Agreed. Having cables showing at the handlebars in 2026 is kinda absurd.
Agree with you all, I can’t believe Sofia can even stand to cross all those finish lines first with those cables sticking out like that. How does she not die of embarrassment?!?!? 
lol it’s not even the cables. It’s the clearance, the tubes (not aero at all), the relatively thin BB, etc.
it doesn’t look fast and probably would test slow AF in the wind tunnel. However it’s got the worlds best gravel riders pedaling it so it makes up for it
It takes 47 mm. That’s good enough for most of these courses for the pros. If anything maybe it shows the “aero” on a grave bike frame is down the list of marginal gains?
the new Open UP or UPPER. More aero, hidden cables, still good tire clearance–can’t run 650b on it anymore (which I do on my current UPPER to be able to run 2.2 up front 2.1 in rear for the occasional need–usually 44s on my 700c wheels are fine for almost anything).
And a long overdue update to the Open Wide this week also. Clearance for 2.6 tires. I don’t love the proprietary fork/stem/bar thing, but looks like an interesting bike.
I ran 50s on mine. But I settled on 45s anyways.
As somebody who absolutely loved my 22 Crux, I couldn’t bother waiting anymore and got the Factor Aluto and couldn’t be happier. It has everything about the Crux that made it my favorite bike, plus UDH, frame storage, and integrated cables. It honestly feels like an updated Crux. Same lively, snappy feeling. Geometry is pretty similar. And really, with the rumors about how the new Crux is going to be, I’m so glad I gave up on waiting. I don’t want an off-road Tarmac SL8. The Aluto is such an amazing bike that I barely touch my road bike anymore.
I really l love my '25 Crux, cables and all. Racing on the 50 mm Spesh Terra’s the past weekend I felt like this combo felt very capable on the given terrain, and I’ll eventually test it out on some true California gravel which includes rock studded dirt roads and twisty single track.
With all that said, the offerings from X-Lab looked incredibly good at Sea Otter both aesthetically, tire clearance wise, and price wise. I’ve also taken a liking to the Ari Shafer. Great looking bike, excellent tire clearance, and price is reasonable as well.
If I could make some changes to my crux, some downtube storage would be nice just so I can keep my pockets free as I don’t run a saddle bag. Bigger tire clearance sure…hidden cables - maybe. None of these are deal breakers for me, but to keep up with trends I think they are working on at least 2 out of 3 of those. Oh year, aero tubing…maybe for the fastest racers out there but I’m okay without it if it added any significant weight to the frame.
Bikes released soon will likely be Gravel Fat Bikes! “A gravel bike without 3.0 clearance? nope!” 
I work in a shop, and one of our mechanics just got one. Hasn’t been on it yet, but it looks pretty good.
This video from Delany interviewing the guy at X-labs is worth a watch. Sounds like X-labs isn’t messing around and doing a full assault on the US market. They will support direct to consumer, but I was surprised to hear that LBS/Dealers will be their primary sales path. It will be interesting to see how that shakes out with the established brands. There is lots of typical marketing speak in the interview, but I thought the comments about the broken economic model in the bike industry were spot on. Just too many hands in the pot and too many steps/players in the supply chain. It appears that X-labs will lean on shimano for shifters and derailleurs, but they are doing their own cranks and wheels (and even tires on some models). So, almost everything under their control. It will certainly be interesting to watch for the next couple years to see if they can make it happen.
Even if I never buy an X-labs bike, I’d love to see some disruption in the industry. Hopefully, it will force some of the established brands to reinvent their business models (painful as that will be for a while). It’s just bad for cycling when nice bikes are costing $5k - $15k.
Nice! The Factor is a sick bike and definitely a more modern gravel race bike than the Crux.
I personally felt it was too close to the Crux actually. I’m looking for something that is different enough that justifies me having another gravel bike because I don’t wanna sell my Crux.
Also, the response the Factor CEO gave to the Nero Show really turned me off to that brand, but glad you’re enjoying it!
What did the ceo say?
Not sure where to post this but FYI - new Enve gravel wheels likely coming out soon. Seem to be their answer to Zipp XPLR
https://www.instagram.com/p/DXT8lxjkUUE/?igsh=MThrdWU3cmM5M21lZQ==
End of this episode: https://youtu.be/0ceZ4DA9rWM?si=KD2ekhO7INNqxfa4
This was why I bought it. And what I love about it. It feels like the Crux update that I’ve been waiting for. Basically improved on the small things that the Crux was missing. The build quality is amazing. Every little detail is so nice.
Any thoughts on the Ventum GS1? Except for the relatively low bottom bracket drop, it seems to check a lot of boxes for me: aero features, 56mm front and 50mm rear, shorter chain stays and wheelbase. The fit is a little aggressive too, pretty similar to my road bike.
I have one of the last gen before their most recent update. Have had it about a year now and I’m pretty happy with it. Clearance is good (even better on the latest) and build quality is solid. I’m generally one that finds obsessing of every little geometry delta between frames to be a little overdone and can get pretty comfortable on new frames after some riding - so with that in mind, I love how it handles and regularly choose it for road rides. I’m running 50mm G-One RS F/R
Doesn’t ventum allow you to select a lot of parts à la carte? Reducing the need to replace a lot of items for fit.
Ventum is a fine choice for sure and I’m surprised I don’t see more. There’s just a few other brands that seem to stick out a bit more. I’m still pretty into the 3T offerings, although not cheap.