The iPhone of ebikes from Greg LeMond’s new company
For bike nerds in the US, the question of “Who’s the best bike racer in history?” comes down to two men: Greg LeMond and Lance Armstrong.
Distill the question way down and it’s practically a question of good versus evil. On one side, a genuinely nice guy who was both humble and charismatic. On the other, a hero who overcame cancer and won seven Tours de France while inspiring millions along the way before turning into a villain who did everything within his power to ruin the lives of those who questioned his successes.
Armstrong was successful in helping bury LeMond, a fervent voice against doping in the sport. The cycling world turned its back on the star from the ’80s. That included Trek Bicycle, which had been building LeMond-branded bikes that recorded $20 million in annual sales.
All of that is why many bike nerds were excited to hear about LeMond’s return to bike manufacturing. We won’t mince words:
The LeMond Prolog is the most beautiful ebike in history.
One of two ebikes currently available from LeMond Bicycles, the Prolog fares well next to the Italian sexiness of most Pinarellos, the transcendental craftsmanship of Vanilla Bicycles, droolworthy curves of the Merlin Newsboy, and updated awesome of the OG mountain bikes known as “klunkers” from Black Sheep and others.
“The Prolog is an all-around gravel bike. It’s my ultimate all-around commuter bike,” LeMond recently told Cycle Volta.
To LeMond, his ultimate commute includes roads, gravel, and trails. And he wanted the bike to look good, so he worked closely with his industrial designer for about two months. To state the obvious, the work shows.
The Prolog has a timeless look, something both classic and inspiring. Think the fun functionality of a Vespa Primavera and the so-sexy-you-could-die-for-it Ducati Monster, and split the difference. The ebike lands somewhere that’s more classy Euro than straight-up Italiano, which sometimes starts sniffing around the land of gaudy.
All right, you might be asking: So this guy is a hero to you and you’re insanely, almost perversely, in love with his bike—but how does it ride?
The Prolog cuts a beautiful visual profile.LeMond Bicycles
On the LeMond Bicycles website, the Prolog is described as an “everyday carbon fiber ebike.” “Clean” is the single-word description. Clean lines. A great aesthetic. And the magic of not looking like an ebike, aka the implicit understanding of lowering your beauty expectations. Most ebikes look like they were cold-forged with the ugly stick.
The Prolog is a collaboration of two Tennessee-based LeMond companies: LeMond Carbon and LeMond Bicycles. The former was founded in 2016 to bring proprietary technologies developed at the US Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Deakin University’s Carbon Nexus to consumer products. This carbon was created for military and aerospace applications.
My late-model sample prototype was the base model powered by a Mahle M1 250W rear hub motor that provides assist up to 20 mph, has 40Nm of maximum torque, and is controlled by a single button.
You read that right. No display on the handlebar. Just a single button centered on the toptube. And that makes the cockpit impossibly clean and sophisticated.
The frame and fork are carbon monocoque. So is the chunky-fun integrated handlebar and stem, as well as the seatpost. The battery is built by Panasonic and it’s integrated into the downtube. Pro: You don’t have to worry about battery theft or an ugly lock. Con: If you have an issue with your battery down the road, it’s going to require dropping the bike off at a shop.
The drivetrain is a Shimano GRX 1-by-11 gravel setup. Braking duties are handled by Shimano as well: a hydraulic system that includes 160-millimeter XT rotors.
Customers can upgrade the base Prolog’s alloy hoops to a LeMond carbon wheelset.LeMond Bicycles
Token provides the base-model alloy wheels (LeMond carbon wheel upgrade also available), while the 38c rubber is a collaboration with Panaracer and a tweak on the tire company’s well-loved GravelKing Slick Plus+.
The integrated 500-lumen headlight always stays on.LeMond Bicycles
Included lights? Yes. Even more so: They’re integrated and great.
I typically dislike included lights because they’re often mediocre and include ugly cables. But both lights here are built by LeMond and the cables are internally routed, The headlight is a dual-mode LED that produces 500 lumens and is always on. The rear lights—one blinky on each side of the rear wheel—offer 180-degree visibility and produce 70 lumens each.
On pavement, we wished the Prolog had a higher assist limit.LeMond Bicycles
We snagged the Prolog from LeMond’s creative director at a meetup spot at LA’s Golden Saddle Cyclery that’s a water bottle’s throw from Sunset Boulevard. It’s one of the best bike shops in Southern California and attracts hardcore cyclists from all over the city and a fair amount of hipster types who stroll in from the local neighborhood: Silver Lake. Even the coolest kids were curious about the Prolog. The bike looks as good in person as it does on the screen.
After getting the lowdown on the bike as well as a walk-through of the assist system, I was off.
First up: the Mahle M1 system. The no-display system is like nothing I’ve used. To change levels of assist, you hit the single button on the toptube. There are three assist levels. The bike lets you know which level you’re in via the illuminated ring that surrounds the button, before switching to the color indicating your remaining charge.
Call me lazy, but I missed having a display. It’s a personal preference: I like having all info in one place, and keeping my hands on the bars when changing modes.
Color-matched carbon fenders (normally a $185 upcharge) currently are free with the Prolog.LeMond Bicycles
That said, if I owned the Prolog I would either make peace with this or hunt down a phone mount to use the phone app as a control system.
At 26 pounds, the bike is about a six-pack heavier than my non-electric aluminum road race bike: a 2020 Cannondale Caad13 105.
The Prolog is comfortable, and others have praised the bike for that. I won’t go too deeply into that because my test unit was a size medium, which is small for me at 6-foot-2.
Equipped with a Shimano GRX 1-by-11 gravel-specific drivetrain, the Prolog shines off road as well as on.LeMond Bicycles
I had the most fun on this bike in the dirt. It’s a very capable gravel machine. And with the max assist at 20 mph, it’s exciting on mixed textures.
On the road, I wanted more speed—Class 3 speed. Because 28 mph feels worlds different than 20 mph. That’s something only a minority of the potential market might want, however.
The Prolog is a great all-around ebike, whether you’re getting groceries, going for a mellow pedal, or getting after it in the gravel. It’s a bike with versatility as well as an adequate amount of power.
It’s impossible to be on the fence about the Prolog. For the right person, it’s love at first sight. Your heart will tell you that you need a Prolog before your mind has a chance to catch up.
The beauty of the LeMond Prolog is that it’s the other half of a delicious, long-term love affair that can’t get you in trouble with your spouse.
The Prolog starts at $4,500 and can go up to $8,170 with available upgrades.LeMond Bicycles
Like an Apple product, there’s a premium price on this elegant piece of design. The Prolog starts at $4,500. Upgrades are also available: Shimano Di2 electronic shifting ($800); LeMond carbon wheelset ($1,800); carbon front basket ($185) and rear rack ($185); and a range-extender battery ($700). Normally a $185 upgrade, carbon fenders matched to the frame color are currently free with the Prolog.
LeMond offers a Di2 electronic shifting upgrade for $800.LeMond Bicycles
