SRAM

Red eTap Aero Shift Kit

SRAM's groundbreaking wireless eTap system burst on the scene with so much fanfare that getting your hands on a Red eTap Aero Shift Kit during its first few months on the market felt something akin to discovering a shiny unicorn lounging among the organic kale so carefully cultivated in your backyard garden. With customizable shift locations and precise gear changes, this kit will turn your finicky time trial rig into a clinically efficient, course-conquering machine.

Wireless communication protocol means freedom from wind-catching and aesthetically unpleasant shift cabling, with SRAM's proprietary system ensuring your eTap stays secure and unimpeded by nearby electronics. In the case of the Aero Shift Kit, traditional shifters are replaced by SRAM's new eTap Blips and connected BlipBox, letting you place the tiny Blips wherever you like for easy-to-access shifting in your preferred riding position.

Rechargeable battery pods power the front and rear derailleurs, which are conveniently interchangeable. If you push the 60-hour battery life a bit too far and run out of rear derailleur juice out on the road, a quick swap between the front and rear will have you back up and running with full access to the cassette range for the ride home. The BlipBox runs on a standard CR2032 coin type battery with a claimed lifetime of two years, and each component features LED lights to quickly relay battery life and eliminate any complicated spreadsheet tracking that may be needed otherwise.

SRAM claims eTap has been extensively tested in a wide range of riding conditions, both in the real world and the lab to ensure reliability. Given the cold-weather tolerance issues of its first generation hydraulic road brakes, we're particularly glad to note that SRAM confirms eTap has undergone testing in its in-house climate chamber, proving the system's reliability in temperatures ranging from -20 to 120 degrees Fahrenheit.

The SRAM Red eTap Aero Shift Kit comes complete with four eTap Blips with 650mm wires, an eTap BlipBox, an eTap front derailleur, and an eTap short cage rear derailleur compatible with a maximum cassette cog of 28t. The kit also includes an eTap Powerpack for derailleur battery charging and an eTap USB firmware Airea update stick. The kit is compatible with SRAM Red 22, Force 22, and Rival 22 cranksets and 11-speed cassettes up to 11-28t, though SRAM also designed a Red 22 crankset specifically to complement eTap's aesthetics. The special crank is functionally identical to the standard Red model, just styled to match the electronic drivetrain.