The race is over, and I'm experiencing my inevitable, annual Tour withdrawal. (What fun are mornings without Cadel's awkward-but-effective mutton-busting riding style, a couple of whingeing Schlecks, and the Contador keep-us-guessing feint and dodge?) So this morning, in lieu of Stage 22, I contemplated a few of the new bikes that made their Pro Tour debut in France.
I love that, unlike other sports, in cycling consumers can purchase the same bikes that the pros ride. (Just try picking up Fernando Alonso's F1 Ferrari.) A small stack of money will get you the very same SuperSix EVO that Basso rode to 8th overall at the Tour or a Cervélo S5 identical to the one Thor Hushovd used to win two stages. And for those unwilling to plunk down ten big ones, the good news is that the technology from these bikes continues to trickle down to affordable rides, so you can goggle the top of the line now and likely ride similar technology soon.
In the spirit of yearning for just a little bit more Tour, here are some of the hottest new bikes spotted on the roads of France in the last three weeks.
–Aaron Gulley
Cannondale SuperSix EVO
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Beyond the weight, Cannondale says the EVO frame is 20 percent torsionally stiffer than it's predecessor, the SuperSix, and also has smaller tube sizing for less drag. The ability to make the frame smaller and lighter while increasing stiffness comes from a new carbon lay-up process that bonds three separate monocoque forms (front triangle, seat tube and bottom bracket, and rear stays and dropouts) and then overlays continuous strands of carbon fiber in key areas (for instance from the down tube, over the bottom bracket and into the chainstays). This apparently allows the company to use less carbon while still producing a frame that's stronger in testing than the aluminum CAAD9.
I had the chance to ride an EVO with a few guys from Liquigas-Cannondale the day after the Tour of California, and though I was dubious of all the claims I have to admit that the bike was extremely impressive. First of all, my 56cm frame, equipped with good parts but nothing freaky light (SRAM Red, Mavic Ksyrium SL wheels) checked in well below 14 pounds. Cannondale says a complete EVO Ultimate will weigh as little as 10.9 pounds. On the Rock Store climb outside of Agoura, California, the bike felt springy fast underneath me, but still totally stiff and responsive. However I was most impressed on the fast, technical descent down the other side, where the EVO was surprisingly nimble yet overwhelming stable—so much so that I was able to tack myself onto the back of the Liquigas train. It was clearly a bike befitting a Tour winner, even if it didn't end up that way. Unlike Basso, however, the EVO Team will set you back $9,900.
Cervélo S5
Leading up to July, much was made about Thor Hushovd's less-than-stellar season, with pundits blaming everything from the World Champion curse (historically the rainbow stripes have apparently inhibited it's owners' performances) to a lack of unity and support from team Garmin-Cervélo. Hushovd quashed all the critics with a mind-bogglingly dominant Tour that saw Garmin-Cervélo win the team time trial, Hushovd in the maillot jaune for seven days, and two individual stage wins for the Norwegian.
He accomplished the latter on the all-new Cervélo S5, which replaces the previous top-of-the-line aero bike, the S3. Besides a refinement of the shaping, the most notable change in the S5 is its geometry, which is borrowed from company's popular R3, with slightly longer chainstays and a taller head tube. Cervélo claims the new S5 shape was 36.8 seconds faster than the S3 in wind-tunnel tests but still 12 percent stiffer. It will be tough to completely verify those numbers, though Hushovd's commanding performance is convincing. And for the $9,000 the S5 will set you back, equipped with Di2, you'd best be convinced.
Pinarello Dogma 2