Editor's Note: This review first published in the October 2016 print edition of Bicycling.
Wonderfully unscripted. That’s what I like about a ride on a __bike as capable as the Gan GR-S. It plays to pointing the wheels in any direction you please, confident that you’ll be able to conquer whatever pops up.
The Gan GR-S spans multiple genres. It has similar tube shaping as the Dogma K8-S used by Team Sky in the European Spring Classics, and the same elastomer bumper in the seatstays and Pinarello’s Flexstays chainstays that combine to deliver a centimeter of travel that can be tuned to rider preference and weight. It also has aero shaping, down to the Kamm tail on the Pinarello house-brand Tiger stem, and the signature comfortable Onda fork with curved blades, which have so long existed in the canon of Pinarello we could easily forget how radical they looked when they were introduced.
But the Gan GR-S also has a helping of adventurous capability. The geometry is dialed for off-road riding, with slacker head and seat angles than the K8-S. With clearance for 38mm tires (even though our tester was outfitted with Vittoria Adventure 32mm rubber), and fittings for racks and fenders, it’s poised for light bikepacking, gravel racing, and alternative-road wandering.
It’s also one of the best-riding Pinarellos I’ve ever been on. This Gan feels as if it were designed and built with more allegiance to compliance and rider comfort than to pursuing the ultimate in stiffness and lightness. Sculpted to hug the road and wail over less-than-stellar terrain, and built with a full complement of Shimano Ultegra components (including hydraulic disc brakes) and wheels held by 12mm thru-axles, the Gan GR-S is a thoroughly modern gravelraceradventuretouringlightbikepacking son of a gun. But it’s one with WorldTour-ready heritage in its DNA, and a huge helping of Italian flair.
- Gravel-tuned geometry
- 12mm axles front and rear
- Clearance for tires up to 35mm wide
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