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Rouleur Live is a show that brings bike industry enthusiasts, top racers, and the general public all together under one roof in London. Rather than being a show for just the journalists and industry, this four-day extravaganza is open to all, and as such offers a whole host of entertainment and chances to catch your favourite cyclists walking around.
That means that Truman Brewery, the location for the show, is absolutely heaving with people over the four days Rouleur Live is on. It’s a place for networking, and looking at shiny new things that might be totally out of your budget range. But then again, Rouleur is hardly the show where you go to look for your new commuter bike – rather it’s a place where you realise how expensive bikes can be and at times are reminded how elitist the sport can be.
Not all things loaded inside the Shoreditch venue were brand new and shiny, though; this year worn-out kit from pro athletes also made plenty of appearances – if you ever wanted to see what Lachlan Morton’s shoes look like after cycling 14,000 km, then today’s your lucky day.
In between chatting with all the brand and industry folk about what’s coming in 2025, we took a stroll through the busy halls and snapped pictures of some of the most interesting bikes and things. Let’s get into them …
Shand – a brand known for its steel frames – was showcasing its gravel steed Stooshie in sparkling green colourway. This was perhaps the only bike at Rouleur equipped with full mudguards.Shand was sold to Rideworks at the end of 2023, and the longtime supplier became the manufacturer and moved the HQ of the brand to Coventry, England. This is reflected in the new head badge that instead of saying “made in Scotland” now reflects its roots.The Stooshie has clearance for 35 mm tyres with mudguards, 42 mm without – making it sit between a true gravel and all-road bike.Rohloff-equipped bikes are Shand’s speciality and as such, this Stooshie and the Stramash further down both come with belt drives and the internal gear hubs.Shand also had an updated Stramash gravel bike on show, complete with this Cane Creek inversion suspension fork with oh-so-nice polka dot finish.Australian maker Bastion had its ArchAngel limited edition bike on show. You can spot the artwork of angel wings that give the bike its name adorned on the lugs.Bastion launched the ArchAngel in 2023 are only 88 of these made. This copper/orange detailed model was marked as the third one out – Rob English spotted number 81 at RC Show earlier this year so they’re nearing the end of production.Bastion uses 3D printing to create the titanium lugs that really make the look of these bikes and connect the custom carbon tubing.Trek had a whole host of bikes on show and many of them were painted with the brand’s Project One custom programme; this Madone showcases a very pastelly Pantone colourway.Trek is known for its Project One customisation programme that offers custom designs across its top-tier models.Matching the soft pink of the Trek logo with the aero bottle cages was a nice finishing touch. Italian brand 3T had some of the brightest frames on the show – these are the new colourways for the brand’s Primo WPNT all-round bike, all painted in Italy. The Primo is perhaps the “tamest” in the brand’s gravel lineup, though it still has clearance for 46 mm tyres.This Seka Spear frame has a claimed weight of 685 g – and the Chinese brand said they’ve added more dealers to their network, including one in the UK.The Windeye seatstay structure claims to improve comfort.This front derailleur mount is as neat as it gets. Seka also had its Exceed at the stand.Ridley’s Astr RS caught our eye have only been launched last month. The Astr RS is the brands latest gravel race bike that has taken plenty of aero design cues from the brands road going offerings. It wasn’t just the Astr that grabbed our attention. Fitted to the Astr RS was DT Swiss’ latest and greatest gravel wheelset the GRC1100 available in 30 and 50 mm.The display bike was fitted with the 50 mm rims that also sport a 24 mm internal rim width.Scope had its flagship Artech wheels on display that feature a surface texture inspired by fish scales. The scale effect can be seen on each of Scope’s rim depths. The brand says, “The patent pending Aeroscales generate velocity streaks traveling at different speed over our rim surface. These velocity streaks have a stabilizing effect on the airflow thereby reducing drag.”Scope were also showing off their 3D-printed hubs that are used in its Artech series.Canyon had this Mach874 edition Aeroad on display. This was the colourway used by Canyon athletes at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. The silver graphics across the frame pop against the satin purple-to-black fade paint.
The rainbow on the fork is echoed on the Canyon logo on the down tube with its pearlescent finish reflecting a spectrum of colours.
One bike that garnered a lot of attention was Reap’s prototype aero gravel bike, which went from idea to rideable in just 52 days. Although it looks like an outright aero bike it has room for 50 mm tyres and the flat sections on the seat and chain stays are designed to offer compliance on the rough stuff. It took many passersby a second glance to clock that they were in fact looking at a gravel bike rather than an aero road bike.Not all things presented at Rouleur were shiny and blingy – on show were also Lachlan Morton’s Fizik shoes which the Australian used for his cycle around the continent.Officina Battaglin praises itself for making the world’s most exclusive custom steel road bikes – and the Roma pictured here blends together steel with titanium. The bike is built with both steel and carbon tubes, and the carbon is left raw on the seatpost, fork and headtube. The tubes are then bonded together with oversized steel lugs. The premium doesn’t come cheap, as this one retails for £15,200.This stand was reserved for expensive builds, as the Aurum Magma in front of the Officina Battaglin will also set you back £15k. Aurum is a brand that Alberto Contador and Ivan Basso founded, and the name means ‘gold.’ The Magma is, as you might guess from its colourway, the bike that they believe sets the gold standard for high-end road bikes.The Ventente aH-1 inflatable helmet was certainly a crowd-pleaser. The Swiss brand designed this micro-collapsible helmet primarily for urban commuters seeking convenience of carrying. The pneumatic structural system allows it to collapse by 90%, and it inflates in about 30 seconds using an electric pump, which is compatible with standard bicycle tyre valves (so guess you could use your mini pump too).Ventente told is that the aH-1’s air-filled structure actually enhances ventilation, allowing heat to dissipate more efficiently compared to traditional foam helmets. Having tried it on, it was hard to judge if it’s true – but the fit certainly feels very different to more traditional helmets.Is this the collaboration we were waiting for? This blue and white creation belongs to Tekkerz – a British racing team – and is matching the team car that is a Volvo 850 Estate. Hence the car track and miniature cars on the stand.The pinkest bike on show was this Maglia Rosa Trek Madone belonging to Elisa Longo Borghini – the 2024 Giro d’Italia Women winner.A bike to finish with … this yellow Canyon Aeroad belongs to no other than Kasia Niewiadoma, this year’s Tour de France Femmes winner.
