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Hands On: Road or Tri, You Pick Two with the Ceepo Mamba

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Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (2)

Unless you’re deep in the world of triathlon, Ceepo might not be a brand on your radar. Originating from Aichi, Japan in 2003, Ceepo was started by Nobuyuki Joe Tanaka who lists the brand as being named after Ceepho who was an ancient Samurai warrior. The Samurai angle seems apropos given the number of sharp angles and blade like tube shapes found on a number of Ceepo’s bikes.

Ceepo’s genesis was similar to many current bike brands with Joe being unsatisfied with the triathlon bikes available to him in the 1990’s. After creating his first aluminum model in ’93, Joe went on to race it in a long course tri and noticed a whopping 90 minute improvement over his other bikes. Eventually aluminum gave way to carbon and Joe introduced Ceepo international in 2007. While the brand focuses mainly on triathlon, bikes like the Mamba, Stinger, and Mamushi mountain bike are expanding their boundaries.

The Ceepo Mamba may be labeled as triathlon specific geometry, but the frame also works great as a road bike which could make it the perfect bike to get into tris….

Ceepo Mamba tri road aero frame carbon 836

Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (1) Ceepo Mamba tri road aero frame carbon 842

Starting from the frame up, the Mamba features a full carbon high modulus frame and fork. Making use of truncated airfoil tube profiles the frame has been tuned in the wind tunnel to be as aerodynamic as possible while trying to keep the weight low and stiffness high. Part of that aero design includes fully internal cable routing which is a love/hate situation.

On the plus side, the use use of the orange liner system means that from the cable entry point at the front of the frame to where the cable exits to the derailleur, the cable is completely shielded from the elements, Gatorade, and other, um, triathlon fluids. On the negative side, the fact that without the liner in place the cable would probably be hopelessly lost in the frame never to pop out of the tiny holes in the bottom bracket surely won’t make many mechanics jump with joy.

Once set up, the system works well but you will have to be mindful of the liner system and the proprietary cable housing stops when replacing cables in the future.

Ceepo Mamba tri road aero frame carbon 838 Ceepo Mamba tri road aero frame carbon 844

Ceepo Mamba tri road aero frame carbon 839

On bikes like the Ceepo where dual purpose is intended, the seat post is critical to the design. The “triathlon specific geometry” really only comes into play when the seat post is installed in the forward facing position. When the post is set to the rear, the bike assumes a classic road geometry that borders on the slack which means excellent stability at speed. Listed as a 75 degree STA with a zero set back post, the frame is capable of running 72-77 degrees in the road set up, and 77-82 degrees in tri set up. More details on the geometry can be found here.

The seatpost itself uses a single bolt design with serrated teeth where it interfaces with the carbon. That means it will not slip like some other single bolt posts have in the past, but it also doesn’t offer infinite adjustment. We’ve found the increments to be small enough that it was easy to get comfortable. While the standard clamp is not compatible with oval carbon saddle rails, a different set of jaws are available to use with the taller rails.

Due to the aero seatpost design the frame uses an integrated wedge system to hold it in place. This is another area Ceepo got right as the wedge grips tightly, doesn’t damage the post, and is easily adjusted.

Ceepo Mamba tri road aero frame carbon 846 Ceepo Mamba tri road aero frame carbon 845

Ceepo Mamba tri road aero frame carbon 847

For an aero road/tri frame, the Mamba is decently light with our small test bike weighing in at 1060g, the fork at 500g uncut, and the seatpost at 264g. Complete with the build below and pedals the bike comes in just over 15 lbs.

Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (7)

Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (8) Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (6)

It may be odd to see the frame’s vitals as part of the graphics package, but to a fitter it’s a dream come true. Numbers like the reach, stack, seat tube angle and even serial number are boldly displayed on the frame along with key targets like the BB center. If a bike is going to have graphics all over it, they might as well be useful, right?

Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (11) Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (13)

Other frame details include multiple positions for the front bottle cage and a PF30 bottom bracket.

Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (4)

Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (10) Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (9)

Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (16) Ceepo Mamba aero road tri frame bike (5)

We built up the Ceepo Mamba with a SRAM Red 22 drivetrain, Zipp 30 alloy wheels, a Deda Elementi Superleggera 35 bar and stem combo, and capped it off with a matching Velo Miles Saddle. In case anyone is wondering, the Bontrager Supertack blue tape is almost a perfect match for the blue highlights on the black frame.

2015 Mamba

Not digging the black, blue, and red? The 2015 Mamba will be offered in gloss white with black and red accents. Other than the paint change, the Mamba remains the same for 2015.

Available just before Christmas, 2015 Frameset pricing starts at $1775 from Stage-race Distribution for the frame, fork, headset, and seat post. You can pick up the current 2014 frameset from Ceepo dealers or from the Stage-Race webstore for $1529 and $50 shipping. Stage-race will also be offering a complete Shimano 105 build at $2,975 which will ship early 2015 and is available for pre-order now.

On the Road:

Right off the bat, the Mamba feels fast. The fit of the bike is confidence inspiring thanks to the predictable handling and stability at speed. Our testing has been limited to the road position of the frame, but the beauty of the Mamba is the ability to flip the seat post, add a set of clip on aerobars and have a dialed triathlon bike before you know it.

Honestly, the Mamba’s ride highlights the frame’s intentions as a versatile tri-racer. The frame isn’t the most responsive to sudden inputs like sprinting for the town limit sign, but in a straight line the bike has a fantastic ride. You can tell the Mamba is really designed for the long bike legs of a triathlon, but in a way that you could use it as your daily road bike for training without much compromise. The Mamba is light, fast, and offers excellent handling at speed which combined with the road/tri versatility make it an excellent choice for the aspiring triathlete.

ceepo.com

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anonymous
anonymous
9 years ago

So how do you pronounce Ceepho is Japanese?

Terry
Terry
9 years ago

90 minute speed improvement? really? seems incredible.

mudrock
mudrock
9 years ago

That must be a typo. 90 sec is more like it. Love the lines of that frame. the black-and-blue is gorgeous.

mudrock
mudrock
9 years ago

anon – as the Japanese do not use the Roman alphabet, and all Japanese proper nouns are translated phonetically, it must be pronounced just as it’s spelled.

aaron
aaron
9 years ago

90 f’in minutes!!

anonymous
anonymous
9 years ago

@mudrock

The Japanese do use the Roman alphabet quite frequently. The system is extremely standardized, with specific ways of transliterating Japanese phonetic sounds.

Which is exactly my point, it doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t even make sense with Hepburn Anglicization.

There is no “CE” or “PH(O)” in Japanese. The only standard use of “C” is Japanese is for the “CH” sound. There is not standard use for “PH” in Japanese. “C” has no place in a phonetic alphabet which includes “S” and “K” not does “PH” have a place in a phonetic alphabet with “F”

“SEE” would be “SHI” (or SI, which is a non-standard sound in Japanese, used for transliteration of foreign words)
“KEE” as in “keep” would “KI”
“KEH” would be “KE”
“SEH” would be “SE”
“CE” doesn’t make sense in Japanese.

“P’HOE” would be “PUHO”
“FOE” would be “FO” (which is a non-standard sound in Japanese, used for transliteration of foreign words)
“FUH” like the noodle dish would be “FA” (which is a non-standard sound in Japanese, used for transliteration of foreign words)

ifbikes
ifbikes
9 years ago

What the hell is that white stuff on the ground? Get it out of here!

anonymous
anonymous
9 years ago

@Ilikeicedtea
No, I just want to know how CEEPHO is pronounced and what it actually means. Not some sort of marketing joke about samurai.

wheelz
wheelz
9 years ago

One of the most beautiful looking road bikes I’ve seen in a while. Perfect lines and paint job.

John Blake
John Blake
9 years ago

We sell steel Fuji’s that are better!

Kevin
9 years ago

Its not a bad looking bike, but it does appear to be a bit… chunky.

His Highness Lord Wrinkletits
His Highness Lord Wrinkletits
9 years ago

Proprietary cable stops? Whuuuuuuut??

Rico
Rico
9 years ago

lol, I think it’s pronounced “cheapo” “cheep-ohh”.

Andy
9 years ago

@anoymous and Mudrock

from Ceepo website
“Named after one of the greatest ancient Samurai warriors, CEEPHO, Nobuyuki (Joe) Tanaka started CEEPO in Aichi, Japan in 2003.”

anonymous
anonymous
9 years ago

Yes, that was quoting in the article.

It makes absolutely no sense if you have a basic grasp on the linguistics of Japanese, unless CEEPHO is a nickname for a not so humble Joe Tanaka.

Kim Anh Tu Hoang
Kim Anh Tu Hoang
7 years ago

Hi, could you guide me how to remove the seatpost out of the frame?

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