Scattante is Italian for “sleek.” The Americano III by Scattante–sold exclusively at performancebike.com–meets and exceeds all the sleekness you could want in a bike.

You’ve probably noticed all the bright, flashy-colored tires on bikes these days. If not, you can at least rest-assured that the Americano 4 fits the latest stylish trends (photo of the model we received from performance bike above, with more pix below).

People love to travel in style, but looking past the cosmetics of the bike, it’s a light-weight, sturdy, high-speed bike that moves through the city or down trails with ease. In fact, it’s the lightest bike I’ve ever owned. No, it’s not a fixie–it’s a single-speed–but it’s as light or lighter than any fixie I’ve had ridden.

I’m not impressed by Jay-Z’s song “December 4th” on The Black Album where Jay’s mom says he learned how to ride a two-wheel bike at four (DJ Danger Mouse remix of the track below). That’s because I learned to ride a two-wheel bike at three. Sure, I killed the nerve of one of my front teeth by falling face-first into a bush in the process. Baby tooth in exchange for the fun of riding a bike around? Worth it!

Cruising around the streets and along the beach coastline is as mellow or intense as you want it to be with the Americano 4. I’ve had the misfortune of riding some junk bikes around LA within the past year–beach cruisers and just broke-down old bikes–and this Scattante is like riding a luxury bike compared to them. Probably safer too. It brakes really nicely and allows for shorter stopping distances.

Things you shouldn’t take for granted with your bike if possible: stability and smoothness of the ride, handling, weight, and braking. Want all that stuff nicely tuned in one package? Get an Americano bike. At the end of the day, it has all the performance of bikes that are in the $1-$2k range, with a much more reasonable price tag. Plus, its a pretty stylish bike from the jump–unlike lots of other stock bikes. After all, they did put a bird on it.

The Scattante Americano 3 is available nationwide at all Performance Bike retail Locations.