Verenti Millook

Online cycle superstore Wiggle launched its very own Kiron range in 2009 to general acclaim. The sportive-style machines caught the eye with attractive specs at a very reasonable price.


The Kiron disappeared soon after, trademark issues leading to a change of name, and the Verenti range was born. The Millook is at the lower end of the stable of five bikes, the only all-rounder Kilmeston dipping under the £1000 mark.


Marc Edwardson oversaw the design of the Verentis and appears to have applied the same attention to detail on the Millook as he did at former employer Condor Cycles. The black finish features contrasting white panels on inner-facing surfaces, adding a splash of colour variation very effectively, along with red cable outers and brake hoods.


A triple-butted aluminium main triangle joins to carbon seatstays via a wishbone arrangement. Full carbon fork and steerer pass through a characteristically sportive-ready long head tube.


This is where preconception number one went out of the window. Several machines we have tested in recent months have featured a high front-end, some unreasonably so. The Millook gets it about right. Position the bars below the spacers and it is possible to het low enough. Leave them at the top of the steerer and, thanks to the excellent shallow drop of the Verenti own-brand bars, you get an eminently usable riding position, without feeling like you are in a full-on racing crouch. We have finally seen the light with the long headtube debate.


Preconception number two involved the SRAM Rival gearing, a groupset we have struggled to get to grips with in previous tests. There was still the occasional change in the wrong direction when tired and not thinking straight, but we attribute that more to hopping from one bike to another and, consequently, between the three groupset manufacturers, rather than bad design. The longer we rode the Millook, the more we liked the SRAM gears.


Special mention goes to the wheelset: Mavic Acksiums shod with Vittoria Diamonte tyres that performed superbly in some dreadful riding conditions. Another unwarrented bias went south with the Vittoria rubber, as it gripped with interest on a 25 per cent, slime covered incline that has my usual Conti tyres spinning furiously.


Verenti has cut no corners with the Millook, and designer Marc Edwardson has hit the nail on the head with the little details (such as padded bar tape and Jagwire cables) as well as the major features to make a light and nible sportive mount.


It's a bike that grows on you: a slow burner that feels better at the end of the day than at the start. And after five hours in the saddle, that is a very welcome feeling.

Carbon fore and aft, aluminium in the middle and excellent components all round up to a lightweight all-dayer that rewards time spent in the saddle. The Millook was a joy to ride and £1200, a very good deal.

As Millook is the name of a climb in the Verenti Cornwall Tour Sportive, there's no mistake who this bike is aimed at. As the middle-prices model in internet retailer Wiggle's three-bike own-brand Verenti range, the price is carefully targeted too, as £1200.

It's certainly got the looks with white decals on smart black paint, and red detailing that's matched by red brake hoods and excellent performing red Gore Ride-On cables - both of which come with the SRAM Rival drivetrain. Finishing kit is shiny black Wiggle own-brand, with the Me3 bar, stem and seatpost all made from 6061 aluminium. They all do their job well, adding to the efficient but always comfortably firm quality of the ride.

A closer look at the spec sheet shows some clever mixing and matching of materials and components in this build. Take the still aluminium bar and stem combo, which wastes little precious upper body effort through flex, while still managing to isolate your hands from uncomfortable road vibration with added gel padding under the bar tape. Likewise a first glance at the elgant but uncompromising-looking 31.8mm alloy seatpost might worry you about ride comfort. But the high-modulus carbon fibre seatstays and chainstays must be working together well, because despite the rewardingly direct power transfer for climbing and all-out sprints, the ride is still wasily plush enough for you to be seated all day.

The triple-butted main frame triangle is working just as hard, as there's no noticeable flex when sprinting, nor fore and aft frame flex in high-cadence seated sprints. Wiggle's Paul Bolwell says the company looked hard for a frame material to reproduce the qualities of scandium Kiron bikes last year, and is more than happy with this 7046 aluminium tubing. The 7000 series allow is claimed to be 16 percent stronger than commonly used 7005, so less is needed for the tubing and weight is reduced by 12 per cent. Bold claims, but the Millook is surprisingly light, efficient to pedal and comfortable - suggesting this tubing and what Bolwell calls "a fortune on tooling" has let engineers put the right amount of metal in the right places, with the right results.

Despite the relatively low weight, the the Millook is wonderfully stable - sit up and take your hands off the bar and it'll keep going straight, even through potholes (an accidental test - don't try this at home!). Best of all, the extra tall head-tube - 45mm taller than the same sized Focus Cayo - combines with the shallow drop bar to give you a wonderfully commanding posture on the bike. Descending and fast cornering is a joy as you can easily reach the drops without throwing your weight forward onto the bar. It's all very well saying that's what you should do on every bike, but with this higher front end, it comes naturally.

It's surprising how often comfort seems overlooked on 'racing' bikes. Surely anyone can go faster, for longer, when their body isn't being beaten up or contorted? "This setup is for people like me," says Bolwell, "who don't want to be bent double all day. Above all, it had to be great for descending".

And it is. You get a head's up riding position on the drops, one-finger braking capability with the competent Me3 dual-pivot brakes, confidence-inspiring steering from the all carbon-fibre fork and stiff, reliable Mavic Aksium wheels, not to mention superbly grippy Vittoria Diamante Pro tyres. The Millook is certainly not backwards in going forwards up mountains - but it positively begs to be hammered down the other side.

So how do you know if the Millook is for you? Well, if your corrent bike is unexciting, has a huge stack of spacers under a stem which is already flipped skywards - and you still can't enjoy descending on the drops like a bat out of hell, then it is.

Fast, comfortable, fun, dashing looks and good value too!

Millook is the name of a climb in the Verenti Cornwall Tour sportive, so there's no mistaking who this bike is aimed at. As the middle model in internet retailers Wiggle's three-bike, own-brand Verenti range, the price is carefully targeted too, at £1,200.

Ride & handling: Light, stiff and comfortable perfect for sportives

Despite its relatively low weight, the Millook is wonderfully stable sit up and take your hands off the bar and it'll keep going straight, even through potholes (an accidental test don't try this at home!). Best of all, the extra tall head tube 45mm taller than the same sized Focus Cayo combines with the shallow drop bar to give you a wonderfully commanding posture on the bike.

Descending and fast cornering is a joy as you can easily reach the drops without throwing your weight forward onto the bar. It's all very well saying that's what you should do on every bike, but with this high front end, it comes naturally.

It's surprising how often comfort seems to be overlooked on 'racing' bikes. Surely anyone can go faster, for longer, when their body isn't being beaten up or contorted? "This setup is for people like me who don't want to be bent double all day," says Wiggle's Paul Bolwell. "Above all, it had to be great for descending."

And it is. You get a head's up riding position on the drops, one-finger braking capability with the competent own-brand Me3 dual-pivot brakes, condence-inspiring steering from the all-carbon fibre fork and stiff, reliable Mavic Aksium wheels, not to mention superbly grippy Vittoria Diamante Pro tyres. The Millook is certainly not backwards in going forwards up mountains but it positively begs to be hammered down the other side.

So how do you know if the Millook is for you? Well, if your current bike is unexciting, has a huge stack of spacers under a stem which is already flipped skywards and you still can't enjoy descending on the drops like a bat out of hell, then it is.

Frame & equipment: Chassis blends alloy and carbon, while own-brand parts do job well

The Verenti has certainly got the looks, with white decals on smart black paint, and red detailing that's matched by red brake hoods and excellent performing red Gore Ride-On cables both of which come with the SRAM Rival drivetrain.

Finishing kit is shiny black Wiggle own-brand, with the Me3 bar, stem and seatpost all made from 6061 aluminium. They all do their job well, adding to the efficient but always comfortably firm quality of the ride.

A closer look at the spec sheet shows some clever mixing and matching of materials and components in this build. Take the stiff aluminium bar and stem combo, which wastes little precious upper body effort through flex, while still managing to isolate your hands from uncomfortable road vibration with added gel padding under the bar tape.

Likewise a first glance at the elegant but uncompromising-looking 31.6mm alloy seatpost might worry you about ride comfort. But the high-modulus carbon fibre seatstays and chainstays must be working together well, because despite the rewardingly direct power transfer for climbing and all-out sprints, the ride is still easily plush enough for you to be seated all day.

The triple-butted main frame triangle is working just as hard, as there's no noticeable flex when sprinting, nor fore and aft frame flex in high-cadence seated sprints. Bolwell says the company looked hard for a frame material to reproduce the qualities of their scandium Kiron bikes last year, and are more than happy with this 7046 aluminium tubing.

The 7000 series alloy is claimed to be 16 percent stronger than the more commonly used 7005, so less is needed for the tubing and weight is reduced by 12 percent. Bold claims, but the Millook is surprisingly light, efficient to pedal and comfortable suggesting this tubing and what Bolwell calls "a fortune on tooling" has let engineers put the right amount of metal in the right places.

Fast, comfortable, fun, dashing looks and good value too!