REGROUP CUSTOM
TYPE
Gravel
FRAME
Sarto Raso Gravel
FORK
Sarto
GROUPSET
SRAM Force E1 XPLR 1x
WHEELS
Zipp 303 XPLR S
COCKPIT
Sarto
TIRES
Zipp XPLR, 40mm
BAR TAPE
Regroup
When Sarto revealed the Raso Gravel in late 2024, we couldn’t wait to put it through the Regroup Custom process. Not only did it represent a new chapter for the Venetian brand, but with Sarto-sponsored pro-gravel rider Skyler Taylor helping to guide its development, we knew it would meet the terrain with a hyper-modern spec sheet, one tuned to win at the world’s toughest gravel races (which it subsequently has). Soon after the Raso Gravel’s launch, a customer from California wine country came to us similarly excited about Sarto’s latest model, and we got the chance to help him create his dream gravel bike and one of the first Raso Gravel rigs to ride in North America.
There’s a lot to explore here, so let’s start by diving into this Raso Gravel’s deep blue finish, which has a good story behind it. On the surface, it’s a semi-transparent blue ink paint scheme, but beneath, within the fibers of the tubes themselves, is a treatment that Sarto calls ‘Black Marble’. It’s a finish and not a finish: an additional layer of unidirectional carbon fiber that Sarto applies to the molds and manipulates by hand, artfully crinkling it. When the tubes come out of Sarto’s autoclave (a huge pressure cooker that turns prepared fibers into formed tubes, for want of better words), the additional layer resolves to a marble-like finish, revealed to the wider world through the blue ink paint applied over the top.
Sarto forms all of its tubes in-house, by hand. But the additional ‘Black Marble’ layer is applied in a different way – less science, more sensation. Transparent ink is applied over the top because regular paint would obscure the Black Marble treatment. To put a bow on it, because the Black Marble layer is hand-crinkled, it’s different each time, ensuring no one frame will ever match another. Neat.
That wraps up the finish. Let’s talk about Raso Gravel’s race creds. In short, it’s fast, objectively so in the hands of Skyler Taylor, who shredded the pack to top the sheets on two out of five of the stages at 2025’s Oregon Gravel Earth Series, chasing the top step with second, third and fifth places when he wasn’t first to the flag to snag second position overall.
Sarto is a bespoke builder, able to align a geo to your measurements, riding profile, goals, weight, fitness and more. However, a fully custom geometry is not always necessary. Once in a while, we get lucky and someone’s fit lines up perfectly with an established geometry, which Sarto is very happy to accommodate. That was very much the case here, with the client deciding to press ahead with a stock 60cm size frameset. Opting for a standardized size also reduces the outlay for the frame, as a Sarto custom geo is an optional add-on.
When we received the frameset, which comes with a beautiful Sarto one-piece stem and handlebar, fork, and seatpost (all made in-house, of course), the next step was to define the build. We started with a Regroup favorite, the SRAM Force E1 XPLR 1x groupset running a 10-46 cassette to open up a good range of terrain. As an aside, if you haven’t experienced the simplicity of 1x, we recommend you take a look. We have a feeling that in a few seasons, 2x might be in the minority, such is the gear spread and capability of modern 1x rear cassettes.
With SRAM at the drivetrain, we called up Zipp’s excellent 303 XPLR S wheels, shod with 40mm XPLR tires by Goodyear, exclusively for Zipp. Finishing touchpoints include a Form Throne GT Saddle and Regroup bar tape.
The rest of the story is in the rider’s hands. We know it’s going to be a good one.
FEATURED PRODUCT
Experience daring speed and sublime comfort with the Raso Gravel, an all-Italian, all-terrain bike, built for finishing first or the joy of finding your way.
