Just remember the Rival PM is only left side….that is the reason it is less than much more expensive options. Slightly better than some other one-sided PMs.
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I never had an SL7 (although it is a bike I’d warmly recommend). I have ridden an SW SL7 for a few hundred k, that’s all.
I have an SW Aethos, SW Crux, SW Shiv TT, Emonda SLR9.
I have sold a Canyon Grail, SW Venge, S5 Disc, and most recently Open Wide.
Gotcha. Thanks.
You miss the venge? I probably would have kept that. Wish I had your cash flow! 
I enjoy reading your purchases and updates. Good luck
What was the reason to sell venge? And how would you compare sl7 and venge?
Venge is a fantastic bike, really lovely. Pretty similar to the SL7 imo.
I got a good offer on it and could directly exchange it with the Roubaix Team.
In 2019, I did a few crits and flat gran fondos. After having witnessed a few very nasty crashes there, I switched my focus to mountain GFs, TT and most recently gravel.
Riding in a bunch of amateurs (myself included) at 30mph through narrow corners isn’t really a place where I see myself.
Emonda is my „do it all bike“, Aethos the climbing GF Machine, the other bikes are TT and gravel race bikes.
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In the UK only the Sworks frame is available frame set only…
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A few details:
On my ZIPP 353 the SWorks Pathfinder Pro Ballon to 44mm rear, 43 front.
The 44mm rear tire has a good 4mm or clearance to the normal width eTAP FD.
The weight includes a dirty bike, with mud guards, and power meter pedals despite the chainring having a spider based PM.
The full set up I will use over the winter is 9.5kg, with a small frame bag, a bunch of spares, lights etc.
Not very light, but with no races, I take the safety of carrying too many spares and over sized lights.
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Are you running 38 or 42 Pathfinders?
42
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My Crux comes with the stock 38s. Any pressing reason to size up?
Background info: I am going to start on tame backroads being a gravel novice.
If you get the 38c tires, just try out if they‘ll work for you. They‘d probably work for me too, but I just like the additional grip you get from wider tires on mud and loose terrain, as well as the „buoyancy“ you get on sand and deeper gravel.
Also, these are the „Pathfinder Pro“, with the S-Works Pathfinders already leaked, and probably to release in the near future. So ride the ones you have and find out, if 38 is enough for your usecase, or if you could benefit from wider tires and then get the size you need in the lighter/ faster S-Works version.
I got my new crux about a month ago. I’ve been holding off writing a review until I had a few miles on it, I didn’t want to write something like “Oh my god it’s the worst/best thing ever” if I had only ridden it around the parking lot.
TL;DR: Oh my god it’s the best thing ever.
Setup: Crux 10r frame set up for cyclocross. Force AXS drivetrain, my old quarq crankset, 10-33 cassette, Knox carbon hoops (23mm internal), 33mm Spec Terra Pro on the front, 33mm Donnelly PDX on the rear, and my Bontrager isocore carbon bar (I took all these parts off my Boone).
I bought this as a gravel bike. I did a ton of research (too much!) and read pretty much everything out there. Also in the running were the Aspero, Diverge, and Checkpoint. Since I had a few races left in the CX season, I figured I’d try the new Crux out on the cross course. I figured if I liked it, great, I’ll sell my Boone and use the Crux for CX and gravel and come out ahead. If I didn’t like it for cross, no harm no foul, I’ll keep my Boone and use the Crux for gravel.
First ride was a moderately paced gravel ride with some singletrack (a course I’ve ridden a lot). When I got home I said something along the lines of “Wow, that was fun, I didn’t expect to be so comfortable that quickly on a new bike”. Maybe it’s the fit, maybe it’s the fact that I was using the bar/saddle from my Boone, but it just felt natural right off the bat.
Next ride was a race on one of my favorite courses. The rain had stopped the day before (this was the weekend that we got some historic floods here in the PNW) so the mud was thick and unrelenting rather than sloppy and wet. The bike was fast and confident through the slippery corners and I had no issues shouldering it (the top tube is round) for the monster run up. Also felt very stable on two fast descents.
Next up, another race. This one was more tacky than muddy, with LOTS of singletrack (the entire course was basically singletrack with short gravel/pavement connections). The crux was just superb. It felt nimble and confident in all the tight twisty sections, and I had no issues on the very rutted/bumpy descent.
Next up was a moderate/easy bike path ride, mostly pavement, all fun.
Finally, we have the two races from last weekend. I’ve been racing cyclocross for 10+ years now, and these were at or near the top in terms of ‘epic’ conditions. Standing water up to my pedals, completely torn up off cambers, rutted descents, and a dirt hillside that was basically a mud river. Both races were a fucking blast, and the Crux was a joy to ride.
I’m no kind of professional bike reviewer, so I can’t say exactly what it is. Maybe the slightly lower BB and slightly longer wheelbase work for my style of CX riding. Maybe the longer reach is working for me (it came with a 100mm stem, which I find insulting. I’m currently using an 80mm and have a 70mm on order to exactly match my Boone position). I have done many (many) cyclocross races, and I can confidently say that this is a cross bike. If anyone is worried about that, don’t, it’s great.
I’m at the point now where I’m definitely going to sell my Boone and continue using the Crux as a CX race bike. I will race quite a bit of gravel on it this spring and summer. For that I’ll put on the XPLR derailleur/cassette that came on the bike, wider tires (I’ll probably usually choose 42mm F/R), and switch to a bar with a slight flare to it (I didn’t want to ride a flared bar for CX). If for some reason I decide that it’s not gravely enough for me, I’ll have no qualms about keeping it for CX and buying another bike for gravel (just the reverse of what I was planning on doing with it when I bought it). I highly doubt that will happen though.
Edit to add: This bike is a joy to clean. The extra clearance (as compared to my super narrow Boone) makes it really easy to get in there with a hose and get the grime off.
I’ve also got to include this picture of my three year old daughter having THE MOST FUN in the kids’ race this past weekend.
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Have you done many high speed descents on loose gravel? I’m wondering what the stability is like with the head angle and slightly higher bb ( some other gravel bikes)
Not many, for sure. CX season followed by the holidays means that I won’t tackle any real gravel for a few months. There is one pretty rutted gravel descent (short) near my house that I usually have to be careful on. The one time I did it on the new bike it was very smooth (I recall thinking about it at the bottom). There were also some (also short, but definitely technical) descents in my races that went well. Honestly the BB height was the main thing I was worried about when buying this bike as a gravel bike. However, I think that coming off my Boone (68mm BB drop) this is going to feel loads different.
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Awesome honest insight! It is looking like months before we will see any stock, so doing my best to get a variety of reviews and thoughts on the Crux.
Do you intend to ride this as your road bike?
Looks great, still really light as a 2x. Open Wide in the background?
Correct.
Have you had a chance to ride the Crux yet. I have been thinking about the Open Wi.de or the Crux.
I can get the Open now specced with the enve ag wheels and force mullet, or the Crux Expert (rival level) in about 6 months.
At these trim levels weight seems comparable.
Curious to know your thoughts? (I can’t ride or see either prior to purchase)
Crux has a geometry, that makes it more racey, while Wi.De is more comfy. The Wide is a Perfect all-rounder. You can race on it, but can also ride through the most technical mud, use it as an endurance road bike or do bike packing on it. I think it does all of these things about equally well.
The Crux is more nimble, more aggressive, but also a little less comfy. The Crux is definitely more of a racer, but you CAN do all the other stuff with it, too.
If the weight were the same and racing wasn’t my A+ priority, I’d go WI.DE.
Also, WI.DE cannot take 2x. Which is fine for most, but I like 2x.
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