Sometimes miracles really do happen. In June 2010, the world cycling organisation UCI announced a series of rule changes for the sport of cyclo-cross. Among other things, the use of disc brakes was permitted in cyclo-cross races, which had previously been explicitly prohibited. The change came as a surprise even to many insiders. Just four years ago, the UCI coordinator responsible for cyclo-cross, Peter van den Abeele, told TOUR that he had never heard of anyone demanding disc brakes for cyclo-cross bikes.
Rumour has it that it was primarily the component manufacturer Shimano that persuaded the UCI to change its mind. There were and are enough arguments in favour of disc brakes anyway. Particularly in wet conditions, they decelerate much better than the cantilever brakes used on cross bikes, which should actually be sold with the warning "Caution: Brake does not correspond to the state of the art". In recent years, there have been many attempts to solve the notorious problems of this type of brake - weak braking effect, brake stuttering, awkward assembly - by means of design. Nevertheless, anyone with a little expertise knew that the technically perfect solution for the cross bike could only be the disc brake. Mountain bikes have shown the way: disc brakes have long been established in all price categories, and hardly anyone asks for rim brakes these days.
Our test provides a good overview of the currently still very limited range of cross bikes with disc brakes. What all the bikes have in common is that they are equipped with mechanical brakes. The "BB7" from Avid is fitted four times and the "BB5" from the same manufacturer once. Only Kocmo uses a different brake, the "Bengal" from Tektro. One important finding first: the braking distances on all test bikes are significantly shorter than on models with cantilever brakes - an irrefutable argument in favour of the disc.
SHORT & SHORT
With a price range of 1,150 to 7,200 euros, it is difficult to choose a test winner. Nevertheless, one bike deserves to be singled out in particular. The titanium crosser from Kocmo impresses with its agility and moderate weight. Visually, the steel crosser from Fixie is hard to beat, and technically it doesn't show any weaknesses. The models from Merida and Nox are particularly interesting due to their price, and with mudguards they mutate into perfect winter racers.
The test results of the cross road bikes can be found below as a PDF download.
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