Vitus Vitesse Evo review

Photography Stu Bowers

Vitus emerged as a pioneer back in 1970, producing bonded, lugged aluminium frames from its factory in Saint-Étienne, France.

Its slender, tubular constructions were considered cutting edge due to their low weight, plus they wouldn’t rust like steel. But it was its 979, released in 1979, that really put the brand on the map.

Champions from around the globe – Phil Anderson, Allan Peiper, Stephen Roche and Luis Herrera, to name a few – tasted success on a 979, helping to make it an iconic frame that’s now highly sought-after by collectors. But it was the supremacy of Classics legend Sean Kelly in the 1980s that cemented the 979’s status.

The Irishman formed a good rapport with Vitus early on in his career, and that relationship exists to the present day as Kelly continues to be an ambassador, and his wealth of experience is often called upon to inform on bike designs, this latest Vitesse Evo being one of them.

Go with the pro

Vitus is still involved in pro racing, first through its involvement with the An Post Chain Reaction ProContinental team up to 2017, and since then through its own Vitus Pro Cycling-Brother UK team, for which this new Vitesse Evo will be the weapon of choice once racing resumes.

In this spec, it’s the lightest bike in the Vitus range, and my size large swung from the scales at 7.69kg. Given it is dripping with top-drawer components from Sram and Zipp, that weight marks it as good but not outstanding for a modern disc brake bike.

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There are a few other areas where it seems to lag behind the competition too. There are no dropped seatstays, no internal seat clamp, only minimal internal cable routing, no integrated bar/stem combo and little in the way of aero tube profiling.

Even before I had struck out on the first of my training rides (all within the Government’s exercise guidelines) I couldn’t help feeling like I was testing a race bike from three years ago.

I put this to Vitus road product manager Jodie Shann, who said, ‘I can’t deny this frame is in the third year of its existence now, as it is essentially based on the rim brake version of the Evo, which we designed for An Post. The riders really liked that bike and wanted to be able to move to disc brakes and for it not to feel too different.

‘Obviously we had to re-work elements of the frame, like increasing chainstay length for disc brakes and altering the layup to withstand the additional disc brake forces, so a number of tube shapes have changed subtly, but the core geometry has not.

‘Timing-wise, I guess it was developed right on the cusp of the end of the more “classically shaped” road bike era, so yeah, its classic silhouette remains. At least for now.’

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No complaints

My test bike came with its Zipp Service Course SL stem completely slammed and the steerer tube already cut, leaving me no option on front end height. Thankfully Vitus has been generous enough with the head tube length so as not to leave me with a large chiropractic bill.

As I expected, the Zipp finishing kit and Sram Red eTap AXS groupset performed flawlessly, but less well known to me were the wheels from Prime, which like Vitus is a direct-to-consumer brand exclusive to Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles. I was pleasantly surprised, as they proved to be stiff, with a lively feel and modern aero rim shapes.

They are designed around a 25mm tyre with a 19mm internal width, wide 27.5mm external profile and 38mm depth, and have a claimed weight of 1,563g a pair. With an RRP of just £899, they put some bigger-name brands to shame.

As for the frame, that too did everything sufficiently well, but not in a way that set my world on fire. I found myself using words such as ‘solid’, ‘dependable’ and ‘consistent’ when jotting down my thoughts after a ride.

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Image 4 of 8

When I laid down some power, I couldn’t detect any undesirable flex, but neither did I get the sense of excitement that comes with the best race bikes.

Its handling was composed, balanced and stable. The semi-compact geometry allowed a reasonable amount of the 27.2mm seatpost to be exposed and thus helped deliver decent shock absorption, but stopped a good way short of class-leading comfort.

For all the sparkle of the Vitesse Evo’s glittery paint, I felt it lacked the charisma to match the best of its rivals. But there is one area where it outguns a good number of its competitors: price.

A penny short of £5k is outstanding value for this spec. You would have to add at least £3k to that price if you wanted an equivalent-spec Cannondale, and more like £4k if you went with Trek or Specialized’s top-flight bikes. That’s the kind of money to make me re-think whether I could accept B+ ‘good effort all-round’ over A-star ‘best in class’.

Pick of the kit

7 Mesh Skyline Jersey, £200, 7mesh.com

7 Mesh has been steadily refining its road race offering and the new 2020 Skyline jersey has really stepped things up. It’s super-light, with a fit as snug as they come for maximum aero gains.

Coldblack fabric enhances the jersey’s heat management, and five rear pockets (twao zipped) are supported to resist vertical stretch. It’s the perfect choice for a tough sportive in the mountains.

Alternatively…

Go with the wind

If you want something more aero, look no further than the Vitus ZX-1 CRX (£5,199.99). Named after the brand’s first carbon monocoque race bike in 1991, the ZX-1 is every bit the modern aero race rig.

Save with an Ultegra shift

Much as we love the Sram Red eTap AXS groupset, we can’t ignore that the same bike fitted with a Shimano Ultegra Di2 groupset saves a hefty £1,500 over the top-end model (£3,499.99).

Spec

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