OPEN U.P. WI.DE. Force/Eagle AXS Gravel Bike [Rider Review]

Our "Rider Review" article series features the honest reviews from verified purchasers of Worldwide Cyclery. They contain the photos, thoughts, feedback & overall review you are looking for.

OPEN makes some of the sleekest gravel and all road bikes in the world, and are also some of the most popular gravel bikes that we sell. Their combination of comfort and speed make them a great choice for the multi surface adventurer. Our friend Jason recently picked one up and loves the versatility. Read on for more!

Overview

Work has me located in Northern Kentucky for the next 2+ years and being an avid cyclist, I took my current gravel/all road bike and one of my mountain bikes along with me so to get some weekday evening riding in. With my gravel bike in KY, I had a need for another gravel bike to ride while home on the weekends.

After convincing my loving wife that I needed another bike (she is actually very supportive of my addiction, lucky me! 😊), I contacted my friend and riding buddy the “Gravel King” Matt McCluskey at Worldwide Cyclery for some suggestions on what gravel bike to get. Matt let me know that they just ordered an Evil Chamois Hagar for the shop, luckily in my size and that they were waiting for it to come in and build it and that they had an OPEN WI.DE that I could test as well.

While waiting for the Chamois Hagar to come in, I decided to give the Trek Checkpoint a shot. I have a Trek Madone as a road bike and I really like the rear IsoSpeed on it and figured this tech would work well on a gravel bike and it did. The Checkpoint is a great bike, no doubt. It climbed & descended well. Nothing bad to say about it, it just didn't feel like the right bike for me.

A few weeks later Matt hit me up and let me know that the Chamois Hagar was in and ready to rip. So, we decided to meet up and hit up some gravel roads at Michaux State forest in south central PA, the past venue for Iron Cross gravel race. I started out riding the Evil, and Matt on the OPEN. Being a mountain biker, I felt very comfortable on the Chamois Hagar. It was a blast on the downhills, not quite as good of a climber as the others but could have just been the tires. If you're looking for a bike that can handle some rowdy gravel & single track this bike is the ticket. At this point, I thought this was the gravel bike for me.

Last up, the OPEN WI.DE. As soon as I took the first pedal stroke, there was something special about it. The fit was spot on and it felt very comfortable. On the descents it is composed, compliant and confidence inspiring. It’s very efficient at climbing. All power put into it goes to propelling the bike forward even with the compliance it has while descending.

I don’t know what kind of science or magic they put into this frame, but OPEN nailed it!

I decided to go with the build offered by OPEN instead of a full custom build as it has 95% of the components I wanted, SRAM AXS mullet drivetrain, carbon bars, etc., and because it saved me a bunch of cash to spend on accessories & additional wheelsets.

The AXS mullet drivetrain fits this bike perfectly. It offers tons of range for both on road & off. My only gripe is about the gaps in the gearing. Sometimes I’d like to have something in-between the gears but it’s a small price to pay for the versatility and simplicity offered by a 1x set-up with this kind of range.

Final Thoughts

I really like the versatility this frame offers. It has tire clearance for up to 2.4″ in 27.5” and 46C in 700C, 5 attachment points for bottles and tool containers and ample space for a frame bag with 2 bottles in the triangle (I ordered a custom bag, just hasn’t come in yet). I’ve hit some short sections of trail with it, but haven’t gone on a trail only ride yet, (weather hasn’t been cooperating) but I’m looking forward to hitting dirt with some 2.4” MTB tires on it. It truly is an all-road bike with off road capability, this is my new favorite bike! Thanks again Matt McCluskey and Worldwide Cyclery for the guidance in getting the right gravel bike for me and the exceptional customer service. You Rock!