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"And which bike are you taking?" my brother asked.
"The Rose Backroad FF," I said. Like a shot from a pistol!
As an editor for cycling magazines, you have access to almost every bike you can think of and I chose the Backroad FF from the Bocholt-based mail-order company. I had already ridden the bike on short tours and had fallen in love. Lightning love! I was particularly taken with the external beauty, as is usually the case with love at first sight.
The look of the Backroad FF I was impressed: fast, elegant, strikingly angular, clean. I particularly liked the cockpit: made of carbon fibre, one-piece, with integrated cable routing, flattened, curved and flared like eagle wings. Sexy! For that reason alone, I had to have this speedster. The fact that the bike belongs to the race gravel bike category didn't put me off, as I had no intention of riding the 1000 kilometres to the Baltic seaside resort of Binz in race mode.
Hence the legitimate question: Had I chosen the right "partner" for my mission?
The geometry
"One of the sportiest gravel bikes currently on sale," was the verdict of the TOUR test editorial team in an earlier test. The abbreviation FF in the name says it all. It means Fast Forward. The bike designers trimmed the Backroad FF for propulsion and gave the gravel bike a very race-orientated geometry, which is more reminiscent of the Xlite road bike than the classic Backroad. The racy geo values paired with a low front stretch the rider and distribute a lot of pressure on the wrists. In short: would this marathon road bike be suitable for a bike-packing tour? Probably not.
At 178 cm tall, I chose a size M, which turned out to be a good fit. M/L would have made the riding position even racier. No thanks!
Geometry
| M | M/L | L | XL | |
| Seat tube length in mm | 505 | 525 | 550 | 585 |
| Seat tube length in mm | 546 | 564 | 582 | 603 |
| Head tube length in mm | 134 | 153 | 171 | 195 |
| Head tube anglein ° | 72 | 72,25 | 72,5 | 72,5 |
| Seat angle in ° | 75 | 74,5 | 74,5 | 74,5 |
| BB drop in mm | 75 | 72 | 72 | 72 |
| Chainstays in mm | 420 | 420 | 420 | 420 |
| Wheelbase in mm | 1016 | 1030 | 1046 | 1067 |
| Max. Seat height in mm (support 360 mm) | 795 | 815 | 845 | 875 |
| Reach in mm | 396 | 405 | 418 | 432 |
| Reach+ in mm | 576 | 585 | 608 | 622 |
| Stack in mm | 558 | 574 | 592 | 616 |
| Stack+ in mm | 643 | 659 | 677 | 701 |
| Protrusion height in mm (100 mm in front of BB) | 796 | 817 | 837 | 868 |
| Stack/reach ratio in mm | 1,41 | 1,42 | 1,42 | 1,43 |
| Stack/reach ratio+ in mm | 1,12 | 1,13 | 1,11 | 1,13 |
| Fork lead (offset) in mm | 48 | 48 | 48 | 48 |
| Wheel diameter in inches | 700C | 700C | 700C | 700C |
| Max. tyre width in mm Tyre width in mm | 45 | 45 | 45 | 45 |
| Fork length in mm | 390 | 390 | 390 | 390 |
| Handlebar width in mm | 400 | 400 | 400 | 400 |
| Crank arm length in mm | 172,5 | 172,5 | 175 | 175 |
| Stem length in mm | 100 | 100 | 110 | 110 |
| Size recommendation in cm | 174-181 | 179-186 | 183-193 | 191-200 |
| System weight in kg | 120 | 120 | 120 | 120 |
Dirty lemon
Here you can see the new lacquer option in close-up: Dirty Lemon. If that's too progressive for you, the bike is also available in chic white. Purple and pistachio are also available. One model comes in the very unique colour Rotten Candy. The entry-level model Rival XPLR AXS is equipped with the 1x13 Rival wireless drivetrain from Sram. I got on wonderfully with it. My brother suffered from battery anxiety and charged the rear derailleur batteries every two days. He overreacted a bit. Nevertheless, you should keep an eye on it if you don't want to ride around on a singlespeed, which has already happened to me several times - but not on this tour. So keep an eye on it: An LED on the rear derailleur shows the battery status. Green = full/good, red = low, flashing red = almost empty.
Equipment and prices
The Rose Backroad FF is available in four different equipment variants available at Rosebikes. The differences are in the groupset, brakes and crank. My test bike was equipped with a Sram Rival. The models above this are available with Shimano GRX (double chainring), Sram Force and Sram Red as the top model for 7000 euros >> available here. With the exception of the entry-level model, they all roll on carbon rims. Up to five colours are available: Sweet Plum (purple, Dirty Lemon (beige/yellow marbled), Supersonic Gray (white), Pistachio (lime green), Rotten Candy (pink with black hairs).
Weights: from 8.6 to 7 kg for the top model.
From Munich to the Baltic Sea - what now?
Keep Rolling!
I'm generally a fan of high acceleration carbon wheels. However, the Backroad FF Rival is the only FF model equipped with aluminium rims. On them: 40 Schwalbe G-One R Performance tubular tyres with a subtle, slightly rolling profile. The combination worked well and provided sufficient grip on the fairly gentle terrain.
Pocket setup
The Race-Graveller Backroad FF must have been surprised when I hung bags on it. Misappropriation, you could say. I chose Saddle, frame and top tube bag from Cyclite from Upper Bavaria, which specialises in high-quality bikepacking bags. High priced, but also very high quality. I was completely satisfied.
The test bike
- ModelRose Backroad FF Rival XPLR Axs
- Price3700 Euro >> available here
- Field of applicationRacegravel
- Frame: Carbon, size M
- Handlebar stemRose one piece cockpit Gravel, 100mm/40cm
- Rear derailleurSram Rival XPLR AXS E1
- Impellers: Rose G30 Light aluminium rims with Newmen hubs and Spaim spokes
- Brakes: Sram Paceline, black Ø160mm
- Tyres: Schwalbe G-ONE R Performance, 700x40c, black 40-622
- Weight complete bike: 8,6 Kilo
- Number of bottle cage holders: 2
My conclusion
The Backroad FF Rival XPLR AXS from 3650 euros is a great gravel bike. Full stop. You can hardly come to any other conclusion. The price-performance ratio is impressive - a strength of the mail order company Rose. The bike doesn't have to hide from anyone, not even the image-laden Italian competition. The riding position is stretched and sporty, as you would expect from a race gravel bike. The speedster is less suitable for long bike-packing missions (which was to be expected), as it lacks comfort. My wrists ached at the end of the day. You could say it was my own fault. But I was rewarded with plenty of propulsion, sharp handling, fast acceleration and a very stylish look. As the saying goes: you have to be prepared to suffer a little for beauty.
Dimitri Lehner, 1.78 metres, BIKE & TOUR tester
Dimitri Lehner
Editor
