Gravel

HAUL ASS, NOT CARGO In 2019, Áspero took the gravel world by storm, heralding a “new era of speed in gravel.” Fun, but flat out. The new Áspero remains true to its original brief, but with some improvements: a threaded BB shell, neater cable routing, and a UDH-compatible derailleur hanger for those who want to use SRAM’s Transmission drivetrains. And it’s more aero, of course. In the case of Áspero, aerodynamic performance is less about pure speed as a result of drag reduction, and more about conservation of energy. After a big day in a headwind, the three watts saved over the previous Aspero might add up to one less energy gel your stomach has to digest—WORTH IT. In addition to the drag reduction, we also dropped the seat stays to give a bit more compliance out back, and reduced front-end stiffness slightly to make the last hours of a long race less painful. Between those dropped seat stays, we added in a bit more clearance for mud, too, taking what we learned from R5-CX (and the Unbound mudfest in 2023). It’s a lot of seemingly small improvements, but they add up to a lot. The result is a bike that feels a lot like the original Áspero, but is faster, more comfortable, and more versatile. THREADED BOTTOM BRACKET Aspero uses the asymmetrical T47a threaded bottom bracket we pioneered on R5-CX. It’s a simple, rider-serviceable interface that allows us to deliver the benefits of BBRight in a more user-friendly form. UNIVERSAL DERAILLEUR HANGAR We used SRAM’s Universal Derailleur Hanger (UDH) standard on the new Aspero. It’s ideal if you want to live your best ‘business in the front, party in the back’ life with one of SRAM’s Transmission drivetrains today, and ensures compatibility for future drivetrain developments. INTERNAL CABLE ROUTING Aspero shares the same bearing dimensions as R5, Soloist, R5-CX, and Caledonia, which means you can use any combination of bearing caps and stems. Want a super-racy, fully-internal look? Grab the ST31 and HB13 from R5.

HAUL ASS, NOT CARGO In 2019, Áspero took the gravel world by storm, heralding a “new era of speed in gravel.” Fun, but flat out. The new Áspero remains true to its original brief, but with some improvements: a threaded BB shell, neater cable routing, and a UDH-compatible derailleur hanger for those who want to use SRAM’s Transmission drivetrains. And it’s more aero, of course. In the case of Áspero, aerodynamic performance is less about pure speed as a result of drag reduction, and more about conservation of energy. After a big day in a headwind, the three watts saved over the previous Aspero might add up to one less energy gel your stomach has to digest—WORTH IT. In addition to the drag reduction, we also dropped the seat stays to give a bit more compliance out back, and reduced front-end stiffness slightly to make the last hours of a long race less painful. Between those dropped seat stays, we added in a bit more clearance for mud, too, taking what we learned from R5-CX (and the Unbound mudfest in 2023). It’s a lot of seemingly small improvements, but they add up to a lot. The result is a bike that feels a lot like the original Áspero, but is faster, more comfortable, and more versatile. THREADED BOTTOM BRACKET Aspero uses the asymmetrical T47a threaded bottom bracket we pioneered on R5-CX. It’s a simple, rider-serviceable interface that allows us to deliver the benefits of BBRight in a more user-friendly form. UNIVERSAL DERAILLEUR HANGAR We used SRAM’s Universal Derailleur Hanger (UDH) standard on the new Aspero. It’s ideal if you want to live your best ‘business in the front, party in the back’ life with one of SRAM’s Transmission drivetrains today, and ensures compatibility for future drivetrain developments. INTERNAL CABLE ROUTING Aspero shares the same bearing dimensions as R5, Soloist, R5-CX, and Caledonia, which means you can use any combination of bearing caps and stems. Want a super-racy, fully-internal look? Grab the ST31 and HB13 from R5.

We engineered Áspero for pure, unapologetic speed, ready to take down finish lines, KOMs, PRs, and FKTs. A bike built without limits, for the riders looking to test them. It's stiff-Classics-racing- stiff and performs like you'd want a road bike to perform off-road. We think that makes sense, and it's what we were trying to do when we were stuffing bigger tires into our existing frames and swapping in aftermarket forks to get a 40mm tire up front. MULTIPLE CONFIGURATIONS - We designed Aspero with clearance for up to 700c x 40mm tires or 650b x 49mm tires. Of course, there are variables—rim width, tire casing, and tread depth—which will affect final clearance. We always recommend 4mm of clearance between the tire and frame. TWO-POSITION ADJUSTMENT - Trail (front-wheel response to rider input) is the most critical factor in high-velocity handling. Flipping the two-position "Trail Mixer" to compensate for the difference in circumference between a 650b and 700c tire maintains consistent handling by maintaining consistent trail figures. BALANCED HANDLING - Stiffness and handling work together to ensure the bike tracks predictably and responds immediately to critical pedal and bracing inputs.

Our engineers like to joke that, "if it looks fast, it probably is." But there's some truth to that, and Áspero-5 looks fast standing still. No cables in the wind, tube shapes from our aerodynamically-proven library, and a hint of a cut-out in the seat tube, all add up to a bike that proves the adage. - Lightweight Speed Some might say aero doesn't matter on a gravel bike, but if you've battled a headwind across an open prairie, the thirty-two grams of drag you'll save with the Áspero-5 come as a welcome respite. Most gravel racing is done without the benefit of a World Tour peloton—or World Tour tactics—and when it's your nose in the wind all day, it's nice to know your bike's shouldering a bit of the load. - Two-Position Adjustment Trail—front-wheel response to rider input—is the most critical factor in high-velocity handling. Flipping the two-position "Trail Mixer" to compensate for the difference in circumference between a 650b and 700c tire maintains consistent handling by maintaining consistent trail figures. - Multiple Configurations We designed Aspero with clearance for up to 700c x 40mm tires or 650b x 49mm tires. Of course, there are variables—rim width, tire casing, and tread depth—which will affect final clearance. We (and the International Organization for Standardization, or ISO), always recommend 4mm of clearance between the tire and frame. **New Shimano road (not gravel) 12-speed front derailleurs reduce tire clearance in the rear of the frame to 700 x 38c or 650b x 45c. - SRAM Integrated Power Red and Force build include Quarq Zero power meters integrated into the crank. The integration of a power meter results in better stiffness, lighter weight, and improved accuracy over aftermarket solutions—and the DZero delivers power measurement accurate to +/- 1.5%, even in variable temperatures.

Our engineers like to joke that, "if it looks fast, it probably is." But there's some truth to that, and Áspero-5 looks fast standing still. No cables in the wind, tube shapes from our aerodynamically-proven library, and a hint of a cut-out in the seat tube, all add up to a bike that proves the adage. - Lightweight Speed Some might say aero doesn't matter on a gravel bike, but if you've battled a headwind across an open prairie, the thirty-two grams of drag you'll save with the Áspero-5 come as a welcome respite. Most gravel racing is done without the benefit of a World Tour peloton—or World Tour tactics—and when it's your nose in the wind all day, it's nice to know your bike's shouldering a bit of the load. - Two Position Adjustment Trail—front-wheel response to rider input—is the most critical factor in high-velocity handling. Flipping the two-position "Trail Mixer" to compensate for the difference in circumference between a 650b and 700c tire maintains consistent handling by maintaining consistent trail figures. - Multiple Configurations We designed Aspero with clearance for up to 700c x 40mm tires or 650b x 49mm tires. Of course, there are variables—rim width, tire casing, and tread depth—which will affect final clearance. We (and the International Organization for Standardization, or ISO), always recommend 4mm of clearance between the tire and frame. **New Shimano road (not gravel) 12-speed front derailleurs reduce tire clearance in the rear of the frame to 700 x 38c or 650b x 45c. - SRAM Integrated Power Red and Force builds include Quarq Zero power meters integrated into the crank. The integration of a power meter results in better stiffness, lighter weight, and improved accuracy over aftermarket solutions—and the DZero delivers power measurement accurate to +/- 1.5%, even in variable temperatures.