Cycles Victoire, the French builders from near Clermont-Ferrand, produced a special bike for Rapha's pop-up store in Paris last autumn.

Cycles Victoire, the French bespoke builders from near Clermont-Ferrand, and winners of the 2016 Concours de Machines, will be displaying a top-end road bike at the Roc D'Azur mountain bike race and expo in Fréjus, France October 6-9.

The Victoire Veloce was built last autumn for the Rapha pop-up store that came to Paris. The bicycle is a top level, high performance offering from the French builders that strikes an ideal balance between light weight, comfort and performance.

Normal diameter (non-oversized) tubes of Reynolds 953 stainless steel still provide plenty of stiffness. All photos: Cycles Victoire

Reynolds 953 stainless steel tubing is sourced for the frame. The high stiffness of 953 tubing allowed the builders to use smaller diameter tubes than what might be normally used from other tubing manufacturers. The result is a lively frame with the comfort and classic feel of steel that weighs just 1.6 kg (3.5 lbs).

Ultra-light THM Clavicula SE carbon crankset with 52/36 chainrings.

Rounding out the components for the full build are a multi-national mix of Campagnolo Super Record 11-speed mechanical shift drivetrain and rim brakes, an ultra-light THM Clavicula SE carbon crankset with 52/36 gearing, light weight stem, seat post and saddle from German manufacturer Tune, and American companies Chris King and Zipp provide the headset and handlebars, respectively.

Stem from German manufacturer Tune is minimalist, but light and strong.

The result is a lightweight thoroughbred with comfort and classic looks that weighs just 6.3 kg (13.9 lbs) for the full build with Speedplay pedals. Matthieu Perrusset of Cycles Victoire told us that the Victoire Veloce has been chosen by Michelin to display their new road tire model, the Power, at the Michelin booth at the Roc d'Azur expo.

An American Chris King headset rounds out the top-of-the-line component specs for the Victoire Veloce.

Full Specifications

Frame: Reynolds 953 stainless steel tubing

Fork: Columbus Grammy

Headset: Chris King

Stem: Tune

Handlebar: Zipp

Seatpost: Tune

Saddle: Tune

Levers: Campagnolo Super Record

Brake calipers: Campagnolo Super Record

Crankset: THM Clavicula SE

Front Derailleur: Campagnolo Super Record

Rear Derailleur: Campagnolo Super Record

Front Wheel: Tune Skyline tubular

Rear Wheel: Tune Skyline tubular

Front Tire: FMB Competition 22

Rear Tire: FMB Competition 22

Color: Special paint

Weight: 6.3 kg with Speedplay pedals