Review: Dolan Cyclocross

• 
  Summary: A race-ready cross machine disguised as a quotidian, entry level punter's whip. Very light and stout, but lacks sizing for smaller riders. Offers very sharp handling, stiffness may require running lower tire pressure for some.

  Frameset: Dolan Cyclcocross 52cm
  Drivetrain: 1x10 SRAM Rival, 42x11/26T
  Wheels: Zerolite 24/24h Black
  Saddle: Selle Italia SLR XP
  Brakes: Tektro
  Tires: Schwalbe CX Pro
  Pedals: TIME Alium
  Cockpit: Eleven81 & Ritchey WCS

  Weight: 19.8lbs complete
  Price: Frameset, $500. As shown, $1,700

  It only takes a moment's ride on their cyclocross offering to realize that the folks at Dolan know about more than track. This is not a new frame, but it's new to the North American market -- and bearing another marquee's logo, I am confident that it would run twice the price. But little old Dolan -- tiny, frumpy, humble, and very British Dolan -- chooses to market this frameset for only $500.

  For five bills, you get:

  • a 7005 series aluminum frame
  • a house brand Alpina carbon fork with aluminum steerer
  • an Alpina seatpost
  • an Alpina headset

  FRAME
  The tubeset is double butted, and several of the tubes are heavily manipulated (more on that later), producing a very rigid and light frame. Like more manufacturers, though, Dolan must be using a metric system that I'm not familiar with, because these frames are in the 1800g range, not the 1600g generally advertised. Even so, the entire kit is very light for the price -- more more importantly, it provides a ride quality very much designed for cyclocross racing -- unlike many of the its soft, soggy competitors. I suppose this can be attributed to Dolan's history on the track, where stiffness trumps all.

  The bikes look sexy. Unlike the Dolan Precursa, which this frame can easily be mistaken for from a distance, the cross frame sports a coat of thick, gloss black powder coat. It's shiny and reflective and picks up fingerprints quite easily. It's a classy and expensive looking finish that you won't tire of after a season -- plus it's easy to customize with your own personal or team color scheme.
  

  SCRIMMAGE!
  I decided to take the Dolan out for the club's weekday cross practice and scrimmage race. On a moist but mostly grassy course, the bike felt fast and very nimble around the technical bits. The head tube in particular feels stiff enough to really dig into corners with some speed, with nary a shudder or shake. The top tube is a reverse teardrop shape, with the fat bits at the bottom -- so shouldering was a relatively painless affair. With SRAM Rival, it's easy enough to build a Dolan in the 18-20 pound range, making barriers and lifts a breeze.

  Although it had rained the night before, the soil on the course was hard and rutted. The stout frame was feeling a bit too stout for my lower back! About twenty minutes in to the race, I decided to drop the tire pressure a bit, and sure enough, the pain subsided. Since then, I've ridden the bike on the road @85PSI, and it really does have the stiffness of a road racing bike. The upside to this is that it makes for a very fast cross racer and would serve someone well who is looking to double up on the road and cross with a single frame. But on the downside, it will require a little bit of fiddling with tire pressure -- especially for lighter riders. I settled on 45/55PSI in the end.
  

  DETAILS
  The bike ships with a handful of Alpina-branded components. This is Dolan's house brand, and they appear to be off-the-shelf rebrands of Kalloy products. This is a good thing. The seatpost is 350mm forged alloy kit with a micro-adjust head tightened by a single 6mm bolt. It's light enough and good enough for general use. I wouldn't bother with any sort of upgrade short of a Thomson. The seatpost collar was a delightful surprise. It sports an integrated cable hanger, for a clean and lightweight rear brake setup. The headset is a VP rebrand integrated sort, and fit together cleanly without any gaps. Also included is a black front brake cable hanger.

  ---

  Size and Geometry

  Size A B C C1 RC E F H L M Q1 Q2 52cm 545 - - 520 430 1016 45 60 105 593 74 73 54cm 550 - - 540 430 1023 45 60 110 600 74 73 56cm 558 - - 560 430 1031 45 60 130 608 74 73 58cm 570 - - 580 430 1043 45 60 150 620 74 73 60cm 578 - - 600 430 1051 45 60 170 629 74 73

  A Top Tube Length Horizontal F Fork Rake B Top Tube Length Compact H BB Drop C Seat Tube Length (CBB to CTT) L Head Tube Length C1 Seat Tube Length (CBB to TST) M Centre BB to Front Skewer RC Chain Stay Length Q1 Seat Tube Angle E Wheel Base (C to C) Q2 Head Tube Angle

  Besides the lack of a smaller frame (or two), one statistic that stands out are the short head tubes. Especially when combined with low stack integrated headsets, most riders will require several cm of spacers in order to achieve a manageable handlebar height.

  The frame's 60mm bottom bracket drop puts it right in the middle among production cross frames: a bit lower than a Ridley Supercross, a bit higher than a Bianchi Concept, and about the same as a Blue CXC or Colnago World Cup. The 73/74 angles are noticeably steeper than these competitors, so some riders will need to adjust accordingly.

  CONCLUSIONS
  The Dolan Cyclocross bike is as good a high performance offering that you'll find under $2,000. At only $500 for a frameset, a complete build can run as low as $1,200 and nicely equipped at $1,700. It compares favorably with segment leaders such as the Redline Conquest Pro and Ridley Crossfire, but has many more build options than these bikes.

  The Dolan is not perfect. It lacks smaller sizes. It might be too stiff for some riders. It lacks top-tube cable routing (admittedly more a style concern than anything else).

  The truth is that the Dolan and its ilk are very very similar frames. Due to the brand's underdog status, the Dolan is a little underpriced. But best of all, the Dolan sports a sleek and subdued color scheme. It looks great. It rides great. And you should buy one!