JAMES HUANG FROM N-1 REVIEWS THE LITESPEED COLL DELS REIS
Last year, we met with bike media legend James Huang at a local Whole Foods and gave him a sneak peek of Litespeed’s magnum opus: the Coll dels Reis.
James is the G.O.A.T. of cycling tech writers. If you’ve read an extremely thorough and well-written bike review in the last 15 years, there’s a very good chance that he was the man behind it. In his long career, he has worked as a tech writer and editor for Cyclingnews, BikeRadar, CyclingTips, and Escape Collective. In the last year, he started the n-1 Substack, where he reviews bikes and gear as an independent journalist.
He has a reputation for pulling no punches in his reviews, so we were incredibly nervous to ask him to test our latest bike. But he has a unique ability to capture small details and hidden nuances that many bike reviewers might miss. He also always understands who exactly a bike is for and why it exists. Of all the bike reviewers in the world, his opinion is the one we wanted to hear the most.
Below, we’ve included a short excerpt from James’ Coll dels Reis review, which he published after spending six months with the bike. The rest of the review is available to read on his Substack, so be sure to give it a visit. A portion of it is behind a paywall, but if you want to hear an unbiased, honest, independent, and experienced voice in the world of cycling tech, and you can afford $5/month, subscribing to n-1 is worth it! Then, before we go, we'll highlight some of our favorite quotes from the Coll dels Reis review.
Image courtesy of James Huang & n-1.
Excerpt from the Coll dels Reis review by James Huang:
Litespeed Coll dels Reis bike review: Head vs. heart
There is nothing like the feel of an ultralight bike on a steep climb: the way it seems to leap forward with every little jab of the pedals; how effortlessly it swings side to side when you rise out of the saddle for a switchback; and the way it makes even the most intimidating ascents somehow seem less daunting. Optimizing your aero efficiency may very well net you the best time, but cheating gravity still arguably brings the bigger emotional rewards.
If an ultralight bike is what you’re after, carbon fiber has historically been the way to go. But what if titanium was also a viable option, or you just prefer the ride feel of that mystical metal? In that case, Litespeed’s new Coll dels Reis is perhaps already on your short list, a flagship steed the company says is, “the world’s lightest production titanium road frame,” with a claimed weight as low as 948 g in a medium size.
It’s indeed gloriously light, its anodized finish looks fantastic, there are an impressive number of frame and build kit options, and wow, does this thing absolutely live for going uphill. But it’s also very expensive, its impressive design can’t quite make up for inherent differences in material properties, and it also might not be as comfy as you might expect.
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Pros: Impressively light for titanium, brilliant on long climbs, clean and classic aesthetic, lots of frame and build kit options, generous tire clearance, might last forever.
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Cons: Still not as light as carbon fiber, front triangle stiffness could be better, not as cushy as some might like, restrictive rider weight limit, very expensive.
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The takeaway: Perhaps the best option for titanium fans that love to climb, but more of an emotional play than a logical one.
"A Tour de Force of Titanium" & Our Three Favorite Quotes
James Huang's Coll dels Reis review bike during production.
While building James' Coll dels Reis, we did feel a bit nervous. Would he like the bike? The Coll dels Reis is extremely unique and special, and we hoped he'd be able to sense that. As expected, his review was thorough and thoughtful. He called the bike "a tour de force of titanium" and dove into a ton of nerdy details about the frame. The fact that his impression of the Coll dels Reis was generally positive means we could finally breathe a sigh of relief!
As any engineer will know, optimization in one area means compromise in another. We pushed the materials and frame design to the absolute limits with our new Superform FW tubeset to make the lightest titanium bike in the world, so the cons regarding the cost and recommended weight limit are understandable. This truly is a bike designed to serve a very specific audience: “titanium fans that love to climb.” If that’s you, then we believe there is no better bike in the world than the Coll dels Reis.
Want a superlight bike with no weight limit and a stiffer front triangle to handle more explosive race efforts? That would be the Spezia, which is built with a stiffer Superform SL 6/4 tubeset. Want something lightweight and with a cushier feel for all-day epics? Check out the Ultimate, which epitomizes the “magic carpet” ride quality of classic titanium road racers.
Before we go, let's highlight three quotes from James’ review that gave the Litespeed team a nice warm and fuzzy feeling inside:
Brad DeVaney confirming that the tube dimensions match his drawings.
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“What I find [impressive] about the Coll dels Reis is how vibrant it feels underneath you. It quickly settles into a happy rhythm on longer ascents with just the right amount of springiness and flex at the bottom bracket, but yet it’s still such a joy to accelerate on steeper sections that I found myself actually looking forward to switchbacks if only as an excuse to put in a little surge."
Besides minimizing weight, our lead engineer, Brad DeVaney, put a lot of focus into the Coll del Reis’ ride feel. Yes, low weight is the priority, but a climbing frame also needs a particular ride quality to really accentuate that low weight. This is something DeVaney learned while building titanium bikes for legendary climbers competing for the King of the Mountains Jersey in the Tour de France. “Springiness” is the key. When you pedal, the best climbing bikes feel like they return energy with every pedal stroke. This is what makes the Coll dels Reis come alive on climbs, and we were stoked that James felt it.
Litespeed framebuilders working their magic.
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“Emotionally, I know which one would be more likely to find a spot on the wall in my living room instead of the garage.”
Everyone knows carbon fiber is lighter than titanium, but love is rarely rational. Like many bike lovers, we’re drawn to titanium bikes because of their other qualities: the ride feel, the craftsmanship, the toughness, the classic looks, or even the bell-like sound of stones pinging off the downtube. There’s a reason we call them “forever bikes.” Love is ultimately why we handbuild titanium bikes, and it’s why we spent so many hours crafting the Coll dels Reis. It feels good for our bikes to be appreciated like true artwork.
Andy in his flow state.
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“…the edges on the anodized finish were insanely crisp.”
We wanted to pull this quote because Litespeed’s finishing guru, Andy, doesn't get enough credit. Andy created our latest anodized and etched titanium finishes and is the man behind our most stunning custom frames. When you watch him work, it’s immediately clear that he’s a master, and he’s the reason the Coll dels Reis looks so refined. The laser-straight transitions between anodized and raw titanium throughout this frame are the result of painstaking work by an artist who cares deeply about his craft. James noticed!
