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3T updates Exploro gravel & adventure bike

  • Ron 

3T is introducing a new version of its EXPLORO gravel/adventure bike, which it introduced to wide acclaim 18 months ago. While adoption of Shimano’s flat mount brake standard is the most obvious update, there are other changes as well.

The Exploro is the only bike in its category that takes aerodynamics into account. While aerodynamics may sound odd for a gravel bike, no one will deny that wind is a major factor in gravel riding & racing, and that means aerodynamics matter. Your “groundspeed” maybe only 10kmh, but relative to the air it could be 50kmh and that is the resistance you have to overcome.

Many gravel racers have put these advantages to work for them, resulting in many victories including Mat Stephens’ win in the Dirty Kanza 200 miler.

A second reason the aerodynamics matter is that a lot of customers use the 3T Exploro as their “one and only” bike. With road wheels and tires, it is a very, very fast aero road bike, ideal for regular road group rides and even races. With up to 40mm 700c Road(Plus) tires or up to 54mm 650b MTB tires, it’s an extremely capable off-roader and mixed-surface machine.

The New Exploro Flatmount follows the flat mount disc brake standard, although 3T does not consider that to be big news. Postmount brakes work perfectly well, so there was no reason for the industry to invent a second standard (the whole idea of a standard is that there’s only one). But it’s hard to avoid when Shimano decides to push this.

The bigger story about this new frameset is actually the Fango (Italian for mud) fork, which is a complete redesign.

A few of the highlights:
* New, more aerodynamic fork legs with elongated Sqaero shapes,
* Slimmer, more aero crown without sacrificing tire clearance,
* Fully internal cable routing,
* Integrated disc brake bracket for 140 & 160mm discs,
* Dedicated 12mm axle dropouts,
* Syntace X-12 front axle for maximum stiffness & strength
* Prepared for full fenders (coming in Fall 2018).

The frame also sees some other small upgrades, such as a change of the seat post wedge collar to use the same principle as the Strada to secure the post in the frame (though the two collars are not interchangeable due to the different geometry of both frames).

The new Exploro Flatmount is available in TEAM and LTD levels. The original Exploro also remains in the line-up, as the post mount is perfect for those who want to set up their bike with mountain bike disc brakes for that little extra braking power. The original Exploro is also available as a complete bike with Rival.

In parallel to the new Exploro, 3T is introducing the Superghiaia “gravel” drop bar, which combines a standard hand position on the hoods with a flared position for the drops.

This special shape ensures the hoods are positioned vertically, as their manufacturers intended, and not at an angle as is the case with so many gravel bars.

Both the New Exploro Flatmount and the Superghiaia have already been put to the test in desert and snow recently, with trip reports following on 3T’s blog soon.

Tags: 3T, adventure, aerodynamic, bars, bicycle, bicycles, brakes, Cycle sport, cycling, disc brake, gravel, mountain bike, Shimano, Stephens, transport
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