Those of you who have been following us for a while know firsthand that we are genuinely passionate about handmade and custom-built bicycles. Those museum pieces, unique and exclusive, that not everyone appreciates the craftsmanship behind each one.

Well, today we’re here to present another remarkable bicycle from Enrico Sarto and his renowned, historic brand, Sarto Bikes.

In November 2022, the Italian firm unveiled the Sarto Raso, a very promising new all-road bike. It was bold and offered an impressive balance between performance, comfort, and a multitude of options thanks to its ample tire clearance. Undoubtedly, this model has become one of their main highlights in recent years.

With the relentless rise of gravel cycling, months later, they introduced a version adapted for this discipline, which was also very well received and garnered excellent feedback from their most demanding customers.

Now, in 2025, the brand is taking the Raso model to the next level, introducing a bike with a tremendous competitive spirit, a truly efficient geometry, and extra versatility: the Sarto Raso Wide.

Natural Evolution

Gravel cycling discipline continues to grow relentlessly. What began discreetly and subtly as a way to escape the city and experience a small adventure on rural roads, now boasts countless options and variations within the same category. From the brands’ perspective, this presents an excellent opportunity to expand their catalogs, but it also poses a significant challenge: offering quality products that reliably fulfill their intended purpose.

Sarto Bikes has historically been a benchmark in the cycling world, particularly in the manufacture of carbon frames. After many years of producing for other brands and keeping all its experience and expertise behind the scenes, the company decided to take the plunge and create its own bicycles under the Sarto name.

The arrival of the new Sarto Raso Wide is simply the result of taking this model to its highest expression—the natural evolution of the Raso model in pursuit of maximum performance and versatility. The goal is clear: to offer a competitive gravel bike ready to tackle any situation, whether in the most demanding international competitions, long-distance races, or the most remote and extreme adventures.

In addition to all this, Sarto Bikes, as a craftsman and passionate frame builder, offers a full-custom option on all its models. This allows riders to adapt the geometry, stiffness, construction finishes, and color, as well as components, to make each bike a unique piece.

Raso Wide: Into the details

The first thing that catches your eye about the Wide is its tire clearance, designed to accommodate tires up to 48mm with a 2x drivetrain or up to 56mm with a 1x setup. Focusing on the latter, we’re talking about tire sizes more typical of mountain bikes than gravel bikes. Still, in many of today’s top competitions, it’s becoming increasingly common to see riders using them.

But beyond the extra width, this new version of the Raso is designed to translate the acceleration and speed of a road bike to gravel terrain.

The frame geometry has been engineered to guarantee high performance and stiffness, while also providing excellent handling and comfort. The rear triangle now measures 430mm, allows for cassettes up to 52 teeth, and is compatible with SRAM’s UDH derailleur hanger.

Looking at the front, we find a redesigned fork that is perfectly aligned with the rest of the frame. Both the fork and frame feature multiple mounting points, ensuring you have unlimited options for finding the perfect setup for a bikepacking trip.

Last but not least, the fully integrated cable-free cockpit and the aero seatpost add the finishing touches to this already excellent bike.

Thailand as a testing ground

Speechless. That’s probably the best way to describe our genuine reaction the day we unpacked the Raso Wide in our garage. After our initial conversations with the brand, expectations were high, and we were eager to see it, but once we finally had it in front of us, it far exceeded our expectations.

The bike already has a striking appearance, but in our case, it was even more so because it came equipped with Campagnolo’s latest products: the Super Record X groupset, a 1×13 drivetrain, and Campagnolo Bora X wheels. Add to that a 50mm rim profile and massive 2.2″ wide tires. Now tell us: isn’t it breathtaking, or are we exaggerating?

This bike test was a bit different this time as we took advantage of our trip to Thailand to actually test the two units in a real-world setting, under competitive conditions, and on entirely unfamiliar terrain. We were participating in the UCI Dustman Gravel Race and aimed to push the Sarto Raso Wide to its limits.

Initially, we weren’t sure if the wider tires would limit us in any way during the race. But once we saw the weather forecast leading up to and on race day, it became clear we couldn’t have chosen a better setup for such extreme conditions. Rain, humidity, mud in every form, and completely flooded tracks turned the course into a true test – something that could have been a nightmare for any cyclist who had traveled halfway around the world to participate in this event. Anyway, we were there to enjoy the challenge, and we couldn’t have chosen a better bike for the occasion.

We had the opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the bike in the days before the race, which allowed us to make minor adjustments and fine-tune tire pressures for our desired race pace. This is crucial if you want to find the perfect balance between speed and control in the technical sections. Furthermore, on such muddy terrain, the combination of large-volume tires and the correct pressure made riding through the Thai country roads relatively easy.

The day of the ultimate test had arrived. Up to that point, the bikes had performed flawlessly, and we hoped everything would continue as before. Riding it felt like being on a road bike: aerodynamic position, stiff, responsive, and light. Even during the first 15 kilometres of the race on a flat, tarmac section, riding in a fast-paced pack at around 50 km/h felt surprisingly easy, despite the wider tires, with the riding position making a noticeable difference. The flow we experienced on the bike throughout the entire test was incredible, and considering the conditions and the difficulty, everything worked perfectly. The bike’s performance, the groupset’s flawless responsiveness in any situation, including shifting when riding through knee-deep puddles. And the tire grip… Bravissimo!

On a day like that, beyond the results, simply crossing the finish line was a significant achievement. Those who made it to the end of the course looked as if they had just emerged from a true battle. And finishing unscathed, without crashes or mechanical failures, was an impressive feat in itself.

In our case, we finished the race, and both units arrived without incident, having fulfilled their duty admirably. Naturally, they needed a little TLC afterward, but they passed the test with flying colors.