ENVE has introduced the Fray – which is billed as a versatile performance road bike. With the introduction of the Fray, ENVE rounds out its drop-bar road bicycle line-up, which includes the customizable Custom Road, the road race specific Melee, and the gravel race/offroad optimized MOG.
With these bike offerings, ENVE is continuing its evolution from aftermarket wheel and component specialist to a full-service bicycle brand.
“At its core, the Fray is a performance road bike, with incredible versatility that lends itself to forays onto mixed surfaces,” said Jake Pantone, VP of Product and Brand.
“In the absence of the Fray, there were those looking for an ‘all-road’ solution from ENVE amongst our Melee and MOG offering. ENVE products are purpose-built, and the Fray embodies this ethos.
“As we’ve presented the Fray to our sales channels, the question of ‘who is the Fray for?’ often comes up. I answer by stating that at ENVE, the Fray is the bike we take home with us on the weekends and when we travel to ride. Outside of pure gravel events or road races, the Fray is always the ‘right’ bike.”
Fitting into the all-road category, the Fray blends elements of the Melee’s performance race features such as aerodynamics, lightweight, and power transfer efficiency, along with some of the MOG’s design details.
Able to take around 31 to 35 mm tyres, with max clearance up to 40 mm, progressive endurance geometry, and an ENVE Cargo Bay for in-frame downtube storage, the Fray offers road race performance to those seeking a wider range of surfaces and terrain.
In terms of aerodynamics, the Fray features an all-new fork design and tube shapes borrowed from ENVE’s aerodynamically optimized Melee. As is standard for all ENVE frame models, the Fray’s hoses and wires are hidden via ENVE’s IN-Route System.
The Fray is made from a mixture of medium, high, and super-high modulus uni-directional carbon fibres following ENVE’s Material Optimized Design (M.O.D.) process.
Jake Pantone added, “Material optimized design means designing and manufacturing products that play to the strengths of carbon fibre. The materials, fibre weights, and fibre angles used in the laminate are selected and manipulated to achieve zone specific performance within the part.
“Carbon is the key ingredient, and we use the best we can get our hands on, but ultimately the process it is subjected to is what makes it an ENVE product.”
He continued, “Our goal with every one of our bikes is to help a customer achieve that seamless feel from the first pedal stroke. Our calculator aims to simplify the fitment process for the fitter and customer alike.
“The calculator functions simply by pairing a rider’s fit stack, fit reach, and saddle position numbers with a frame geometry, stem length, stem rise, spacer stack, and saddle offset. The output provides the rider with several frame and component configuration options that the rider, along with their fitter, can analyze to determine the rider’s ‘best-fit’ option.”
