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Exclusive First Look: Orbea’s New Stealth Fighter Orca Race

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As Orbea’s flagship road bike, the Orca is getting a black friday makeover which involves a lot of black. Instead of the bright orange team colors found on the Euskaltel-Euskadi Team bike the latest paint job for the Orca Race is all black – both matte and gloss. Available in both frames and completes, the new color scheme brings a bit of new style to the term murdered out.

Black is the new black after the break.

ORCA MLTD KSYRYIUM (1)

Offered alongside the Euskaltel-Euskadi colorway, the black Orca Race features all of same improvements we saw in Park City. The new frame is stiffer, lighter, more aero, and more comfortable – what we’ve come to expect in new model roll outs.

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Frames start at $2,999 for the race with complete bikes starting at $4,399 for the M50 Race, up to $10,499 for the M-LTD Race.

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Framesets are currently being painted with availability expected for January.

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19 Comments
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Jack
Jack
10 years ago

Okay… pet peeve. There are a lot of all black bikes on the market. I would now like the words “lazily painted” or “cookie cutter” to replace the word Stealth. Word to builders… we get it… carbon is black. Only super obsessed weight freeks should want a boring unpainted frame. Stealth is now the by-word for unimaginative product design.

Wyatt
Wyatt
10 years ago

Did anyone else notice how the front brakes are set a bit too high?

James
James
10 years ago

No disc brakes?

greg
greg
10 years ago

@Wyatt
whoa. that’s a pretty glaring oversight for a photo shoot.
looking at all the pics with the front brake showing, some have the pads hitting the rim, some dont. the series of three has a good shot of the fork dropouts, with the front hub not fully installed. so there ya go.
on another note, this is an article about a bike being offered in a new color?

Frank
Frank
10 years ago

Next time they make some pictures they should at least mount the front wheel properly.

Rico
Rico
10 years ago

Nice looking frame, I could care less about the components in the pics. Orbea must have wanted to get some PR to let people know they had more options than just the orange team model at the top end. I think it will look good with some deep rims like the new 404s with black logos, zipp bars & stem, and full sram red 22 drivetrain with a quarq. That would be as slick as you could get with an Orbea.

Mike
Mike
10 years ago

Love the frame … they need to work with a new pro-team

gravity
gravity
10 years ago

@James – Why would anyone put disc brakes on a road racing frame?

Brandon
Brandon
10 years ago

@ Rico: I think you mean “couldn’t care less”.

Also, Red 22 surely would NOT be an upgrade.

Champs
Champs
10 years ago

Jack: that rant is old and boring. You might infer that someone buying a bike like this DOES care about weight, and 60-80 grams of non-functional—some even say ride-altering—paint isn’t trivial when frame/fork combos are pushing 1kg.

And at any rate, it’s offered in another colorway, and if you don’t like the options, the staff at your LBS will fall all over itself to connect you with a custom painter to make that five figure sale.

Oh, the things I would
Oh, the things I would
10 years ago

Disc brakes for the win!!!!!!!

pornitswhatlwouldratherbmaking
pornitswhatlwouldratherbmaking
10 years ago

Disc brakes for the win!!!!!!!!

Dave
Dave
10 years ago

@jack I honestly prefer the murdered out look. I have a road bike which you would probably call boringly painted matte finish over carbon. Turns heads everywhere, including my own quite regularly. Frame design has more to do with how the bike rides and performs anyway. A bike like this will not look as dated as a painted bike with decals/graphics which will show their age sooner. Always nice to meet riders intrigued asking ” what is that”?.. Rather than just see me flying by on some peloton “look at my logo” bike. Plus, keep in mind that every color kit will go with a black/carbon bike, so you can wear whatever you want without looking like a parrot on two wheels. Just my opinion tho 🙂

Jimmy
Jimmy
10 years ago

Stealth??? Run out of every other way to describe yet another bike I’m all black, have we. Genius.

Ilikeicedtea
Ilikeicedtea
10 years ago

@Champs

What geniuses claim that paint alters the ride of a frame?

Seems like laboratory experiments would be the only way to detect such a thing. Got a link?

CXisfun
CXisfun
10 years ago

@ Dave: “A bike like this will not look as dated as a painted bike with decals/graphics which will show their age sooner”

“Stealth”, “murdered out”, black on black bikes will see an end soon enough, and at that point everyone will be looking at your bike and saying “man, that’ so 2010, waaaaaaaay outdated”

If you want a paint scheme that won’t be outdated, do some panels or something, a paint scheme that’s been popular for the better half of a century. Don’t try to make it sound like your black on black paint scheme won’t be outdated because it’s been oh-so-popular for the last 24 months.

CXisfun
CXisfun
10 years ago

@ Ilikeicedtea: Champs probably read that on Slowtwitch or something.

Rico
Rico
10 years ago

@Brandon the brand knowledge guy – I just think it would fit better with the rest of their ad campaign to stick with the sram/zipp setup in the photos like they used on the other new frame. This combo overall looks… thin and shallow.

I’,m also glad there are no discs or thru axles, which are both overkill marketing gimmicks.

CCRIDER
10 years ago

When will someone make a frame from the Carbotanium the Pagani Huayra is made from. Carbon fiber with a Titanium weave for strength !!!! Bugatti Veyron Carbon is not bad either !!

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