Fast, Fun, Freedom
The U.P. started the fast gravel category by combining road bike speed with go-anywhere tires & geometry.
Photography: @marcgaschphotography
With its dropped chainstay for more tire clearance and dual wheel size compatibility, the U.P.(P.E.R.) became the de facto standard for performance gravel bikes.
What's U.P.?
| 1 | Fitted with 700c road tires, it is a very fast road bike |
| 2 | With gravel tires (32-40mm), it’s a go-anywhere bike perfect for mixed surface rides and most gravel routes |
| 3 | 650b mountain bike tires make it unstoppable on very tough terrain yet much faster on pavement than you’d expect thanks to the road position. |
The road position lets you get out of town quickly (unlike a mountain bike). Space for big tires gives you grip on tougher terrain (unlike a road bike).
Get one set of all-round tires or dedicated wheelsets for fast & tough terrain.
Available in 2 versions.
U.P. and U.P.P.E.R. differ only in weight (180g less for the U.P.P.E.R.) and color (many options vs just matte black)*.
Both also come in RTP (Ready-To-Paint) so you can have it custom-painted.
| * | There is no difference between the U.P. and U.P.P.E.R.
in terms of geometry, durability, stiffness, tire clearance or capabilities. |
Tire Clearance.
U.P. can fly like a road bike with a 700x28c tire or play like a dropbar mountain bike with a chunky 27.5x2.1".
Fitting all these tire sizes is one thing, but the beauty of the U.P. is that it rides well in all these configurations (as customers, media and award judges confirm time and again).
So whether you ride it with road or mountain bike tires, on pavement or off-road, you always experience agile, responsive and confident handling.
Dropped Chainstay.
Probably the most copied feature of the original U.P. (we're quite proud :-)
Chainring(s), frame and tire all fight for space just behind the bottom bracket. The dropped chainstay gets around the chainring and away from the tire, thus increasing tire clearance.
The result? Space for big (mountain bike) tires without needing wide cranks. So you can run road cranks with a low Q-factor (pedal stance) for the best pedaling efficiency
Our carbon layup.
So many marketing claims about carbon.
But the truth is quite simple.
Every bike company has access to the same carbon. Compared to industries like aviation, carbon volume for bikes is too small for custom or exclusive. So all those different names for proprietary carbon are just that, names.
What matters: high-modulus carbon is stiff but brittle, low-modulus carbon is more flexible but tougher. You need stiff and tough, so the best layup is a blend and the ratio depends on what is most important in each area of the frame.
In some areas (main tubes for example), the blend has more high modulus (and even ultra-high modulus) carbon. Other areas (headtube for example) use more of the tough carbon. That’s how our frames are both light and durable.
U–Turn.
The U-Turn has tire clearance in abundance. It’s also very light, thanks to another OPEN innovation: Smartmount.
Standard, the bike industry uses four bolts plus an adaptor to attach the brake caliper to the fork. This allows for flipping between 140mm and 160mm rotors.
However, SRAM and Shimano both always recommend 160mm for the front, so we remove the adaptor and two bolts to attach the caliper directly onto the fork for that rotor size.
This makes the setup lighter, stiffer, safer. (Check our Specifications for the correct bolt lengths for each setup.)
This design also cleans up the U-Turn fork legs and allows us to make a very light structure with very tunable stiffness and strength.
Design is in the details.
Reviews & Awards
“Ultimately, Open has created what the gravel category should aspire to: exceptional comfort and unparalleled versatility.”
– Velonews
“With a frame design unlike any other that maximizes its versatility for both on- and off-road use, Gerard Vroomen engineered the best gravel bike to date.”
– Road Bike Action Magazine
“An incredible bike. Despite the mountain bike tires, you feel like you’re riding a road bike. Innovative frame concept, smart details, light. With this versatility, the U.P. will likely offer an important push to the development of all gravel bikes.”
– Tour magazin
“What is truly amazing is the attention Open paid to making it work exceptionally well in every configuration. The U.P. doesn’t just accept different [wheel/tire] standards - each feels native. Their stated motto is ‘Working hard to stay small’. The quality and versatility of the Open U.P. might make that very difficult.”
– Peloton Magazine
“I’ve ridden other gravel bikes before and have often felt they compromise too much in the search for versatility – being sometimes sluggish on tarmac yet not quite capable of handling more technical trails. The UP is very different. Open has seemingly sprung light years ahead, fully realising the potential of modern tyre, wheel and frame technology. This is truly a rare and exceptional bike, and one that has literally broken new ground.”
– Cyclist Magazine UK
“The bike rocketed around town and to the trailhead much more aggressively than a mountain bike. Once on the gravel, the bike flowed into its comfort zone. With less aggressive geometry than a true cyclocross bike, it churned through the miles in comfort and inspired 'one more detour before we go home' type riding.”
– GearJunkie
“The Open U.P. will change where you ride. A long-term review of this gravel/’cross/road bike proves that it really is as versatile as it promises. It feels natural on pavement and somehow still takes to the dirt like it was designed for it—a blend I’ve yet to experience with other bikes.”
– Bicycling Magazine
The New U.P. stays ahead of the competition: “There are no question marks about this bike’s ability to have fun - that’s a guarantee whether you’re entry-level or elite. Its handling, weight and design are phenomenal, lending this bike the skills to roam on tarmac, gravel or singletrack with aplomb.”
– Gran Fondo Cycling Magazine
Frame Specifications.
Weight Frame-only Size L, w/o metal parts ±3%
Weight Frame-only Size L, w/o metal parts ±3%
1040g
For the U.P. Model
880g
For the U.P.P.E.R. Model
Weight Fork-only ±3%
Weight Fork-only ±3%
390g
For the U.P. Model
370g
For the U.P.P.E.R. Model
Sizes
Sizes
S/M/L/XL
Stock colors
Stock colors
Various, Paint ready
For the U.P. Model
Matte black, Paint ready
For the U.P.P.E.R Model
RTP (Ready-to-paint)
RTP (Ready-to-paint)
A clearcoat is not needed for UV protection but recommended to protect against scratches and wear. Some customers leave the frame bare.
BB standard
BB standard
BB386EVO pressfit 86.5x46mm BB shell
Recommended groupsets
Recommended groupsets
Any Shimano GRX
Any SRAM AXS
Any SRAM 1x
Campagnolo Ekar
For serious gravel and off-road (on any brand of bike), we recommend a rear derailleur with a clutch or cage damper
Front derailleur mount
Front derailleur mount
Bolt-on, removable
Front thru-axle
Front thru-axle
100x12mm superlight Carbon-Ti X-12
Front disc rotor size
Front disc rotor size
160mm only
Front brake caliper mount
Front brake caliper mount
Smartmount 160 system attaches flatmount caliper, without adaptor, for 160mm rotors
Rear thru-axle
Rear thru-axle
142x12mm superlight Carbon-Ti X-12
Rear disc rotor size
Rear disc rotor size
160mm only
Rear brake caliper mount
Rear brake caliper mount
Smartmount 160 system attaches flatmount caliper, without adaptor, for 160mm rotors
MultiStop internal system
MultiStop internal system
Di2, eTap, EPS, 1x mechanical (all groups)
Headset
Headset
Integrated IS42/28.6 | IS52/40 with 45x45 degree lower bearing)
For example Cane Creek BAA1131 (upper) + Cane Creek BAA1161 (lower), Chris King DropSet 2 or Token Omega A83
Seatpost
Seatpost
27.2mm diameter, standard set-up zero-offset
Cage mounts
Cage mounts
Seattube, downtube, under downtube
TT bag mount system
TT bag mount system
100mm front-post-to-headset-edge
Travel Bag Recommendation
Travel Bag Recommendation
Scicon AeroComfort Road 3.0.
Scicon has an easy WILL YOUR BIKE FIT tool. Use your current bike setup for dimensions A, B & D and use the wheelbase in our geometry chart for dimension C.
Installation information
Installation information
Assembly Guidelines (torque specs, BB installation, brake caliper specs)↗
Shift cable installation↗
Brake hose installation↗
Seattube collar installation↗
Max. weight (total rider+luggage)
Max. weight (total rider+luggage)
120kg / 264 lbs
EN/ISO/internal test standard
Included with frameset
Included with frameset
Headset
Seattube collar
Thru-axles
2 RD hangers
Cover bolts for FD mount posts1 FD mount
4 MultiStops (2x, 1x, Di2, eTap (only included with U.P.P.E.R.))
Cable exit stop
BB guide
Cable liners
Noise-reduction foam sleeves
Bottle cage bolts
Manual
Geometry.
U.P. & U.P.P.E.R.
PDF
🗎
- Estimates; for accuracy use stack/reach of your current gravel/road bike or a fit session.
- Standover to the top of the toptube directly above the BB (varies with tire size).
- Normalized dimensions to compare to frames with standard (non-zero-offset) seattubes.
- Normalized dimensions to compare to frames with standard (non-zero-offset) seattubes.
| S | M | L | XL | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rider Height 1 | 157-170 | 168-180 | 178-191 | 188-201 |
| Stack | 522 | 551 | 580 | 604 |
| Standover 2 | 743 | 767 | 791 | 815 |
| Reach | 365 | 376 | 387 | 401 |
| Headtube Angle | 69.5° | 71° | 72.5° | 72.5° |
| headtube length | 105 | 130 | 155 | 180 |
| Fork Offset | 50 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
| Seattube Length | 500 | 540 | 560 | 580 |
| Seattube Angle | 72.5° | 72.5° | 72.5° | 72.5° |
| Seattube Angle (Norm.) 3 | 74.0° | 73.5° | 73.5° | 73.5° |
| Toptube Length | 528 | 549 | 570 | 591 |
| Toptube Length (Norm.) 4 | 514 | 540 | 560 | 581 |
| BB Drop | 70 | 70 | 70 | 70 |
| Front Center | 592 | 598 | 604 | 622 |
| Rear Center | 420 | 420 | 420 | 420 |
| Wheelbase | 1002 | 1008 | 1014 | 1032 |
Community
The OPEN community has many unique riders with unique bikes. Photos and specs are below*.
| * | When you register for warranty, you can add your bike to the gallery below. |
