout the 2025 season then discontinued, once Decathlon realize how few of these they will sell. It will be impossible to source pieces etc
I personally like the bike, but at that price point you can get proven top-bikes from a lot brands, QR, Argon18, Cube, heck even Cervelo
Decathlon is in the business of volume selling - not niche equipment with low margin.
It’s an interesting proposition. The bike combines designs of Canyon Speedmax (mono riser, BB box storage, basebar rubber grip), Cervelo P5 (bento box), Trek SC (frame shape) etc. I personally like the multi-position plate in the cockpit - it should give much more adjustability compared to the Speedmax.
Also, the TT UCI-legal version (https://www.decathlon.ch/de/p/xcr-uci-ultegra-di2-carbon-unbehandelt/_/R-p-343769?mc=8772688) doesn’t seem to have any bolts on the top tube. The above linked exemplar must’ve been some sort of prototype / frankenstein.
GTN discussed it and are doing a full review show shortly.
Here is the review
I love this bike
