Raleigh's range-topping Revenio is aimed firmly at sportive riders. It's a bike that has been designed to help you tap out the miles in comfort.
We'd figured this out even before reading Raleigh's spiel. The bike's character is obvious when you step on the pedals, its relaxed geometry merging with a compliant frame.
- HIGHS Smooth ride and relaxed handling
- LOWS A little bit weighty
- BUY IF… You want a comfortable steed for covering distance and aren't worried about speed
Raleigh's RE2P ('Relaxed Ergonomic Effective Position') gives you an almost sit-up-and-beg position, which stops your back being hunched over on longer rides. Coupled with the carbon frame that's aimed more towards comfort than all-out performance, there are far less pleasant places to knock out a century than on the Revenio – it's not going to be an especially fast 100 miles, but you shouldn't feel too beaten up at the end.
The handling is reassuringly stable, with a longish wheelbase, relaxed head angle and low bottom bracket. Its tapered 1.125-1.5in head tube increases stiffness and improves cornering, helping to despatch long, swoopy corners with ease. It's a relaxing ride, but it does lack the pin-sharp accuracy that a racier bike would provide.
What this geometry means though, with its tall head tube, short reach and relatively long chainstays, is that the ride is far from sprightly. Furthermore, its 9kg weight means it's not going to sprint away from the lights with too much urgency. And while Raleigh have tried to add stiffness for increased pedalling efficiency, the rear still feels a little flexible, rather than punchy.
We can't complain at the spec – Shimano 105 shifts crisply, even over the FSA chainrings and Tiagra level cassette. Internal cable routing is good to see on bikes at this price, and we'd expect the well-protected cables to last a fair while too. Raleigh's own low-profile AC2.0 wheels seem better built than the AC1.0s we tested on the Revenio 1, while Schwalbe's Lugano tyres offer reasonable grip and light weight, and we'd probably wear them out before changing them.
The finishing kit comes from a mix of brands, with a Selle San Marco saddle, RSP seatpost and ITM bar and stem. The mid-drop XX7 bars are a decent shape, the squidgy Velo tape comfortable. The only element we weren't too keen on were the Tektro R340 brakes, which felt underpowered and lacked bite, mainly because of the cheap pads. But experience has shown us that an inexpensive upgrade would improve things here significantly.
The Revenio Carbon isn't designed to be a race bike, so if you're looking to cover decent distances and aren't too worried about KOMs and PBs, the Revenio is worth looking at. But to really stand out its slightly portly package needs to go on a diet.