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The titanium J.Laverack Aston Martin .1R redefines bicycle craftsmanship.
Words: Tim Griffiths
F using vehicular engineering advancements onto two wheels Aston Martin and British cycling specialists J.Laverack, have united to create an innovative road bicycle exceeding anything seen before – the ‘world’s most bespoke, advanced and meticulously engineered road bicycle’. A bold claim.
Getting from point A to point B as swiftly and as efficiently as possible has always been key to sportspeople, the general public and engineers. Humankind has always been predisposed to break barriers, to cross frontiers, in search of the ‘next thing’. This intrepid sense of adventure takes us, as a species, from the relative security of the cave, across mountain ranges and plains, on horseback, bicycle, car and rocket, to the moon and, soon, possibly beyond.
It is only by stepping on one of these evolutionary stones that we can reach the next. And so it is that, from the invention of the bicycle do we get to the car. The origins of two-wheeled transportation are somewhat murky but are generally accepted to be shortly after Napoleon was driven back from Moscow in the early nineteenth century.
Robert Bamford, founder of Aston Martin in 1913, was born in 1883, just two and a half years before the first patent for an automobile was granted in Germany and, throughout his life, he was a keen cyclist.
This interest may have been fostered during his childhood in Sherborne where he lived across the road from Edwin Childs’ Cycle Works but it reached its apogee when Bamford moved to Hayes in west London. Here he joined the Bath Road Club, one of the oldest and most venerable cycling clubs in the world.
It was at the cycling club that Bamford met Lionel Martin. Their love of cycling drew them together and the two formed Bamford and Martin Ltd (Aston Martin’s original name) with the intention of producing a car ‘for the discerning owner driver, with fast touring in mind’ – an ethos that still rings true to this day.
From the very first Aston Martin car – the ‘Coal Scuttle’ with a revised Coventry Simplex engine – to the 1,160bhp Valkyrie with its naturally aspirated V12 6.5-litre engine over a century later, the company stayed true to its fundamental maxim of ‘we race the cars we sell’.
The origins of two-wheeled transportation are somewhat murky but are generally accepted to be shortly after Napoleon was driven back from Moscow
So it seems apposite given Bamford and Martin’s love of cycling, Aston Martin’s history of partnerships and the lifeblood of the founders’ company being that of racers that we now see a new tie-up between this storied automobile marque and bicycle manufacturer J.Laverack, which brings us the J.Laverack Aston Martin .1R.
It may come as a surprise to Aston Martin aficionados, but the J.Laverack partnership isn’t the first bicycle project that the company has been involved in. Around a decade ago Bamford and Martin’s cycling pedigree previously brought the world the Factor Aston Martin One-77 road bike which was designed to be a companion piece to the car of the same name.
Then, from German manufacturer Storck, in 2017, there was the super-lightweight Fascenario 3 Aston Martin which was limited to a production run of just 107. This bike utilised nano particles in the resin structure of the carbon fibre to increase flexibility.
J.Laverack Bicycles is a young Rutland-based company set up by friends Oli Laverack and Dave Clow. The company is named after the former’s grandfather, Jack, one of those teak-tough Yorkshiremen at the turn of the last century who epitomised the sense of ‘no hill too high’ and ‘no road too rough’ in all aspects of life.
Jack it was who, on the rickety, bone-shuddering, two-wheeled transportation of the day, would think nothing of indulging his passion for cycling and set off, armed with a flask of tea and a jam sandwich, to ride 100 miles in a day to the coast and back. Just imagine that ... it must have been mighty strong tea.
The company is named after the former’s grandfather, Jack, one of those teak-tough Yorkshiremen at the turn of the last century
Modern cycling and hypercar production share many design, engineering and composite similarities and it’s easy to see the synergy between the industries. Oli Laverack recognises this: “Working with the team at Aston Martin has unlocked new ideas and innovations, the application of which has created a bicycle more advanced than anything currently available on the market,” he says, with no sign of puffery. “We have not only taken our titanium bicycles to new heights but have also unlocked true innovation withing the cycling industry, creating a bicycle with unparalleled levels of craftsmanship and performance engineering.”
The artisanal skills and engineering excellence of the two teams have resulted in a boltless design for the .1R. Bicycle owners would normally expect to find fixings at the stem or seat post but the integrated four-piston brake callipers are clean-sheet design and there is not a single exposed cable or hose visible on the entire bicycle. It’s not all just for show either – those four pistons in the integrated brakes give greater progression and feel through the levers.
By applying innovations from outside the normal bicycling world, everywhere you look on the .1R there are new solutions. Developed in collaboration with the most innovative designers from the high-performance world, the .1R not only adopts design mastery from Aston Martin’s supercar and hypercar programmes but also benefits from the pinnacle of road bicycle engineering.
“The J.Laverack Aston Martin .1R is essentially a titanium hypercar on two wheels,” says Marek Reichman, executive vice-president and chief creative officer at Aston Martin. “The simple clever genius is how we’ve fused the engineering advancements through the bike with a purity of performance design to deliver a viscerally exhilarating riding experience. The result is a distinctive form, born through tradition and technology and handcrafted using only the most advanced materials, befitting the pedigrees and forward-thinking natures of our two iconic British companies.”
Beyond the stomach-churningly impressive engineering lies the personalisation. At the upper end of any luxury marketplace this is becoming a more normal expectation for buyers. With the .1R the extent that a purchaser can go to in order to redefine the meaning of the word ‘unique’ is extraordinary.
On purchase of a .1R the owner will be invited to Gaydon for a full fitting with Laverack and Clow. Customers would be well advised to block a meaningful period of the diary for this purpose as there is limitless opportunity to customise colour palettes and trim choices from those available for Aston Martin’s cars, providing an opportunity to pair car and bike should they wish to. The bike has even been integrated into the car manufacturer’s online configurator allowing the buyer to specify the colours of the tubes, lugs, stem, seat post and handlebar drops as well as the saddle itself and even the handlebar tape.
By applying innovations from outside the normal bicycling world, everywhere you look on the .1R there are new solutions
The Sphyr handlebar stem – named after the hammerhead shark (Sphyrna) – is 3D-printed from titanium based on the owner’s measurements. Reach and width can be specified with absolute precision while crank lengths, generally only available in increments of 2.5mm, can be specified down to 1mm thanks to bespoke 3D-printed tips on the crank arms. It all goes to allow for all manner of body shapes to exult in both the ownership and the use of the .1R.
The two most important parts of any bicycle are the tyres and the seat. The comfort of the latter and the utility / performance of the former are what will keep someone riding for longer.
The saddle on the .1R, finished with a single rivet, is a bespoke commissioned Brooks C13 masterpiece finished in either leather or Alcantara as per the owner's choice.
Meanwhile the tyres, mounted on AERA 55m-deep carbon tubeless rims, are Continental GP5000S TR in stealth black with a 30m width. Jack Laverack would have ridden for far longer, far faster, with less need of his jam sandwich, if the .1R had been his steed.
There are, as might be expected, a range of accessories for the owner of a .1R. From the practical to the slightly esoteric, these include an aluminium or carbon fibre case for travel or display of the bike, a matching track pump with Alcantara or leather-covered handles and a handcrafted wooden case for storing bespoke tools.
The three cycling titans of yesteryear would have adored the .1R. Bamford and Martin would certainly have raced the bike they sold while Jack Laverack, riding his coastal loops around the time of the first Tour de France, would likely have gone further afield than just Whitby, Scarborough or Bridlington.
To find out more go to Aston Martin or J.Laverack.