Bike Review: Liv Langma Advanced Pro 0

I have over the past month been riding the Liv Langma Advanced Pro 0 which is a new model for 2018. The Langma is a bike that has been added into the range as an all-round bike, the name coming from the Tibetan name for Mount Everest; ‘Qomolangma’. I have trained, raced, climbed and completed a 300km endurance ride on this bike and so I’m pretty confident that I have put it to the test pretty well in all areas. I’m 5ft8 in height and have been riding the medium frame in blue.

Main features

Ultegra DI2

Tubleless wheel set

Lightweight

Carbon composite frame with aerodynamically designed tubing

Handling…

One of the first things I noticed about this bike is how well it handles, it corners quickly and really smoothly. At first this made me cautious and took some getting used to just because it carries all of the speed into the corner, on descents it picks up speed really quickly too. Once I got used to this it was great. When riding it feels like every tiny inch of power I put in, is translated on the road which feels amazing when sprinting or climbing. I put it down to the frame and components feeling stiff as a whole bike, but also down to the body position and responsiveness of the bike. Its super lightweight too, which again helps with how responsive it feels.

Wheels

I hadn’t actually realised until I received the bike that the wheels were tubeless and I realised I didn’t really know that much about tubeless wheels, but I was up for giving them a try. For anyone who doesn’t know, this means the tyres have no inner tube in, but have sealant inside and the idea is that should you puncture this will self-seal. I think it’s a really good idea, it seems to work and its great you can avoid the possibility of needing an inner tube. Tubeless tyres, or not will again be a personal preference depending on the rider. I haven’t had any punctures or issues, even on Leicestershire’s finest pot hole road surfaces. The only thing I did find is that when travelling with my bike and deflating the tyres, there was dripping of sealant which could potentially be messy and I’m not sure really how this could be avoided. I now also carry disposable gloves should I puncture. However if tubeless isn’t for you or it’s a concern, you can always add an inner tube and ride that way instead.

The bike came with the Giant SLR-1 Wheel Set with Giant Gavia AC tubeless tyres. The wheels feel super light and responsive, in keeping with the rest of the bike. The only thing I have upgraded on this is the tyres for something that rolls slightly smoother and hopefully faster.

Brakes

As a rider I’m still on the side of rim brakes over disc brakes, this is a personal preference and there are going to be pros and cons for both. I’m used to riding rim brakes on the road, for me they work and I’m happy with that, I also personally think that a disc brake can slightly spoil the aesthetic of a bike wheel. I’m not totally against them and I ride disc brakes on my cross bikes, off road this works well but I’m still not convinced on translating this into my riding on the road. The Langma is with either disc or rim brakes, the bike with discs retails slightly higher.

Stem and Seat

The stem on the Langma is something that stands out too, it’s a Contact SLR Flux stem which looks quite chunky but is also lightweight and aerodynamic, it looks fast! It then also has spacers which match the D-shape profile of much of the tubing and stack neatly below. Then, with new bikes I often accept that I might need to change the seat to be comfortable, but the seat on this bike I was happy with from the start. I tested it on a 2-3 hour ride and then the next ride I did on this bike was the 300km Vatternrudan and I was as comfortable as I could have been for a ride of that length! Let’s face it, no one finished feeling fresh and amazing after a ten hour ride! Comfort wise, I have felt it to be exceptional and on frequent 3-4 hour weekend rides I have been really comfortable throughout on my bike.

Ultegra DI2

My other bikes have mechanical gears and I feel I have been well and truly spoilt with Ultegra DI2. Its equipped me with a race level set up and gives super quick and smooth shifting. I love that when I drop into the little ring from the big ring on climbs that it then adjusts at the back so that you aren’t left spinning out, it means you can easily keep momentum and speed. That and it looks nice and sleek too!

Frame & Finishing

The frame and tube geometry is really nice on this bike; clean, stylish but not over worked. It’s been developed to be aerodynamic and of course also lightweight. It also has a lovely finish and detailed paintwork. At a distance it’s a blue bike, up close its beautifully detailed and shimmery with pearlised details.

 

Liv Giant

As many readers will know Liv are a women’s cycling brand attached to Giant, their brand is based around providing women’s specific geometry and kit. As a female rider I don’t object to riding a ‘men’s bike’, a bike is a bike after all and as long as it fits, I’m happy.  The Langma frame has of course been built around a women’s specific geometry, either way it works perfectly for me.  As a brand I really love what Liv have done with their bikes and kit. I also enjoy following what new products they are releasing and feel that they are one of the leaders in the market in providing a great women’s range of both bikes and kit. Its all marketed well and appeals well to a range of female riders, its gained in popularity too with Liv for many being a go to brand. This is now the second Liv bike I have owned, previously riding the Avail and both have been really great purchases.

I love my Langma ♥

Overall, I have particularly enjoyed the experience of being able to ride a bike from the latest 2018 range. I also love seeing this bike ridden in the women’s pro peloton too by the Giant Sunweb team, if its good enough for Coryn Rivera and Lucina Brand, then its good enough for me! I have received so many compliments, especially when out in Sweden to ride the Vatternrudan and being surrounded by many people from the cycling industry across Europe. It’s a bike that stands out but it rides as nicely as it looks.

I would say for the price this bike comes as a complete package offering an all-round bike for a female rider and for women looking for a bike for all round riding that performs well.

Lucy Sturgess | Love Velo CC

Rutland Cycling | #teamrutland