Posted on October 4, 2022 by Cory Benson
The carbon Steven Camino gravel bike is the latest evolution of mixed-surface, fast off-road capability from the German bikemaker steeped in cyclocross. Taking the quick, but stable riding experience refined on their alloy gravel bikes to the next level, these new Caminos are a lot lighter and more comfortable, with modern gravel tire clearance & plenty of bikepacking adventure-ready mounts…
We really know Stevens best for their multiple CX World Cup & World Championship winning Super Prestige carbon cyclocross bikes. But over the last couple of years, Stevens has reshaped what had been their entry-level aluminum cross bikes – the cross race-named Prestige, Gavere & Tabor – into dedicated gravel bikes. Those revamped alloy gravel bikes got longer wheelbases & lower bottom brackets for improved stability, plus bigger tire clearances & more cage mounts for more off-road adventure versatility.
Now the new Stevens Camino takes those gravel tweaks and upgrades them for modern gravel racing with a much lighter full-carbon frameset, improved compliance, and fully internal cable routing.
Geometry for the new carbon gravel race bike is still quick with a 71.5° head tube & 73° seattube for the middle of six frame sizes (48-61cm), but paired to longer 440mm chainstays for all-day rideability, too. Stevens also lowers Stack heights relative to their alloy gravel bikes – back 1/2 way to CX territory – for a more aggressive & more aero position. The lower bar height to the ground comes thanks in part to the shorter axle-to-crown height of the carbon fork, but also the lower BB height than the bike’s CX ancestors.
Stevens says the new carbon Camino & Camino Pro share the same SL hi-mod carbon fiber of their pro-level cyclocross bike, now adding a full-carbon tapered steerer fork too with anything cage mounts.
Like those latest carbon CX bikes, the Caminos also shift to a fully-integrated, full internal cable routing setup through the 1.5″ FSA ACR headset, but still with a separate bar for cockpit adjustability.
Tire clearance maxes out at 700c x 45mm, although the race-focused builds all stick with 40mm gravel tires.
The flat mount disc brake Camino is 1x or 2x compatible with a removable front derailleur hanger or chainguide (and can route mechanical or electronic shift controls internally), gets a PressFit BB86 bottom bracket, a 27.2mm round seatpost, and 12mm thru-axles. The frame & fork both include mounts for full-coverage fenders, plus a rear rack, toptube bag, and a cage under the downtube.
Officially unveiled earlier this year, the two complete Camino bike builds are available from your local shop now. Pick the Vogue Silver 3100€ Stevens Camino Pro with a Shimano GRX 1x 11-speed group with alloy DT Swiss G1800 wheels and even Aerothan tubes in the tubeless-ready setup – at a claimed 8.5kg.
Or chose the same carbon frameset in dark Cold Magma Red on the even more affordable 2600€ Stevens Camino with a mixed GRX 2×11 build and alloy Fulcrum Rapid Red 900 wheels – at 9.3kg.
Cory Benson is the EU Tech Editor of Bikerumor.com.
Cory has been writing about mountain bikes, enduro, cyclocross, all-road, gravel bikes & bikepacking for over 25 years, even before the industry gave some these names. Prior to Bikerumor, Cory was a practicing Architect specializing in environmental sustainability, has designed bike shops & bike components and worked as a bike shop mechanic.
Based in the Czech Republic for 15+ years, he is a technical mountain biker, adventurous gravel rider, short & medium-haul bikepacker. Cory travels extensively across Europe riding bikes, meeting with key European product developers, industry experts & tastemakers for an in-depth review of what’s new, and what’s coming next.
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It’s a good-looking bike. I love the lack of the dramatically dropped drive-side chainstay which has become so common these days.
Is anyone importing them into the USA currently?
And BR continues the incorrect new model year trend. Hint: it’s almost 2023…
Not sure how they think 440mm chainstays is “modern gravel race”? That’s closer to bike packing than the current crop of race bikes, and longer than most modern XC bikes even.
Why would a gravel race bike need 425mm stays? You’re not holding wheels in a bunch in the way you would on road so the shortest possible wheelbase isn’t a priority. This bike has a longer front centre and you’ll be in a better position to corner hard and catch any minor slides with the longer stay balancing that. Really, 25mm on the wheelbase isn’t what limits your cornering off-road, it’s the weighting of the wheels and the feedback from the front end geometry. A long front centre and short stay combo forces a different (more MTB-like) cornering style that, while no problem for most riders, isn’t as natural while pedalling and maintaining speed in the way a fast gravel rider/racer would. There’s so much more to every bike than one number and bike category geometry homogenization isn’t a good thing. I like what Stevens have done here.
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