A year and a half with the Fairlight Secan: An in depth review

In March of 2022, I got in touch with Dom from Fairlight, and he hooked me up with a Secan 2.5 to use as a long-term test bike. My initial review after about six months was the first five-star rating I gave to a bike. Interestingly, the only other bike I have given that score to was the Fairlight Strael, the brand’s road offering. 

What follows is a much more in-depth look at the Secan. I’ve had it for over 18 months at this point, and it’s been used as a test bed for a great variety of different products. It also came out as the ‘best for bikepacking’ in our Cyclingnews Awards, and well and truly sits as one of the best gravel bikes on the market. Within this constant churn of setups, there have been a few distinct flavours, and of these, there is one setup where I think the bike shines the best. Any bike I have for a long time undergoes a metamorphosis, culminating in what I think of as the bike’s natural, final form. For some bikes it’s easy; my Bowman Palace just needed some better wheels, classic drop bars, and Thomson finishing kit to become the most noodly, uncomfortable old-school crit bike I could think of. Here though, with a platform that is quite so versatile, it takes a little longer.

The good news for anyone considering purchasing one is that my overall score for the bike remains unchanged, and has gone up a hair. I still maintain that it’s a five-star machine, and taken in the round it’s still the best gravel bike I’ve tested. If you’ve already bought one, perhaps having read my initial review, then this may serve to help you get the most out of yours.

Design and aesthetics