When you think of a kids bike for a six year old, does it look like this? Quite possibly not!
The Culprit Junior One (RRP £1,100) is the worlds lightest production 20″ wheel road race bike and the only 20-speed 20″ bike in the world. It’s bigger brother is the 650c Culprit Junior 2 (RRP £1,300). Let’s say that these bikes haven’t been designed for just riding around the local park!
Culprit were leaders in the race of developing high end kids performance bikes, a baton more recently taken up by the likes of the Islabikes Pro Series Range.
The Culprit Juniors are competition standard bikes and so would have been extremely popular on the UK racing scene had it not been for the difficulty in getting your hands on one! Well that problem has been resolved.
It’s good news for road hungry young cyclists as the Culprit Junior bikes are now available in the UK from Buckinghamshire based kids triathlon and cycling specialists, KidsRacing.co.uk.
I asked Linette MacArthur, founder of KidsRacing.co.uk to explain a bit more about these bikes, and what changes have been made for the UK market, to make them race ready.
“Whilst I appreciate they are more expensive than most kids road bikes you do get what you pay for in terms of weight, quality and performance. Attention to detail is frankly incredible, with bespoke CNC cranksets, super-light wheel hubs, bladed aero spokes.
For me though, most impressive of all is the frame itself. Fully hydroformed teardrop aero 7005 aluminium tubing, which is produced to show no visible welds – it’s a work of art! Everyone is convinced they are full carbon fibre, but as parents we know that just wouldn’t be practical with a 6-year old.
I’ve been in fairly lengthy consultation with the factory and the bikes designer about making changes to the bikes to improve further, particularly in light of the British Cycling (BC) rule changes governing Youth B, C, D & E category racing.
Token Racing Products (TRP) have reengineered the wheelset (now 30mm deep) to bring it within the new BC rules of a maximum of 35mm deep rims. We have also made a few more subtle changes to the spec, like narrower handlebars on the Junior One to improve handling.
My son has used one for two and a half years (his brother is about to take up the baton) and it has proved butter-proof, with many race wins in that time. Rarity ensures long-term residual values too.
Originally, the Junior One was only available in black with three highlight colours, but you can now specify your choice of colour from 10 options for no extra cost.
I do think these bikes are unlike any other kids road bike on the market. Aside the stunning aero looks, very low weight and rolling resistance are always good news for any rider – but more so kids than adults.
A point my oldest boy made aged 7 on Alpe d’Huez in 2015, flying up in just over 2 hours on a Culprit Junior One, loving every minute!”
The Culprit Junior One and Two are available from KidsRacing.co.uk
If your budget doesn’t quite stretch to a Culprit Junior, there’s a few other 20″ wheel kids road bikes to choose from, and even more 24″ wheel models.
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