The Rose Xeon - A bike that gives absolute pleasure
It's not always an easy choice whether a road bike or a bike for gravel is the right decision. However if you only ride on paved roads then a classic racer is the better solution for getting around faster. If it often goes inland on dirt roads a gravel bike is a good choice which provides good grip and speed due to its geometry. With the Rose Xeon you have both variants to choose from, with more details in the next chapter.
💡 About the bike
Facts
The Rose Xeon offers very good performance and an optimal price-performance ratio. The Xeon road bike is available as Rose Xeon CW, Rose Xeon RS and Xeon CDX Cross. In addition the bike is also available as a frameset. You can choose different frame sizes or frame heights for an optimal seating position. The Rose Xeon Road Bike is available either as a full carbon version or with an aluminum frame.
The Rose Xeon CW Road Bike is a bike with good aerodynamics, which is not only fast but also convinces with ease of use. In addition it has an outstanding price for what you get. It is an aero bike with integrated cable routing and a full carbon frame. The good aerodynamics including high stiffness ensures sufficient speed and it can be steered well through curves, even at high speed. This allows you to stay in the optimal posture even on fast rides.
The Rose Xeon RS is sturdy, handles well and glides quickly up the roads with power going straight from the pedals to the drivetrain. A road bike with an aluminum frame is always said to be a bike for beginners but even ambitious riders enjoy the reliability as well as the extreme speed. You'd rather have an aluminum bike with outstanding components, like the Shimano Ultegra, than a cheaper carbon version with a Shimano 105.
The Rose Xeon RS also has fully integrated cable routing for improved aero characteristics of the bike. The frame not only shines with its durability but has also been given a beautifully crafted design. Furthermore the Rose Xeon RS also impresses with an excellent price-performance ratio.
The Rose Xeon CDX Cross is basically also a road bike but differs by longer wheelbase, wider tires as well as disc brakes. This provides more smoothness and safety off the road such as on gravel paths. Therefore the Rose Xeon CDX Cross falls into the category of gravel bikes. Due to its excellent composition it received the grade "outstanding" in the Roadbike test report in 2017.
It has a full carbon frame and Shimano Ultegra Di2 gears. It is ideally suited for many types of surfaces whether over dirt, potholes, sidewalks or asphalt. Through the rapid acceleration and good handling, including strong disc brakes, you get through the traffic without problems.
History
The company Rose Bikes with its headquarters in Bocholt originated in 1907 as a bicycle store. The business was founded by Heinrich Rose and in 1932 the management of the company passed to Heinrich Rose Junior. In the early 80's Erwin Rose took over the management and Rose was one of the first dealers in Europe to import Japanese bicycles. At that time the first Rose mail order catalog was published, at times with up to 1000 pages of bicycles and accessories. For a long time, until its discontinuation in 2017, the catalog was considered the reference work for bicycle lovers and was available in three languages. In 2009 the circulation was a whopping 600,000 copies.
The Biketown store was followed in 2014 by a concept store in Munich where you can virtually create your dream bike. The concept store won the Store of the Year Award from the German Trade Association in January 2015. In October 2015 the store from Munich also won the Iconic Award 2015 at the architecture and design competition.
Rose's goal is sustainability with the desire for Germany to become a bicycle commuter country by making the bicycle the first place among the companions in local mobility. In addition to a responsible use of production and consumables they also maintain a fair and respectful treatment of people. This concerns not only the trade but also the Rose employees who are equally urged to realize this vision.
⚙️ Components and Equipment
The Rose Xeon does not need to hide in the components
To find the right choice of components Rose uses companies like Shimano or SRAM for the shifting groups. Mavic, Schwalbe and Continental are the suppliers for the tires and Selle Italia for the saddle or Ritchey for the handlebars and stem. In addition Rose uses components from its own development laboratory such as in the seatpost, wheelset and seat tube.
Groupsets
- For the groupsets the Shimano Ultegra 6800 or also the Shimano Ultegra RD-R8000 is used as a rear derailleur. Furthermore the SRAM Force 1 and Shimano Ultegra Di2, as in the Rose Xeon CDX Cross, can also be installed. The pedals and bottom bracket can be selected optionally.
Brakes
- In addition to the almost traditional rim brakes, disc brakes are increasingly being installed. The very simple reason is the greatly improved braking performance especially in wet weather or underground. A brake body set such as the Shimano Ultegra 8000 or the Shimano Ultegra 6800 is used on the Xeon Road Bike series or the SRAM Force HRD on the Rose Xeon CDX Cross.
Saddle / Seatpost / Handlebar & Stem
- The Rose Carbon Aero seatpost and seat tube are products from Rose's own innovation. For the saddle itself they like to use Selle Italia, like the super light 16 SLS Flow with manganese frame. The seatpost in conjunction with the stem and the rest of the cockpit provides an optimal seating position. A Ritchey WCS is mostly installed at the handlebar and a Ritchey WCS C220 at the stem. The Ritchey WCS series provides an extraordinary driving pleasure and impresses with its performance and reliability. For the handlebar tape the Rose cork is excellent.
Wheels / Tires
- For the wheelset the DT Swiss R32 Spline is a good choice. In addition Rose still has the in-house wheelset RS1400 to offer which is somewhat lighter and is ideal for the Continental GP4000 S II tires. Furthermore the bikes are equipped with tires from Mavic and Schwalbe.
🚲 More models
Gravel bike: Rose Backroad, Rose Backroad AL
Road bike: Rose XLite, Rose Pro SL, Rose Reveal
Mountain bike: Rose Thrill Hill, Rose Root Miller, Rose Soulfire
E-bike: Rose Reveal Plus, Rose Backroad Plus, Rose Sneak Plus
🎯 Summary
How to find the right Rose bike
If the Xeon does not correspond to your optimal choice then you can still find many other models of Rose in various areas. The race bikes are aerodynamically optimized companions and are available as X-Lite Four and X-Lite Six models. The endurance bikes, like the Reveal and Pro SL, offer the ideal comfort for long distances.
For mountain bikes Rose has several divisions on hand. Cross-country bikes include the top-selling Count Solo, a lightweight carbon hardtail bike like the Psycho Path, or the full-suspension Thrill Hill for more challenging terrain. As trail and enduro bikes it has several models to choose from: the all-rounder Ground Control, the Root Miller and the Bonero which is a progressive hardtail MTB. For freeriders there is the Solo Fire and for dirt fans The Bruce. In addition there are the MTB Fan Editions where bikes are designed for sports clubs and are available in limited quantities: the Psycho Path x Werder Bremen, Count Solo x BVB and the Psycho Path SC Freiburg.
The Rose gravel bike is the Backroad with 4 different variants: the Backroad+ e-bike, the Backroad AL with aluminum frame, the Backroad as a carbon version and the Backroad Limited, one of the bestsellers in limited edition and paint. For trekking friends Rose has bikes like the Black Lava, Multisport Trekking and Multistreet Trekking.
Need help choosing your ideal Rose road bike? The buycycle team will be happy to help you choose and answer all your questions! For more details you can also check out our blog or YouTube channel.
