COLNAGO C68 GRAVEL

This week, rather than featuring a client build, we’re diving into the technical details of the newly released Colnago C68 Gravel. After covering the launch of the bike, here we’ll dive deeper into the components and features that make this the ultimate Colnago gravel bike.

Embodying the perfect fusion of Colnago technology and timeless Italian craftsmanship, the C68 gravel is a powerful work of art, as at home on the White Roads of Tuscany as it is on the roughest and steepest of gravel roads. Continuing the legacy of Colnago's C series bikes, the C68 gravel embodies the enduring qualities that we’ve come to know and love from the Italian brand—excellence, beauty, and top-tier performance.

The C68 Gravel is crafted by hand, exclusively in Italy, by skilled and experienced craftsmen. You only have to look at the bike to witness this precise attention to detail, with its subtle colorway and black accessories. Instead of utilising a monocoque frame molded in one piece, the C68 boasts a modular frame where tubes and lugs are painstakingly sanded and hand-glued in the Italian factory. The end result is an incredibly clean and elegant frame, where every contact point is flush with the rest of the bike, thanks to the carbon fibre wrapping process.

The C68 is the epitome of Italian craftsmanship, which Colnago have in spades. The knowledge they’ve gained from years of experience in frame construction has been brought into the gravel segment, offering riders an unparalleled experience beyond the smooth roads ideal for their C series bikes.

This particular C68 is built up with a SRAM RED XPLR 1x groupset, perfect for the rough stuff. The 40t chainring is enough for steep climbing, and also gives an advantageous clearance for getting over bigger lumps. Zipp 303 Firecrest wheels, paired with Pirelli Cinturato H 40c tires complete the build, set up tubeless for extra puncture resistance. This is truly a bike built for gravel.

In the world of gravel cycling, precision is paramount. The geometry of the C68 road has been completely rethought for Colnago’s gravel offering, to achieve the perfect balance of compliance and performance, tailor-made for navigating both smooth gravel climbs and challenging, rocky descents. The C68 gravel is built with a shorter reach and a higher stack than its road equivalent, offering better off-road control while maintaining that overall aggressive, race-ready positioning many riders will know and love.

The C68 gravel bike from Colnago promises not just a ride but an adventure, through challenging and diverse landscapes, where every pedal stroke reflects the meticulous craftsmanship the Italian bike makers are famous for.