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2008 Pro Team bikes
This year's models
By the Cyclingnews technical team
Welcome to Cyclingnews' 2008 pro bike section; a look at what the professionals will be riding this season. During the 2008 year, we'll bring you a selection of images and specifications of the latest and hottest bikes.
Ben Jacques-Maynes' Bissell Pro Cycling Team Pinarello Montello FM1
With seven NRC wins and a third place finish in the Tour of California prologue in 2007, seven-year professional Ben Jacques-Maynes is one of the best known racers on the US domestic road circuit and carries on into the 2008 season with the Bissell Pro Cycling Team. The team's title sponsor is perhaps equally well known for its line of vacuum cleaners, but it also boasts a strong history of pro cycling sponsorship as well. As part of the "company's commitment to healthy living both inside and outside the home," Bissell was previously a supporter of the now defunct Discovery Channel team. In addition, Bissell President and CEO Mark Bissell is even a member of the Board of Directors at the USA Cycling Development Foundation. In light of the seemingly tenuous nature of corporate sponsorship these days, the Bissell team enjoys a increasingly rare sense of stability. "In ink, we have the next three years," said Team Manager Mark Olson. "But the reality is Mark [Bissell] is very committed. He's very passionate about the sport and he's put a lot into the sport, not just in our program but throughout US cycling. As long as we're doing a good job and we're delivering a high quality program I think he'll be there as long as we want to do this. So we're very stable financially, and the same with Bob Hughes of Advantage Benefits. He's been there the whole time and is committed for the long term." To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjå's Multivan-Merida Merida Ninety-Six
When all is said and done, Norway's Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjå may just go down as the most dominant female mountain biker in history. With the exception of two poor seasons attributed to severe overtraining, the 34 year-old has been a constant and overshadowing presence at the sport's uppermost level almost immediately since turning professional in 1996 with two World Cup wins and a fourth-place finish at the Olympic games in Atlanta. Since 2002, she has also earned seven sets of UCI world championship stripes (four in cross-country, three in marathon) and has won the European title six times (five cross-country, one marathon). In spite of the success, though, the Norwegian remains surprisingly unassuming, is eminently approachable and personable, and has managed to retain her love of the sport. Many have wondered about the secret to that nearly unrelenting mass of success, but Dahle Flesjå insists that there is no such secret; just focused determination, a meticulous attention to detail, and lots of good old fashioned elbow grease on behalf of herself and her husband and trainer, Kenneth Flesjå To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Pat McCarty's Slipstream/Chipotle presented by H3O Felt F1
The 2008 Slipstream/Chipotle powered by H3O team has quickly become one of cycling's next great hopes in the struggle to pull the sport out of its doldrums. Its star-studded roster, which now includes Magnus Backstedt, Tom Danielson, David Millar, and David Zabriskie, naturally bodes well for race results but it's the team's aggressive anti-doping stance (in both words and actions) and overall atmosphere that has the world buzzing. "If we really want to keep doping off of this team, off of the stage, out of cycling, we have to win within the context of humanity," stressed directeur sportif Jonathan Vaughters at the team presentation this past November. "It's simply saying that some days are great, some days are not. The wins will come to this team, but when no one expects it. And when everyone thinks we'll be there, we may fail. To agree to not dope, to agree to never let that enter the context the team is to agree to fail sometimes. To agree to let your fans down sometimes is to agree to the fallibility of the human body... but to abide by humanity is also to go beyond anyone's dreams on the occasion, to celebrate the joy, the rarity, and the preciousness of winning when it does occur, and to celebrate with honesty. You have a choice in cycling: you can choose to turn a blind eye and cheer for glory at all costs... or you can choose to choose to cheer humanity and celebrate the rarity of victory and perfection." To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Chris Eatough's Trek-VW Trek Top Fuel
Trek-VW's Chris Eatough is the unequivocal king of 24-hour solo endurance mountain bike racing. Since turning professional in 1999, Eatough (say 'EE-TOFF') has dominated the discipline with six consecutive world solo championships, two US National solo titles, and countless wins at various other endurance events. At just 33 years of age, the British native that now calls the US state of Maryland his home shows no signs of stopping or slowing down and currently offers up no imminent plans for retirement, surely to the chagrin of the competition that eagerly awaits its chance in the spotlight. Eatough's successes on the race course are naturally the result of many hours of training but not likely of the type that most would expect. Although he obviously spends a full day in the saddle come race time, he rarely embarks on training rides that are longer than three to four hours. Longer days are tossed into the mix on occasion or prior to a major event, but otherwise he has built up such a solid foundation of base miles and fitness that most of the time is merely spent maintaining that level. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Sarah Hammer's Felt TK1
Track rider Sarah Hammer is one of the United States' best hopefuls for a gold medal at the upcoming Summer Olympics in Beijing this August. Hammer began competing when she was just eight years old; 16 years later at the age of 24 she now finds herself the reigning two-time World Pursuit Champion after successfully defending her title in Palma de Mallorca, has won over half a dozen World Cup events, and also holds twenty US National titles on the track. Hammer has competed on Look and BT machines in the past but switched her bike sponsorship earlier this year to Felt Bicycles. In many ways it was a natural fit: Felt's headquarters is only an hour away from Hammer's residence in Temecula (barring typical SoCal traffic, of course) and roughly marks the halfway point on the way to her training grounds at the ADT Event Center. Moreover, Felt is also the official bike sponsor of the venue. As good as Felt's extant TK2 aluminum track machine probably already was, a rider of Hammer's stature clearly warranted something special and development work on a new carbon bike started almost immediately after the sponsorship deal was announced. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Mark Cavendish's Team High Road Giant TCR Advanced SL Team prototype
British sprinting sensation Mark Cavendish made an impressive debut during his first season as a professional in 2007 on the German-registered T-Mobile squad. Team manager Bob Stapleton filled the roster with a wealth of young and promising talent led by an elite group of veterans and also adopted a progressive internal anti-doping program that he hoped would lead the team into a newly invigorated and clean future. Nevertheless, a high-profile flurry of long-past doping revelations led T-Mobile to remove its name as the team's title sponsor but a settlement deal has allowed Stapleton to continue on mostly as planned under the new title of Team High Road. Old team, new name...new bike!Cavendish thus heads into the 2008 season with a change of team kit and title but also a new machine as long-time sponsor Giant has outfitted the squad with a brand new version of its time-tested TCR Advanced. We tested Cavendish's actual race bike a few months back and found it to be the quintessential sprint machine with a smart drivetrain response, firm ride and edgy handling characteristics that suited its intended purpose to a T. Even so, Giant says the team's new TCR Advanced SL is a significant improvement. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Paolo Bettini's Quick Step Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL2
Specialized outfitted Quick Step rider Tom Boonen last year with a custom version of its S-Works Tarmac SL2 that incorporated a few key geometry changes specifically requested by the Belgian sprinting superstar. For 2008, however, Specialized has apparently seen fit to supply similarly proportioned machines to the rest of the team, including the current Olympic and two-time road world champion Paolo Bettini. The Tarmac geometry has always been decidedly compact, but the Quick Step team version for 2008 has become even racier with a shorter head tube that allows riders to adopt a lower, more aggressive and even more aerodynamic position. The riders were presented with their new frames at the team's December training camp with extra carbon spacers under the stems to replicate the position of their original SL2's but Bettini wasted little time in dropping down a bit further, indicating that il Grillo was very much in favour of the new aggressive position. Sadly, this new geometry will not be available to us mortals just yet. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Philippe Gilbert's Française des Jeux Lapierre HM X-LiteWhat makes a good classics bike? We took a close look at Het Volk winner Philippe Gilbert's Lapierre HM X-Lite. ProTour team La Française des Jeux has started the season well: Belgian star Philippe Gilbert has already won two races and the overall in the Mallorca Challenge as well as an impressive victory in the Omloop Het Volk earlier this month. The team has been riding French Lapierre bikes since 2002 and Gilbert's HM X-Lite machine proved to be well suited to the cobbles in Het Volk as he blasted away with 50km to go and soloed to victory. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Hilton Clarke's Toyota-United Fuji SL1
After a three-year jaunt on a Colnago with the Navigators Professional Cycling team, Australian sprinter Hilton Clarke joined the Toyota-United squad and their team issued Fuji SL1 machines. Set up for a successful season, Hilton aims at improving on his palmares of over 30 career victories that include podiums in his native country's Bay Crit Series, the CSC Invitational and his most prized win in the 2006 USPRO criterium championship at Downers Grove. Toyota-United hopped on the carbon fiber bandwagon two years ago when it swapped its own brand of aluminum-and-carbon rigs for the all-carbon SL1 of new sponsor Fuji. At a claimed sub-900g, the monocoque SL1 frame is markedly lighter than the team's old bikes but also supposedly stiffer with its Energy Transfer Chainstays, a characteristic particularly important to a sprinter like Hilton Clarke. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Scott Nydam's BMC SLC01 Pro Machine
It could easily be said that second-year professional rider Scott Nydam is living out a dream from which he has yet to wake. Nydam finds himself a returning member of the up-and-coming UCI Professional Continental BMC factory team amidst a healthy environment and bubbling over with enthusiasm. The team claimed the 'most aggressive' crown at the recent Tour of California and Nydam also walked away with the KOM jersey after several particularly gutsy performances. Nydam is well aware of his good fortune and isn't bashful about sharing his feelings on the situation. "It's been great. Every step that we've taken and I've been able to be a part of, I feel has been an appropriate step in the development of the team as well as the development for me as a rider. So personally I feel like there's a good parallel with the growth of the team and at what pace and how far I want to go as a rider. I really couldn't have scripted a better spot for me to be in. We have incredible management, incredible staff, we have the best sponsor in the sport, the best materials. There's absolutely nothing holding me back." To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Marta Bastianelli's Safi-Pasta Zara-Manhattan Pinarello Prince
Having recently featured the bike of men's world champion Paolo Bettini, it seems only proper that we should also take a closer look at the steed of his female counterpart, Italian compatriot Marta Bastianelli. To this end, we managed to coax it - and briefly her - to one side before the recent Trofeo Alfredo Binda, in the northern Italian town of Cittiglio. Bastianelli won her rainbow jersey in slightly unexpected fashion in Stuttgart last year. The 20 year-old rider was sent up the road to force riders of other nations - particularly those of Dutch defending champion Marianne Vos - to chase to the benefit of Italian team captain Giorgia Bronzini. However, no concerted chase ever developed and Bastianelli was able to win alone. Vos won the sprint for silver, and Bronzini - appropriately - took the bronze. From a visual perspective, Bastianelli's bike stands in stark contrast to that of Bettini. Whereas the Quick.Step rider's steed is resplendent in custom rainbow and gold livery from stem to stern to celebrate his world and Olympic titles, Bastianelli's bike is essentially standard team issue white-and-red with only a rainbow-striped Selle Italia SLR saddle and some appropriately coloured bar tape to celebrate the achievement. While this could be taken as a sign of the champion's modesty, it is far more likely an indicator of the unfortunate gulf in budgets between the men's and women's sides of the sport. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Irina Kalentieva's Topeak Ergon Rotwild Team R.R2
Current UCI mountain bike world champion Irina Kalentieva has done ample justice to the rainbow stripes she earned last year in Fort William, Scotland. Kalentieva finished second at this year's first World Cup round in Houffalize, Belgium and then followed that up with a convincing win in the hot and dry conditions of Offenburg, Germany. At just 1.5m and 46kg (5'1", 101lb), Kalentieva is a natural climber and thus places a particularly high priority on cutting grams off of her equipment which can easily comprise roughly 20 percent of her body weight. As a result, her team-issued Rotwild R.R2 carbon hardtail boasts a wealth of unique modifications and custom equipment well beyond its fancy paintjob and stickers. These differences are most noticeable on the scale: Rotwild's top-end R.R2 production model weighs 8.8kg (19.4lb) but Kalentieva's bike is an even slimmer 8.3kg (18.3lb). To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Thor Hushovd's Crédit Agricole Look 585 Paris-Roubaix
Thor Hushovd, Crédit Agricole's Norwegian strongman, has proven himself to be a potent one-day rider with prologue wins at both the Tour de France and Paris-Nice, stage wins at Le Grand Boucle and other multi-day events, and even a win at Gent-Wevelgem in 2006. Unfortunately, though, Hushovd had a disappointing showing at this year's Paris-Roubaix: the 'Viking' abandoned the race at the first feed zone after reportedly suffering a nasty crash early on. The morning of the start brought surprisingly pleasant conditions such that specially dedicated mud machines weren't entirely necessary. Even so, Hushovd set off from Compiègne aboard a Look 585 Origin instead of his usual 595. According to head mechanic Pascal Ridel, the swap wasn't made for any durability or strength reasons; it was strictly a question of comfort. "It's a little smoother than the 595," he said. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Todd Wells' GT Zaskar Carbon
To most onlookers at the opening UCI World Cup in Houffalize the GT factory team camp was operating as a well oiled machine, powering US Olympic hopeful Todd Wells to a career-best eleventh place finish on a brand-new GT Zaskar Carbon. However, for both Wells and his teammate, Burry Stander, these bikes were anything but part of the race day plan. Both riders were originally supposed to race on their familiar aluminum bikes from late 2007 while the new carbon frames waited in the team van until time allowed for a proper build and shake-out period later in the season. However, Saturday morning brought an unpleasant surprise for the GT, Multivan Merida, Scott, and Hope crews as a rash of overnight thefts left many without bikes and other key equipment. Fortunately for GT those new carbon frames were left inexplicably untouched (others were not so lucky) and a manic building process ensued to salvage the weekend. Helped by some friends who had come to spectate for the weekend, team mechanic Mark Maurrisen set forth on a frantic mission sourcing parts from across the expo area. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Heather Irmiger's Subaru-Gary Fisher Genesister Hardtail
US Olympic hopeful Heather Irmiger is currently making her way across the hectic UCI World Cup circuit on her usual bright pink bike, only this time around it's a brand new all-aluminum model also shared by teammates Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski and Willow Koerber. Logistical constraints have meant that each team member could only take one bike to the first five races and the World Championships. For the majority of those European courses, a hardtail was deemed the best option. Unlike Irmiger's 2007 aluminum hardtail which was a wholly custom build using a mix of various tubing (including some Klein Gradient road-specific pipes), the new machine is closer to a stock offering although consumers still shouldn't expect to see anything like it in the near future. Her new rig is actually a prototype '09 model built with 6066 alloy and far more dramatic tube shaping than we're used to seeing from the nameplate. In fact, the prototype's curvaceous multi-sided down tube bears a similar profile to that of the current Fuel EX of parent company Trek while the top tube employs the more familiar Gary Fisher hydroformed design cues. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Staf Scheirlinckx' Cofidis Time VXS Paris-Roubaix
Like many of the riders in this year's Paris-Roubaix, Cofidis' Staf Scheirlinckx set off from the start in Compiègne aboard what looked to be a reasonably stock-looking machine. As we've all now come to realize, though, Scheirlinckx' Time VXS bore a few visually subtle modifications intended to ease the 259.5km (161.2mi) journey into the Roubaix velodrome. A little extra room was added at both ends to provide a slightly longer wheelbase for stability while the bottom bracket height was supposedly raised just a bit for ground clearance over the unforgiving cobbles. The stock VXS Translink's semi-integrated seatpost was swapped in favor of a more conventional setup and Scheirlinckx' fork was fitted with an alloy steerer instead of the usual carbon one. Given the fork's telltale fade-type paint (and the relatively hefty 8.0kg (17.6lb) complete bike weight), we're guessing the crown was alloy as well. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Sam Schultz' Subaru-Gary Fisher Gary Fisher Superfly
Sam Schultz is only just starting his second year as a professional mountain bike racer but the 23 year-old Missoula, Montana native who now calls Colorado Springs home has already been drawing attention with his impressive mix of climbing speed and even flatland power that belies his lanky frame. Schultz won the short track and finished second in the cross-country at this spring's Sea Otter Classic and then gained some valuable experience on the World Cup stage in Offenburg and Madrid. As a member of the well-stocked Subaru-Gary Fisher team, Schultz enjoys the luxury of having several different bikes at his disposal (not to mention a new Subaru WRX wagon... vroom vroom!). Included in the stable for any given event are an aluminium hardtail and Gary Fisher's new HiFi Race short-travel full suspension platform, both with 26" wheels, as well as the company's new Superfly carbon fiber 29"-wheeled hardtail flyer. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Alberto Contador's Astana Trek Madone 5.2
Tour de France champion Alberto Contador may have been denied the chance to defend his title this July by race organizer ASO but he and the rest of his Astana team have made the most of a late call-up to the Giro d'Italia. With just four days to go, Contador finds himself in the maglia rosa of race leader and looks poised to carry it all the way to the final stage finish in Milano on Sunday. The team's last-minute invitation meant that Contador, Levi Leipheimer, Andreas Klöden and other teammates came into the event with less-than-ideal preparation. In fact, the Spaniard said that he had spent part of the time leading up to the race on vacation. Yet despite that poor buildup - and the fact that he'd been in good form for quite a while this season instead of peaking for a specific target - solid consistency in the mountains and the time trials have put him 41 seconds ahead of Riccardo Riccò (Saunier Duval - Scott) and a further 40 seconds up on double-winner Gilberto Simoni (Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni-Androni Giocattoli). To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Nicole Cooke's Halfords Bikehut Boardman Pro
Nicole Cooke is arguably Great Britain's finest-ever woman cyclist and British Cycling has hatched a grand plan leading up to this August's Beijing Olympics in hopes that she will bring home a gold medal. A major component of the plan has been the creation of a team built specifically around her so that she can concentrate solely on the event - and not worry about any pressure for results in the intervening period. To help finance this new "Pro-Nat" team, Halfords Bikehut was recruited as the title sponsor. As part of the deal, though, the major UK retailer wanted Cooke to ride a bike that was actually available in their stores to consumers. As luck would have it, Halfords Bikehut recently started stocking a new range of bikes designed by former World and Olympic pursuit and World time trial champion Chris Boardman. Cooke and the rest of the team are therefore equipped with his top of the range offering: the Boardman Pro. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Rory Sutherland's Health Net presented by Maxxis Cannondale SuperSix
Aussie native (and Cyclingnews diarist) Rory Sutherland raged through his first year competing on US soil last year with stage wins at the Redlands Classic and Nature Valley Grand Prix, a stage win and the overall at the Joe Martin Stage Race, and even the NRC points title as a result of his consistently high finishes throughout the season. Proving that last year was no fluke, this year is starting out with a similar bang: the 2004 U23 Australian road champion successfully defended his Joe Martin title and then took the overall win at the Mount Hood Classic one week later, winning time trial stages in both events. Needless to say, Sutherland is on a roll: "My season’s been awesome so far in a lot of different ways. I’m really happy!" To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Grischa Niermann’s Rabobank Colnago CX-1
Colnago’s new CX-1 frame has only just been announced to the world but it has already found its way into the ProTour peloton under Rabobank super-domestique Grischa Niermann who has elected to ride the new frame in place of his previous Extreme-C. Despite not having a great list of victories to his name, Niermann is one of those rare riders who always finds his contract renewed at the end of each year thanks to the consistently hard effort he puts forth in support of his more illustrious teammates. "Niermann has been with the team for so long," said team manager Erik Breukink at the 32 year-old German’s latest contract signing. "We all know that he is a very solid helper." To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Kelli Emmett's Giant XTC Advanced
Full-carbon hardtails seem to be making a comeback on mountain bike cross country circuits worldwide and Giant Bicycles is among the latest sponsors to outfit its team riders with the ultimate in light weight for when conditions allow. For many races this year, second-year Giant MTB pro Kelli Emmett has traded in her trusty 1.9kg (4.2lb) Anthem Advanced short-travel full-suspension platform for an XTC Advanced frame that undercuts that already-light figure by nearly half; claimed weight for her second-generation prototype is just under 1kg (2.2lb). "It is just awesome!' said Emmett shortly before winning the cross country event at this year's Sea Otter Classic. "It feels so light and amazing on the climbs. It is crazy how noticeable [the weight loss] is." The new frame borrows a few design features from the road-going TCR Advanced SL, notably the oversized rectangular-profile down tube and beefier top tube for better front triangle rigidity. However, there's no press-fit bottom bracket shell to be found here (at least for now) and the head tube is designed around a conventional 1 1/8" steerer tube. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Cadel Evans' Silence-Lotto Ridley Helium
With last year's winner and third-placed rider Alberto Contador and Levi Leipheimer (Astana) both forced out of this year's Tour de France, 2007 runner-up Cadel Evans now finds himself the overall favourite as the riders depart from Brest on July 5. Evans' team, Silence-Lotto, is somewhat of a rarity in that it aims to win on all fronts: from the high-octane sprinting in the spring classics all the way through to overall victory in the Grand Tours. As such, team bike sponsor Ridley needs to supply the team with a wide variety of machines to suit each rider's individual aims and characteristics. Where the sprinters and classics riders like fellow Australian Robbie McEwan and Belgian Leif Hoste typically ride the company's powerhouse Noah frame, all-rounder Evans prefers the lighter weight Helium as the road heads skywards. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Travis Brown's Trek 69er HT
Trek Bicycle Corporation has often erred on the side of caution when it came to its mountain bike line so when it debuted its 69er singlespeed at the 2006 Sea Otter Classic, many were caught off guard. However, that bike's introduction didn't exactly signal a sudden willingness to adopt largely unproven ideas; rather, it was the passionate support of the platform by a few key figures that finally forced company head John Burke to relent and agree to bring the concept to market. Spearheading the idea internally was Travis Brown, a former pro mountain bike racer who is now heavily involved in product development for the Wisconsin-based firm. "When I started doing a lot of work in product development and started testing [Gary] Fisher product, I started riding the big wheel stuff on the Fisher platform quite a bit," he said. "There're obviously some distinct characteristics of the different size wheel, some of which I really liked. And there were some characteristics that I couldn't quite get used to." To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Cadel Evans' Silence-Lotto Ridley Dean
Cadel Evans reinforced his status as an overall favourite in this year's Tour with an emphatic performance in the first individual time trial. Evans' 36'12 time (and blistering 48.9 km/h average speed) was good enough for third place in the stage, earned him valuable time over a number of key rivals and even bested the time of current world time trial champion Fabian Cancellara (CSC-Saxo Bank). Evans' good form undoubtedly deserved most of the credit for the day but his new Ridley Dean time trial frame likely netted him a few extra seconds as he streaked around Cholet. Ridley designed the organic looking frame - that ticks all the "looks fast standing still" boxes -using the usual wind tunnel tools but also with oil flow mapping in conjunction with Formula 1 engineers. In addition, Ridley has licensed Jetstream technology from Oval Concepts - which it has named R-Flow - and made the fork blades and seat stays from two airfoils to further cut down on drag around both wheels. This R-Flow technology, says Ridley, actually creates a vacuum around the spokes reducing turbulence and drag by up to 7.5 percent. In addition to the smooth lines of the frame and the rear disc enclosed inside the seat tube, Ridley has made some changes to the surface itself. Conventional wisdom says that a smooth finish is best for aerodynamics but, according to Ridley, its so-called R-Finish is even better at the relatively slow speeds encountered on a bicycle. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Thor Hushovd's Crédit Agricole Look 595 Pro Team Edition
Maillot vert favourite Thor Hushovd (Crédit Agricole) is off to a great start in this year's Tour de France with only two stages down and one win already under his belt. Stage two concluded with a tough uphill finish into the town of Saint Brieuc and Hushovd launched himself with 200 meters to go, holding off top sprinters Kim Kirchen and Gerald Ciolek (Team Columbia), Robbie Hunter (Barloworld) and never-say-die veteran Erik Zabel (Milram) in the process. Kirchen's second-place finish combined with his fourth-place the day before to earn him the maillot vert at day's end but Hushovd is well within pouncing distance just eight points behind. Hushovd surged to the line aboard Look's top-end 595 Pro Team which, despite its slender appearance, is apparently strong enough to cope with the huge levels of stress put through it by the Norwegian strongman. Unlike most of its competitors who use modular monocoque construction, Look prefers a more traditional tube-and-lug method to join the very high modulus carbon tubes to the forged high modulus carbon lugs along with carbon nanotube-enhanced resins for better carbon layer adhesion and improved durability. Naturally, the main tubes are shaped and curved to cope with the different stresses they are put under: the top tube is very flat and wide for lateral stiffness but also slightly curved for a little vertical compliance while the down tube and seat tube become flared and rectangular as they get closer to the bottom bracket for better drivetrain rigidity. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Riccardo Riccò's Saunier Duval-Scott Scott Addict
Riccardo Riccò (Saunier Duval-Scott) may very well have uncorked this year's Tour de France highlight with an emphatic win in Stage 9. The Italian climbing specialist was comfortably in the main group with four kilometres remaining to the summit when he unleashed a scorching attack that arguably evoked recollections of Lance Armstrong and the late Marco Pantani. Riccò didn't let up much after that initial surge, either: he made quick work of the small chase group ahead of him and then continued to rocket ahead, erasing a near-four-minute gap to lone breakaway leader Sebastian Lang (Gerolsteiner) in just three kilometes (1.86mi). By the time he crested the summit, 'the Cobra' had given himself 30s on Lang plus another minute on the peloton. Fortunately for Riccò, there wasn't much of a reaction from the main bunch so he managed to hold nearly all of that lead over them through the remaining 26km-long (16.2mi) descent and crossed the line as the day's undeniable hero. Time will tell if the general classification contenders' decision to let him go will come back to 'bite' them in the end: although Ricco professes to only seeking stage wins, it shouldn't go unnoticed that only 2'35 now separates him from the leader's jersey and there's still plenty of climbing to be done. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Andy Schleck's CSC-Saxo Bank Cervélo R3-SL
Team CSC-Saxo Bank comes into this year's Tour de France with a potent three-pronged attack that includes perennial Grand Tour contender Carlos Sastre as well as cycling's own dynamic duo, brothers Andy and Fränk Schleck. As is often the case in these situations, the true leader of the race would be determined when the riders hit the mountains. Stage 10's tough finish up the Hautacam didn't completely resolve the issue but likely reduced the number of candidates to two as Fränk put forth a fantastic performance to finish third (and is now only one second out of the race lead behind new leader Cadel Evans) and teammate Sastre was less than two minutes behind. Andy wasn't to partake in the team's celebrations that day, though, as he had a rough day and lost over 8 1/2 minutes to stage winner Leonardo Piepoli (Saunier Duval-Scott) by the time he crossed the line. The younger Schleck's role in the Tour will likely change from this point but his choice of bicycle will almost certainly stay constant. Save for stage 4's individual time trial, Andy has been rolling along aboard one of CSC's now familiar-looking black-and-white Cervélos. Like veteran Sastre, though, he (and Fränk) has opted for the more conventionally-shaped (and slightly lighter) R3-SL over the SLC-SL of most of his teammates. At just 1.86kg (6' 1") and 66kg (145.5lb), the R3-SL's smaller seat stays apparently provide the lanky rider with a little more comfort as the kilometers roll on. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Filippo Pozzato's Liquigas Cannondale SuperSix
Filippo "Pippo" Pozzato (Liquigas) is no shrinking violet. Rarely a race goes by without him unveiling a new pair of shoes - like the flowery ones he wore at Milano-Sanremo this year - or a new paint scheme for his bike. His flowing blonde hair is always immaculate (before the races anyway) and off the bike he drives a Ferrari and is one of the most style conscious riders in the peloton. At this year's Le Grand Boucle the 2006 winner of La Primavera is hoping to add to his tally of two stage victories astride a Tour de France commemorative special. As a classics specialist, the Italian has been trying to get himself into breakaways this year to have some chance of getting that stage victory. On stage 11's transitional parcours into Foix he was a member of the group that managed to escape the peloton but unfortunately missed the decisive split in the closing stages and finished a disappointed 7th behind CSC-Saxo Bank's Kurt-Asle Arvesen. He hasn't managed to feature since, but as soon as the race leaves the Alps in the journey towards Paris we fully expect him to try his luck at least once more. Like a number of his Italian compatriots - including current world and Olympic champion Paolo Bettini - Pippo has employed the services of Como company Barza Design for a hand painted one off paint scheme. Previous custom-finished had been based broadly on the standard Liquigas team motif but this latest one is a complete departure with its colour-shifting dark green hue with gold metallic accents beneath the thick clearcoat. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Kim Kirchen's Team Columbia Giant TT Prototype
Team Columbia's Kim Kirchen came to this year's Tour de France as a genuine podium contender after finishing seventh in last year's event and capturing a difficult mountain win (he was awarded victory in stage 15 from Foix to Loudenvielle-Le Louron after Alexandre Vinokourov was disqualified). The Luxembourger has made another good showing so far this year: he captured the maillot jaune after stage 6 and held it for the next four days but fell back to seventh overall after stage 10's difficult finish atop Hautacam. Kirchen currently lies in eleventh place in the general classification but is almost certain to crack back into the top-ten after Saturday's 53km-long race against the clock with the help of a slippery new time trial bike from team sponsor Giant. According to the Taiwanese company, the radical-looking - and as yet unnamed - machine is "the fastest UCI-approved TT bike ever in the history of competitive cycling." A bold statement indeed, but one that Kirchen's superb second-place performance in stage 4's 29.5km time trial adds some weight to. Giant collaborated with UK design consultancy firm Velo Science to create the new shape which utilizes a number of innovative aero features. Even so, much of the frame actually resembles Cervélo's P3 benchmark with its deep aero-section down tube and vertically oriented seat tube that closely shadows the rear wheel. Likewise, almost rectangular section chain stays hug the rear tyre before flaring out slightly to envelop the hub and contrastingly slender aero section seat stays perform a similar task further up. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Christian Vande Velde's Garmin-Chipotle Felt DA
After a long career selflessly working for riders like Lance Armstrong, Carlos Sastre and Fränk Schleck, a move to Garmin-Chipotle (then called Slipstream-Chipotle) for this season has given Christian Vande Velde's career a completely new direction. The 32-year-old from Lemont, Illinois was first to cross the line as the boys in argyle won the opening team time trial in this year's Giro d'Italia. As a result, Vande Velde also wore the first maglia rosa of the race and became the first American to do so since Andy Hampsten. Although he finished the Giro in 52nd place, a strong fifth place in the closing time trial confirmed his metamorphosis from super-domestique to stage race contender. That valuable experience at the Giro d'Italia - and the confidence of his team - brought Vande Velde to this year's Tour de France as a genuine GC hope. Indeed, Vande Velde put in a brilliant performance in the first time trial and sat within a minute of the maillot jaune through the entire second week, briefly occupying as high as third place overall. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Damiano Cunego's Lampre Wilier Triestina Cento Uno
The 2008 Tour de France was not a vintage one for Damiano Cunego. The 2004 Giro d’Italia winner skipped his national tour in favour of an all-out tilt at success in la Grande Boucle, but a combination of poor form and a huge slice of bad luck forced him to abandon the race two days before Paris. That bad luck - in the form of a nasty face-first crash into a concrete barrier and its subsequent injuries - also cost him his lead in the ProTour classification by preventing him from being competitive in the Clásica San Sebastián. As if that weren’t enough, it even prompted him to withdraw from the Italian Olympic team for Beijing. While Cunego himself hasn’t had the best time as of late, as least he has a new bike from team sponsor Wilier Triestina. His new Cento Uno evolves from the existing Cento frame and now includes an integrated seat post, which supposedly saves 120g. Less immediately obvious are crankset bearings which are directly integrated into the oversized bottom bracket shell. Wilier says this system integrates seamlessly with most cranksets - Campagnolo being the natural default - but composite spacers are available for others. Though Cunego’s custom-sized frame bears a number of features of the production Cento Uno, it is clearly not a production machine. For instance, where the stock Cento Uno has pronounced asymmetric chain stays - where the drive side one actually curves downwards - and uniquely ‘suspended’ dropouts, Cunego’s frame has much straighter chain stays and rather conventional-looking two-piece aluminum dropouts. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Lance Armstrong’s Trek Top Fuel 9.8
Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong continued on his comeback trail by winning the 12 Hours of Snowmass mountain bike endurance event along with teammates Len Zanni and Max Taam, just about one month after coming in second to Dave Wiens at the epic Leadville 100. Though the Texan’s only public display of off-road prowess prior to this season came during that famous moment in Stage 9 of the 2003 Tour when he was forced across a rutted field to avoid a fallen Joseba Beloki, these latest accomplishments prove that he’s the real deal on a proper mountain bike, too. Armstrong’s weapon of choice for the Snowmass event was the new 2009 Trek Top Fuel. Much as Trek did with its current-generation Madone road platform, this latest Top Fuel is a far more daring design than the rather conservative one it replaced. The OCLV carbon main frame sports a semi-integrated seatpost more typically seen on the road, the bottom bracket bearings are directly inserted into a road-width shell, and the head tube now wears an integrated headset as well. Out back, the rear end still sticks with a single-pivot axle path but a host of new features adapted from the Fuel EX trail bike cancel out many of the design’s inherent drawbacks. Lighter ABP Race (Active Brake Pivot) pivots essentially provide a built-in floating disc mount for better traction and control under braking, Full Floater’s dual dynamic shock mounts allow for more precise spring rate tuning throughout the travel range, and a stouter one-piece EVO Link helps to keep everything tied together. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Joachim Parbo's Leopard Cycles Leopard CX1
For many cyclo-cross racers, the cold, wet and muddy conditions that accompany many courses are a nightmare come true; frozen fingers, complete lack of traction and the bone-piercing chill that sometimes takes days to overcome. But for former Danish cyclo-cross champion Joachim Parbo, the worse the conditions, the better. "The others break mentally," he said when we caught up with him during a brief stay in Boulder, Colorado with local cyclo-cross race promoter Chris Grealish. "It demands different power output in certain sections and I have that. Maybe I’m not so good with speedy courses, criterium-like American courses, but when it gets more technical with sand and mud I’m usually doing better." After racing aboard an aluminum frame from Italian builder ProTek Cycles in years past, Parbo has now made the move to carbon with Leopard Cycles’ new CX1. Leopard Cycles has only been in business since 2004 and the CX1 is its first attempt at the genre but Parbo says his initial impressions have been quite good. "This is my first carbon bike ever so I was surprised that it was actually so stiff and very light and very responsive. The ride is a little softer than an aluminium bike which is fine for ‘cross. Other than that, it fits me really well and I’m surprised it handles so good, also," he explained.. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Georgia Gould's Luna Orbea Lobular Cross
Georgia Gould's Orbea Lobular Cross bike may not be quite as fancy as the Alma hardtail on which she campaigns the cross-country mountain bike season but she wields the lesser weapon with just as much potency. The 28-year-old Fort Collins, Colorado resident won four out of six rounds of the 2007 USGP series (she finished second in the other two) and took home the overall title as a result. She then even qualified to represent the United States at the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships last season but declined the invitation in order to focus on the mountain bike event at the Olympics. In contrast to the Alma's all-carbon construction, Gould's Lobular frame is a relatively straightforward all-aluminum construct TIG-welded from 6000-series tubing. However, Orbea says the lobed cross-sections lend more lateral stiffness and comfort than more common round or oval shapes - key attributes for any 'cross rig - and the proprietary heat treatment process provides more strength and durability than usual. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Tim Johnson's Cannondale - Cyclocrossworld Cannondale XTJ
Tim Johnson (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld) was already amongst the easiest to spot on the 'cross circuit last year with his high-visibility black-and-yellow kit but the US national 'cross championship he earned back in December rightfully justified a bold change. With the exception of the new bright yellow Mavic shoes and socks, this year's color palette makes no illusion as to Johnson's home country: red, white and blue are the overwhelmingly dominant colors throughout the frame, fork, saddle, seat post, handlebar tape and, of course, his new team kit. Beneath the flashy new paint, though, much of Johnson's equipment choices have carried over from last season - a likely advantage if only in terms of consistency and familiarity. As in years past, Johnson's bike is built around his signature Cannondale XTJ frame which is reportedly off-the-peg stock save for the custom finish. Double-butted 6061-T6 aluminum tubing is used throughout and joined with slick-looking smooth double-pass TIG welds that Cannondale claims are more durable than traditional single-pass joints. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Heather Irmiger's Subaru-Gary Fisher Gary Fisher Presidio
Subaru-Gary Fisher pro cross-country rider Heather Irmiger typically doesn't have much energy remaining after the long season to seriously tackle 'cross but this year's early finish - she skipped the last UCI World Cup round in Schladming, Austria - left the 29-year-old Boulder, Colorado resident with a little more fitness and determination than usual. "I almost always do the local Boulder cyclo-cross workouts and a few local events in November," said Irmiger, "but I mostly hide out to protect my pride." Team sponsor Gary Fisher has supplied Irmiger with a new race rig this season, the Presidio, to replace her now-defunct Lemond Poprad. However, keen eyes will notice a strong resemblance between the two beneath the paint and, indeed, they are practially carbon copies of each other with the same TIG-welded True Temper OX Platinum steel construction, identical dropouts and cable routing, and apparently even the same geometry as before. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Alie Kenzer’s Richard Sachs CYBC Signature
Aluminum and carbon fibre machines may dominate the ‘cross racing landscape but legendary framebuilder Richard Sachs has more than held his own with steel, not only just for himself but also his long-running Richard Sachs/Connecticut Yankee Bicycle Club team. Sachs has a regular multi-year waiting list for his machines so he doesn’t exactly need the extra exposure that comes from sponsorship. Nevertheless, he has supported teams every year since the early 1980s. ‘Cross entered into the mix by the late 1990s and the team is now exclusively dedicated to this burgeoning segment of the sport. No doubt, Sachs’ own preferences probably has something to do with this single-minded purpose. When asked to describe his passion for cyclo-cross, he simply replied, "Sure, give me the microphone and about five months of your website's time!" To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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Ryan Trebon's Kona-FSA Kona Major Jake
One look at the bike of newly crowned US national cyclo-cross champion Ryan Trebon is enough to give pause. At a lanky 1.96m and 76kg (6' 5", 174lb), Trebon sets his saddle height at more than a full meter when measured from the pedal at bottom dead center and requires a 420mm seatpost even with the 63cm frame. There is a roughly 30cm differential from the saddle to the tops of the handlebar; add another 15cm or so to get to the drops. Though his frame uses a standard Alpha Q CX20 carbon 'cross fork, not much is taken off of the 300mm-long steerer tube to accommodate the 195mm-long head tube. Thanks to rangy 177.5mm-long crankarms, Trebon's feet travel over 100m further than someone on more common 172.5mm arms over a typical one-hour 'cross race- and that's assuming a relatively sedate 60rpm. If a thief were bold enough to try and ride away with the thing, they'd have a better chance fitting inside the main triangle than straddling the top tube. To view the full Pro Bike, click here. |
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