British designer Paul Smith has teamed up with Factor Bikes to add his bold, colorful designs to a new limited edition OSTRO VAM. The complete bike, along with a bar/stem combo and bar tape from Black Inc, is available today worldwide.
This isn’t the first time that the celebrated British designer has worked with cycling brands. Not only does he have his own line of cycling clothing, but Smith has worked with the likes of Rapha and Kask to create unique, colorful designs.
“Paul Smith’s passion for cycling and racing heritage is no surprise, but working so closely alongside him and his team on this limited edition design has illustrated how deeply into the detail and DNA of performance that this passion runs,” explains Rob Gitelis, CEO, Factor Bikes. “It was particularly fitting that the special edition bike had its racing debut at Le Tour de France Prudential Singapore Criterium, followed by Le Tour de France Saitama Criterium in Japan this coming weekend – ridden by one of the greatest racing cyclists of this era, seven-time Grand Tour winner and Factor investor, Chris Froome.”
The limited edition OSTRO VAM takes Factor’s latest aero road bike, and gives is it a unique color block pattern and Smith signature logo. The colors are inspired by bike Smith has and currently owns. Blues, greens, yellow, and his signature pink. All of it is coated with a mix of high gloss and matte lacquer finishes to add another level of detail, while also highlighting the raw carbon areas.
“I used to be a cyclist as a young man, and I’ve stayed close to the whole world of cycling,” says Smith. “Factor is a company whose technological approach to their bike making has been really impressive, and so it’s with great pleasure that I’ve customized one of their new bikes. I hope you like it.”
There is more to the color blocks than just the visual design. They represent the layup that Factor uses to create the frame, similar to how fabric is cut and combined in clothing. bike that is fast and light enough to race across the UCI professional calendar, yet smooth enough for the Spring Classics. All of this made the OSTRO VAM the bike of choice for the Israel-Premier Tech and Parkhotel Valkenburg pro teams for the 2023 season.
Upon closer inspection, you’ll find additional details throughout. Smith adds his signature on a large scale across the frame and fork, but also in gold foil on the Black Inc bar/stem combo. Down the back of the seat post and along the top of the stem, Smith added a a signature color block stripe down the back. To round out the build, Black Inc created a bar tape and end caps that feature embossed Paul Smith logos.
The OSTRO VAM Paul Smith edition is available today as a frameset with Black Inc bars and seat post, frameset with Black Inc bars, seat post, andwheelset, or as a complete bike in sizes 49, 52, 54, 56, 58 and 61. Full builds are available with Shimano Ultegra and Dura-Ace Di2 and SRAM Force and Red builds, along with a range of Black Inc. wheelsets with Goodyear Eagle F1R tires. A Selle Italia SLR saddle rounds out the build. The Paul Smith Edition Black Inc integrated bar/stem and bar tape are are also available separately.
Pricing starts at $6,049 for the frameset module, $8,049 for the module with wheels, and $9,149 for the Ultega build. The SRAM Red with power meter build tops out at $11,449.
To order yours, head to Factor’s website, or your local Factor dealer.
Based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Scott joined Bike World News as the Cyclocross Editor in 2012 before taking over as Tech Editor in 2016. He has also worked as a photographer for various pro teams and shoot races along the east coast of the US, including the 2012 US MTB National Championships, 2013 UCI Cyclocross World Championships, and 2016 UCI Road World Championships. Scott has a passion for performance and technology, with 35 years of riding and mechanic experience. He also enjoys soccer, running, teaching group fitness classes, and is the founder of Lancaster Beard Company.
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