T°Red is an Italian bicycle manufacturer with each part apparently made in Italy. Browsing the company’s website, it appears that T°Red is not scared to dabble in all sorts of materials with intriguing carbon, steel, and titanium frames all available. This particular bike, the Hedera, is a titanium hardtail mountain bike. The bikes are being ridden at the Cape Epic by Team T°RED FACTORY RACING which includes former professional Italian road racers, Alessandro Petacchi and Francesco Chicchi.
Francesco Chicchi’s T°Red Hedera
- FrameT°Red Hedera
- ForkRockShox SID WC
- WheelsetVittoria Reaxcion SL
- Front TyreVittoria Barzo 2.1
- HandlebarFSA K-Force
- StemBLKTEC M2
- GripSilicone with SahmuraiSword endcaps
- Headset CapFSA
- SeatpostUSE EVO Titanium (Thanks letsride)
- SaddleSelle Italia X-LR
- BrakesSRAM Level Ultimate with SRAM Rival rear caliper
- ShifterSRAM XX1 Eagle
- Rear derailleurSRAM XX1 Eagle
- CassetteSRAM XX1 Eagle
- Crank armsSRM PowerMeter
- ChainSRAM XX1 Eagle
- PedalsShimano XT
- StorageBRN Saddlebag
The Hedera frame is designed to flex in a way that dampens forces from the rear wheel. T°Red take advantage of titanium’s properties to create a bike that allows the seatstay and chainstay to bend and absorb the trail forces impacting the rear wheel. T°Red’s testing suggests that the rear axle can move 10 mm. They achieve this by using four different titanium alloys in building the Hedera frame, including a special nikel-titanium alloy. A RockShox SID WC provides 100mm of suspension on the front of the bike.
Chicchi is riding with SRAM XX1 Eagle gearing which is driven by a SRM PowerMeter crankset and a 36T chainring.
The stem is made by a BLKTEC, a performance focussed company out of Taiwan. It is a carbon body with titanium bolts. The USE EVO seatpost continues the titanium theme with Selle Italia’s high-end X-LR model perched on top.
The braking is supplied by SRAM with Level Ultimate levers and front caliper. Interestingly, Chicchi has chosen a Rival hydraulic rear caliper from SRAM’s road and gravel product line. Our guess is that it is a weight saving decision.
Team T°Red Factory Racing roll on Vittoria wheels and tyres. The wheels are the Italian company’s Reaxcion SL model which features an alloy rim and their own SwitchIT 2 MTB hubs. The claimed weight for the wheelset on Vittoria’s website is 1450 grams.
Chicchi has fitted a Vittoria Barzo tyre on the front with a faster trolling Mezcal tyre on the rear wheel. Interestingly, the front tyre is narrower at 2.1 inches while the rear Mezcal is 2.35 inches. Presumably, the wider rear tyre offers Chicchi additional bump absorption.
Amongst a sea of carbon dual suspension bikes at the Cape Epic, it is great to see brands like T°Red supporting something different.
