The days of a fast bike being an unforgiving bike are at an end, courtesy of the Ruby Expert Ultegra Di2. Built around a principle that, actually, smoother is faster, the Ruby harnesses new tech and some of our trademark materials for a women's bike that will see you glide over the rough stuff at hitherto unimagined speeds.

The frame on this Ruby model is among the lightest we've ever produced, built with our super-stiff, top-shelf FACT 10r carbon fibre. For the geo, we took some important lessons from the 2018 Ruby's predecessor the SL4 preserving the much-loved fit, feel and position, while increasing the top-end speed and efficiency. Witchcraft Sorcery We just call it a dedication to building super-awesome bikes.

It'd be remiss of us not to mention the single feature that makes the biggest difference to the 2018 Ruby, so without further ado, let's talk Future Shock.

Created in partnership with McLaren Applied Technologies, Future Shock is essentially a spring or piston in the head tube, which adds 20mm of suspension to the front end of the bike ideal for taking some of the impact out when you're hitting lumps, bumps and maybe even the odd cobblestone. By focusing more on vertical compliance than fork splay, we believe we've created a bike that preserves its beautifully smooth handling, even when you're travelling the road less ridden. Of all the bikes we compared it to using our Rolling Efficiency Model, the Ruby was by far the best in class.

To do this bike justice, we needed to use some kickass componentry, including super-swish Shimano Ultegra Di2 electronic shifting, Roval SLX 24 Disc wheels with 8070 hydraulic brakes, plus a women's-specific finishing kit.

• Featuring our Rider-First Engineeredâ„¢ design that ensures every frame size has the same legendary responsiveness and smooth ride quality that you'd expect from a Ruby. The FACT 10r frameset is exceptional in every way, offering the ideal blend of light overall weight and targeted stiffness. Meanwhile, the all-new Future Shock "suspension" system at the cockpit delivers a revolutionary degree of comfort and control.
• The Ruby Disc fork is built from our extraordinary FACT carbon fiber for the lightest possible weight, supreme stiffness, strength, and reactivity, while a thru-axle design only stands to bolster all of the above.
• Comes equipped with a 25lbs spring installed (color: black, weight: medium), and also includes both 13lbs (color: blue, weight: soft) and 40lbs (color: yellow, weight: firm) springs that can be installed to match the terrain you're riding.