The De Rosa Avant is an elegant road bike with a distinctive flair that can only come from its Italian heritage.  If you’re not familiar with Ugo De Rosa, then I suggest you read about the history of De Rosa Bicycles. 

The Avant is a full carbon road bike with monocoque main triangle and bonded carbon stays that De Rosa introduced in 2006.  The frame and fork weigh in at a reasonably light 1100g and 370g, respectively.  I like the minimal use of color to accent the tight 12k weave of its outer coat of carbon cloth.  The traditional De Rosa heart on the down tube seems a little out of place in these modern times but those with some knowledge of bicycle heritage will instantly recognize it.  My 14 year old son, though, who initially disliked the heart, now thinks the “silver line” Avant is among the better looking bicycles he’s seen me ride. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that he thinks his dad now has the bicycle equivalent of a Maserati.

The 2007 Avant frameset retails for $2,350.00 which puts it in the mid-priced range for carbon framesets.  The Avant is the least expensive carbon De Rosa because it is made in Taiwan instead of Italy.  De Rosa makes a full range of road bikes almost all of which are made in Italy at De Rosa’s shop including 6 from carbon, 2 in titanium, 3 aluminum/carbon, 1 all aluminum, 2 in steel and several specialty bikes including a fabulous looking all carbon TT/triathlon bike.  

The Avant frameset included a De Rosa carbon seat post in a mountain bike sized 31.6mm diameter as well as a Campagnolo Chorus headset.  Upon visual inspection of the frameset, I noticed several quality issues with glittery black paint in areas around the head tube, bottom bracket and where the stays are joined to the main triangle presumably to cover areas of the frame where the top coat of cloth is less than perfect.  Another and more frustrating issue is that the headset decal is slightly off center (although I'm likely the only one who will notice).  Otherwise, I was reasonably pleased with the look and feel of the bike.  I am not crazy about the seat post though as it does not match the carbon weave of the frame, has too much top coat on it to fit in the seat tube (I had to actually sand it to get it inside the frame) and I don’t like the way the saddle mounts in the clamp.  No worries, though, since you don’t typically get a seat post when purchasing a frameset, you can either take it or leave it.  I've decided to leave it and replace it with a Use Alien Carbon post with the new Cyclops clamp.  I also replaced the Campagnolo headset as it was very old school with an FSA cartridge bearing version.  I think all of these issues are minor and they are not atypical for European framesets.

Once on the road, the bike’s legendary geometry and design principles show through impressively.  This bike does everything very well.  It is stiff enough for gear mashers, climbs like the best bikes on the market, handles with grace and steadiness and has an extra measure of comfort over typical carbon racing frames.  The more I ride the bike the more impressed I am with it.  Some bike frames scream at you because they are so different while others whisper.  Those that whisper, like this Avant, take more time to get to know.  As a result, you continuously want to ride it to discover a little more about it. 

Honestly, given the fact that the Avant is made in Taiwan and only costs $2,350, I didn’t think it would necessarily be worthy of the De Rosa name.  In fact, I didn’t even want this frameset as it was a replacement for the De Rosa Idol I couldn’t get because it’s so new there weren’t any in the U. S. at the time.  I then decided I would try a De Rosa Corum which is made from Dedacciai’s top of the line EOM 16.5 steel but there weren’t any 07’s available in it either.  So I settled for the Avant and I’m now happy to have discovered just how nice it is. 

The Avant is a good looking bike with outstanding attributes from one of the most respected names in cycling all at a cost comparable to similar performing frames from more ordinary brands.  I think it is one of those gems that will only be discovered by a few cyclists who are willing to go a different route than most and resist the urge to buy top or even middle of the line when they go to a traditional (read expensive) European brand.  As long as you are a recreational cyclist (which is everyone who’s primary employment is something other than racing for a professional cycling team) you will never need anymore bike than that offered by the Avant. 

KDG