PAAL-BERINGEN, Belgium (BRAIN) — Ridley has released a disc brake version of its long-standing aero road bike, the Noah.
The new Noah SL Disc was 18 months in development. It features 12mm thru axles front and rear, internal brake hose routing, reinforced frame and fork for brake forces, and Shimano Flat Mount caliper mounting.
The new model has 142mm rear spacing for a stronger wheel. The front thru axle lever is on the left side, which the company said allows race mechanics (who presumably are all right handed) quicker access to the lever from the front of the bike.
"It's not just a Noah SL with some holes drilled in it," said Jochim Aerts, the CEO of Ridley. "Optimizing a bike for discs required us to completely revise the fork and rear triangle. The loads of the disc brakes and thru axles require new lay-up schedules formulas to handle the stresses and torques these stopping mechanism generate.
The Noah SL Disc still includes the aero features the Noah models are known for, including the F-Split fork and F-Surface Plus dimpling, which is designed to allow the frame to cut through the wind like a golf ball. The company said the addition of discs did not create a dramatic change in aerodynamic efficiency.
While pricing has not been finalized, the company said it expect prices to be about 500 euros ($560) more than the caliper equivalent.
