Mike's 2020 Giant Revolt is a do-it-all machine
In our latest bike check, we're taking a look at Mike's 2020 Giant Revolt 0. Only a few weeks old, Mike was one of the first to get his hands on one of these, and for good reason. The 2020 Revolt is a pretty refined beast, having taken lots of design elements from previous generations of bikes and combined them to produce a well thought-out gravel frame that handles nicely and has a solid spec for the money.
The Giant Revolt 0 comes with a sensible spec, but Mike has made some changes to make it his own.
Mike settled on the Revolt as he wanted one bike to do it all. He wants to be able to fit full-coverage fenders and commute on it, he wants to be able to take it gravel riding, and he wants to be able to swap the tires to something slick and skinny for road cycling in the summer. So far so good, it ticks all the boxes (though he hasn't tried the skinny tires yet).
Supacaz Super Sticky Kush bar tape is both comfortable and loud
Mike likes to make his bikes his own, and this time around he wanted to make his bike look as revolting as he could. Honestly, I'm not convinced it worked, because we all think it looks awesome! Let's start with the obvious things. Mike swapped out his bar tape for some Supacaz Super Sticky Kush blue/green fade - comfortable but loud! To somewhat match this theme, he went for some Supacaz Fly Cages in anodized orange and green. So far so good!
The Supacaz Fly Cages both match and clash. Either way, we like it
Next Mike changed the stock 105 derailleur out for a Shimano Ultegra RX derailleur. The clutch on the Ultegra RX derailleur will help with chain retention and reducing chain slap when he decides to take it off road.
The Shimano Ultegra RX derailleur combines crisp shifting with ultimate chain retention.
Mike went with Shimano XT Trail pedals because he likes to clip in, but the MTB style SPDs will work better for him than SPD SL right now as they're a little better suited to commuting - he uses them with Shimano's waterproof winter MW7 shoe. They will also work better off road as they're less prone to clogging with mud.
Shimano XT Trail SPD pedals are great for commuting and off-road duties.
Full-coverage fenders mean that Mike can stay dry while commuting - this his is all-year all-weather bike! Shimano 105 disc brakes come as stock and make a huge difference to braking in the wet. Mike also fitted some WTB Resolute tan-wall gravel tires as he was happy to trade off rolling resistance for a more all-weather gravel tire for safer handling in North Vancouver's miserable winter weather and the occasional off-road jaunt. Plus they look heaps cool.
Full-coverage fenders and knobby tires make this a winter commuter's dream.
The Revolt frame is compatible with Giant's Ridesense ANT+ speed and cadence sensor. Mike is using this paired with his Garmin to track his rides.
Giant's Ridesense speed and cadence sensor is super minimal and neat.
The Giant Ridesense syncs with any Garmin computer.
Mike did his best to make his new Revolt as ugly as he could. Unfortunately all he really managed to do was turn a great handling stock bike into something super cool looking and super functional. A Swiss army knife of bikes if you will. What a shame?...
Giant Revolt(ing), but is it really??...
