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Coupled with Verenti's ME3 finishing kit, Mavic's Aksium wheels and SRAM's Rival components this superb bicycle offers reliability, comfort and efficiency at mere-mortal prices.
Our Rhigos frame was constructed using
a sophisticated layup of high-strength and high-modulus fibres, which are altered throughout the different frame sections to fulfill specific design objectives.
The unique composite layup technology, combined with the advanced moulding process - eliminating un-needed material in production, allows us to produce an incredibly light yet strong frame.
We were able to design the frame with very high lateral bottom bracket stiffness for optimal power transfer, high lateral stiffness at the headtube for rail-like tracking in corners and still maintain excellent vibration damping for all-day comfort.
HM (High Modulus): Describes the high stress to strain ratio that the carbon fibre achieves under tension.
3K (K = Thousand): Describes the way in which the individual carbon fibres are bundled/woven together in thousands, usually referring to the visible layer.
UB (Ultra Bonded): Describes the voidless surface-to-surface contact area in which each lug is pressure bonded to its tube.
SL (Superlight): Describes the moulding and layering technology used to reduce overall frame weight.
We want you to have the same confidence in our products as we do; so we have made sure that our bicycles conform to and exceed all the latest European standards (Road standard: EN147810) which involves rigorous testing by the worlds leading testing facilities: The SGS Group.
Note: Manufacturer may reserve the right to change the specification of that listed or shown on this page.| Size Guide (Verenti Millook and Rhigos Road Bikes) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Frame Size | Rider Height (cm) | Inside Leg (cm) |
| X-Small | 157 - 168 | 71 - 76 |
| Small | 165 - 175 | 73 - 78 |
| Medium | 173 - 183 | 76 - 81 |
| Large | 180 - 190 | 78 - 83 |
| X-Large | 188 - 198 | 81 - 86 |
| XX-Large | 195 | 83 |
| 'Size matters! That's why at Wiggle we measure each of our bikes to build accurate size charts for our customers. Our qualified team of mechanics then individually check each order against measurements supplied by you to ensure the size chosen is correct. Another reason you can have complete confidence when buying a bike from Wiggle!' | ||
We will happily refund any item purchased on Wiggle if returned to us within 365 days; excluding Wiggle gift vouchers, nutrition and customised products, except when faulty.
Please note: Bikes and other bulky items cannot be returned using our local returns service (where applicable). Please contact us and we can arrange to collect these from you using our discounted courier rates. There is a fee for all collections, except for faulty products.
Returned goods must be unused and supplied with their original packaging, unless the goods are faulty. Wiggle will pay the return postage costs for any faulty items.
As the name suggests it's the third bike in the Rhigos range sitting behind, you're ahead of us the 01, and the 02. For our money in stealth black this is the looker of the bunch and, on paper at least, for £1400 it is an incredibly competitive piece of kit. It'll need to be though because it will be going up against some really good bikes including the benchmark setting Boardman Road Pro Carbon, and some of the very stylish offerings from the likes of Comtat.
Even on looks, spec... and promise the Verenti looks to be a winner. Yes, the Boardman is no off the shelf generic carbon machine, a lot of thought has gone in to it, but comfortable though it is, it's an out and out race tool. And it costs £200 more. And while Comtat too have performance oriented sportive offerings in their range, stylishly finished too, they have used their experience to build great bikes from off the shelf parts they haven't been put together 'from the ground up' for the sorts of conditions that British sportive riders will face in the way Verenti have gone about their task and believe us Verenti have gone about this process with an almost obsessive approach to detail.
Named after the killer Welsh climb the Rhigos 03 is intended to be a bike to get you up the mountain after a long day in the saddle and leave you fresh enough to nail the descent on the other side. At 8.16kg comfort rather than all-out low weight is key, so is smooth handling and the sort of planted descending on rails stability that inspires the sort of confidence you need to enjoy fast descents on British roads.
Spec highlights? Well first off, that lugged high modulus 3K carbon frame. The Rhigos 03 has the same frame with different coloured lugs as the 02 (white lugs) and the 01 (red). Some people can get a bit sniffy about lugged carbon, but it makes sense, it's still the method of choice for top end carbon from Italian marques like Colnago. In many ways it's no less complex way of building a bike than a monocoque, all those lugs need to be different for every frame size and it does allow for a very clean, strong method of construction, with some interesting tube profiles too.
That frame, and it's upgradeability is a really strong card in the 03's favour. So too though is the buying power of Wiggle/Verenti which means that for your £1400 you are getting a very well equipped bike. Groupset is pretty much full SRAM Rival save for the Truvative 50-34 Elita chainset. Wheels are Mavic Acksiums - plenty strong enough to deal with even British roads and worth hanging on to as training wheels when the time comes to upgrade to something lighter. There's a fair smattering of Verenti own branded kit on there too - the Me2 brakes have the look of the higher end of the Tektro range and the full carbon monocoque fork looks a quality bit of kit too.
There are initially five bikes in the Verenti range and they're all designed with sportive riding in mind we hear that other genres are coming. The current crop share the same back-friendly geometry which means a longer than normal head tube and a slightly foreshortened top tube resulting in quite an upright ride position. And they all come with compact gearing to keep you spinning up the climbs even at the end of a long, tough day in the saddle.
The Verenti range kicks off with the £900 alloy Kilmeston, then comes the £1200 Millook, which is alloy with carbon seatstays, and then you get the three carbon Rhigos starting with our Rhigos.03. The other two share the same frame and fork package but get equipment upgrades. The £1800 02 features a SRAM Rival groupset and Mavic Ksyrium Elite wheels while the range-topping 01 is equipped with SRAM Red and Ksyrium SLs and it'll set you back £2900. That might sound like a lot of money but you get a whole lot of spec for your cash with each bike.
The Rhigos' frame is made from high modulus 3K SL carbon tubes that are joined using carbon lugs. The down tube is teardrop shaped in profile and bows inward slightly along its length, while the top tube starts out as a flat bottomed triangle at the front before flipping over so the point is facing down by the time it reaches the seat tube junction.
The head tube houses a standard 1 1/8in headset bearing up top but flares out massively as it descends and holds a 1 1/2in bearing at the bottom for a considerable hike in rigidity. The wishbone seatstays and chainstays weave about all over the place before hooking up together at the rear dropouts, while up front you get a full-carbon monocoque fork that blends almost seamlessly into the frame.
The cable stops are pop riveted in place securely enough while the graphics are classy and understated rather than loud and loutish, although we wish they were a little more durable ours started to look a bit tatty fairly early on. While we're on the decals, the figures on the top tube are the map reference of the Rhigos climb which, if you haven't been schooled in such things, is in South Wales and is included in the Verenti-sponsored Dragon Ride sportive. See, it all makes sense.
Okay, when it comes to naming bikes after climbs, Mid-Glamorgan lacks the glamour of the Madone outside Monte Carlo or the Ghisallo near Milan, but it's good to see a bit of recognition for British riding for a change. Oh, and the weird squiggle on the down tube: that's an outline of the Dragon Ride route. Quirky. We like that.
Ride: Think marathon not sprint
Right, on to the ride. Things didn't start out particularly well, to be honest, because the Verenti's gears were out when we got it and we had to adjust both mechs a lot to get them running smoothly. Fine, it's a 10-minute job if you know what you're doing, but it's a pain if you've just bought a bike online and you don't have much experience in the old bike fettling game. Gripe over! Thankfully, things soon started looking up...
Verenti have set out to produce a great value sportive bike and that's exactly what they've achieved here. For a start, the ride position is spot on for racking up the big miles. Slightly shorter than a full-on race bike and quite a bit higher at the front, you can sit aboard the Rhigos for hours without your back screaming for you to pack it in for the day. You're not so upright that the wind catches you full in the chest, though it's a good compromise position, and you can always lower the bars slightly if you like; we had 4cm of headset spacers to play with.
It's also a smooth ride, the carbon at both ends damping out the vast majority of the buzz from the road and gel pads under the tape around the top section of the bars doing a great job of keeping your palms from going numb. It's a small detail but it makes such a difference to the ride quality. Verenti's own cromo-railed saddle isn't going to give Fizik's designers sleepless nights but it's a decent shape and it's well-cushioned without being squidgy it's certainly a useable choice to be going on with.
Hitting the scales at 8.1kg (17.8lb) without pedals (for the XL model), the Verenti comes at a weight that's easy enough to coax up the hills. Although none of the bikes in the range come equipped with a triple chainset, with a compact (50/34-tooth) double chainset from Truvativ matched up to a 12-27 cassette, you've probably got all the gears you need for
