The serial number is stamped into the bottom of the frame (under the bottom bracket). Finally, the Columbia Rd is a beautiful step-through with a low maintenance and practical 8-speed internal hubgear. Perfect for pootling around town, plus the twin top tube adds a touch of elegance. Genesis has a lot of bikes in its ‘other’ category, so we’ve broken them down into Adventure, Cyclocross and Urban.
Not too long and well balanced with none of the ‘too much weight on the wrists’ feeling that sometimes comes on trail hardtails. Set up was simple, the bike did come with a whole bunch of spacers below the stem, after less than 30 seconds on the bike I had these shuffled to get the front as low as possible and it was off to the trails. Kit wise the Genesis is sensibly specced, Shimano Deore takes care of transmission duties with a SLX rear derailleur, brakes are Deore too. The best riding is off the beaten track, on that road – or path – to who knows where.
It is available with flat bars and drop bars, carbon forks and steel forks, there’s even a titanium frame option. For each of the builds, there are different spec levels donated by a ‘10’ for the entry level and ’30’ for the top line. The Tour de Fer is a steel touring-specific bike with a longer, stable wheelbase, and comes complete with mudguards and racks.
A rim brake version is available in addition to the disc option and both come with Shimano Ultegra 2×11 groupsets. The maximum tyre size on bike is 28c, typical for rim brake set ups but relatively narrow for a bike with discs. But for races that are solely on roads, this should be more than adequate. The Vapour is Genesis’ CX race machine and there are three models available (10, 20 and 30). There’s the option of having a full carbon frame at the higher end of the spec too, or a more affordable version with an aluminium frame and carbon fork.
You could put 38c tyres on it and go bike-packing on some gravel, or you could put front and rear pannier racks on, throw in some mudguards, and take it on an around the world tour. You could even commute, go on road rides, use it as a utility genesis mountain bike shopper. With pannier rack mounts and similar geometry,these bikes may look similar to the adventure bikes, but there are a few features that make these better suited to running errands and commuting than a dedicated adventure bike would be.
Although the frame is steel, it’s relatively lightweight with a carbon fork and no excess components weighing it down. Due to being disc brake only, the bridge between the seatstays could be removed. This further increases mud clearance and also adds to the frame’s compliance, providing better control. Definitely not a versatile bike; this is designed with only CX racing in mind and makes no compromises – except for, perhaps, its two sets of bottle bosses. There aren’t mounting points for front or rear pannier racks; strap on bike-packing bags are the weapon of choice here.
Visit us in our stores in Edinburgh (Bruntsfield or Canonmills), Leeds, Newcastle and Aberdeen. As with the Day One, there are mudguards, rear pannier rack, and an internally geared rear hub for all weather dependability. Some adventures are about taking your time and drinking in your surroundings, others are about getting there fast. This bike is genesis bike designed for lightweight bike-packing, able to tackle ultra-distances on mixed terrain. Essentially an aluminium version of the Croix de Fer, the CDA features a similar plethora of mounts and wide clearances but comes in at a significantly lower price. Part of this is down to the different frame material, but cheaper components are also a factor.