New ENVE Melee road bike with Alexey Vermeulen, Belgian Waffle Ride winner

ENVE just launched its first production road bike, the Melee, and pro cyclist Alexey Vermeulen talks with me about the new bike that he raced to the win at Belgian Waffle Ride California, one of the biggest gravel races in the world.
Wait, isn't this a road bike? Yup - the Melee is a straight-ahead road race bike but one that has clearance for up to 35mm tires. (Alexey raced fatter ones at BWR...)
ENVE first jumped into road bikes in 2021 with the Custom Road. I went through that process with ENVE last year, and talk with Alexey about the similarities and differences between the two framesets, and how they both compare to other high-end bikes past and present.
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Related links:
My story and photos of Alexey winning BWR on the then-unreleased bike:
www.velonews.com/gallery/gall...
My story and video on the ENVE Custom Road bike:
www.velonews.com/gear/road-ge...
ENVE's website:
www.enve.com/
Alexey and Avery on KZbin
kzbin.info?searc...
Belgian Waffle Ride:
belgianwaffleride.bike/
Photos by:
Avery Stumm: avery_stumm...
Jake Orness/BWR: jpovphoto?...
Ben Delaney: ben_delaney...
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Who the heck is Ben Delaney?
I spent more than 20 years as a cycling journalist, covering the biggest races, visiting companies, and testing bikes around the world. Now I'm doing my own thing here on KZbin.
Follow me on the socials.
Strava: / strava
Instagram: ben_delaney...
Twitter: / ridedelaney

[@chrisdistefano198]

Love your energy and enthusiasm, Ben. Looking forward to more and more of these. ✌

[@etistours6650]

Speaking with the guy who won on this bike is just awesome👍🏻

[@jamiewatson9570]

Ben Delaney...silver tongue, silver hair, legend

[@adamsims6490]

Alexey is a legend

[@flavforpar]

Beautiful bike!

[@adinbaird2076]

Excellent!!!

[@Bogusuap]

love the dog

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Everybody loves Sir Willie.

[@Horstelin]

@@TheRidewithBenDelaney Could you tell me the brand/model of the backpack?

[@matthewbenger8355]

Very similar looking to a tarmac/venge. Cool it can fit 37c tyres

[@YetAnotherAdventure]

Thank you for the insight. On a production post note..if I may suggest, mix your final piece’s audio. This will prevent one persons audio on left and other on right.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Thanks for the feedback!

[@Horstelin]

@@TheRidewithBenDelaney This. When wearing headphones, the side of the audio changes every time you move your head. Kinda annoying

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Got it. Thanks.

[@gunnarhellberg9178]

And the Melee has mounts for fenders / mudguards, which all bikes should have.

[@ASJSTAT]

All everyday* bikes should have, definitely not on the super bikes...

[@BiffBruise]

Excellent video, but I did want to mention the Émonda can run 32s without issue, as I have ridden exactly that for the past 7+ months.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

That is probably a great combo of plush and light.

[@onenotesolo256]

…And the Tarmac SL7 can officially run at least 30 (and indeed 32, still with room for the extra 1-2mm wider that they measure on some wheels) - which I’ve been riding for the last few months. Enjoyed the interview.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

@@onenotesolo256 Thanks for the discussion on this. It's a bit fuzzy as the definition of clearance varies by year (it used to be 4mm ETRTRO) and by rim inner width and tire used. Right now it's 6mm by ETRTO, and Alexey notes, you can fit more. For Specialized, I'm going off what they say here for 28s: support.specialized.com/tarmac/en/features-benefits/compatible-parts#:~:text=Tire%20Clearance,fork%20and%20tires%20before%20riding.

[@onenotesolo256]

@@TheRidewithBenDelaney Yeah, you have to draw a benchmark line for comparison somewhere. Comments section remains useful for people to share real world examples that differ (for better or worse!). BTW, congrats on your 3rd place in the 100km Unbound. Just watched your review / learnings video.

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

@@onenotesolo256Agreed on all accounts! And thank you.

[@racerx40plus84]

At 5’10”, what size Melee frame does Alexey ride for reference?

[@Armandeus32]

The wheels on the Melee bike -are those the Enve 2.3? If so, do you ride those on gravel?

[@TheRidewithBenDelaney]

Yes, but that is Alexey’s bike. I think he normally rides the 3.4s for gravel.

[@jmscheel]

Don;t you ride a 56? He wouldn’t let you ride it?

[@ealtvideo]

More like Cannondale Supersix evo road bike

[@rcg9573]

Another cheap sub $500 cost CF cookie cutter bike being sold for a silly price. Fools will rush out to buy it. 🙂