Thanks for sharingIMA said:
Red Rick said:Did he say anything interesting?
Yes there is. Generally, a pretty good route, he will test himself on Plateau SolaisonLaFlorecita said:Berto going for that elusive first victory of the season in Dauphiné
Is there a TT? If yes, that'll definitely be a stage to test his level compared to Froome.
IMA said:-He said his Specialized was 400 grs heavier than some of his rivals´bikes in 2016.
Surely not?silvergrenade said:They go up Angliru in the Dauphine.
#BikePorn
LaFlorecita said:Ooooh
Exciting news!
Sounds like the professional future of the Fundacion Contador team could be confirmed in the coming weeks
Alberto's brother is currently in Italy at the Giro, presumably to talk with potential sponsors
http://www.marca.com/ciclismo/2017/05/09/59115b8d22601d1a508b45c8.html
Have to think they'd start at ProConti level
deValtos said:IMA said:-He said his Specialized was 400 grs heavier than some of his rivals´bikes in 2016.
This is the one thing I never understood. I hear the teams complain all the time about the weight limit yet everyone's bike's are different weights and most are a good few hundred grams over the limit.
I also think it sounds a bit weird, 400 grs is pretty noticeable at that level. In such a professional sport at this moment in time with so much attention to detail, or marginal gains if you will, and a superb bike manufacturer such as Speciliazed, I don't really know what to believe.StryderHells said:deValtos said:IMA said:-He said his Specialized was 400 grs heavier than some of his rivals´bikes in 2016.
This is the one thing I never understood. I hear the teams complain all the time about the weight limit yet everyone's bike's are different weights and most are a good few hundred grams over the limit.
Looking at the bikes he was riding last year and the kit it was decked out in I'd be surprised if it was heavier that the UCI weight limit
FWIW his chrome bike had a heavy paint jobStryderHells said:deValtos said:IMA said:-He said his Specialized was 400 grs heavier than some of his rivals´bikes in 2016.
This is the one thing I never understood. I hear the teams complain all the time about the weight limit yet everyone's bike's are different weights and most are a good few hundred grams over the limit.
Looking at the bikes he was riding last year and the kit it was decked out in I'd be surprised if it was heavier that the UCI weight limit
LaFlorecita said:Also if Speshy's Tarmac really was on the UCI weight limit, I don't think they'd accept Berto going around saying the bike was too heavy
His Trek Emonda is right on the limit, I saw a pic of the weight check before the start of the Pais Vasco ITT.
6.83kg, just checked.
DFA123 said:Weight isn't the only consideration though. A heavier, very aero optimised bike, will be faster than a 400g lighter less-aero bike in many racing situations. The most aero bikes are often around 7kg or more. I'm sure Contador knows that though; but he needs to explain away his failure from last season somehow.
Most bike brands have 3 or 4 bikes: an aero, slightly heavier one for sprint stages (in Speshy's case the Venge, Trek's case Madone), a super aero & heavy TT bike (Speshy Shiv, Trek SpeedConcept), lightweight climbing bike, not as aero (Speshy Tarmac, Trek Emonda) and then both also have a bike specifically for the cobbled classics (Roubaix - Domane). Obviously, aerodynamics don't matter much at all uphill, for climbing bikes any aero advantage that adds more weight, is a disadvantage.DFA123 said:Weight isn't the only consideration though. A heavier, very aero optimised bike, will be faster than a 400g lighter less-aero bike in many racing situations. The most aero bikes are often around 7kg or more. I'm sure Contador knows that though; but he needs to explain away his failure from last season somehow.
This is exactly the kind of nonsense that his comment was bound to provoke. Weight is only one factor; even when climbing, aerodynamics is a huge factor (especially for a rider with such an unaerodynamic position like Contador), so 400g may not make a huge difference. In fact, it may not make any difference, or the lifhter bike may even be slower. A 1kg heavier bike may lose 30 seconds on Alpe d'Huez to an aerodynamically identical lighter bike. But that is not the case here.LaFlorecita said:Most bike brands have 3 or 4 bikes: an aero, slightly heavier one for sprint stages (in Speshy's case the Venge, Trek's case Madone), a super aero & heavy TT bike (Speshy Shiv, Trek SpeedConcept), lightweight climbing bike, not as aero (Speshy Tarmac, Trek Emonda) and then both also have a bike specifically for the cobbled classics (Roubaix - Domane). Obviously, aerodynamics don't matter much at all uphill, for climbing bikes any aero advantage that adds more weight, is a disadvantage.DFA123 said:Weight isn't the only consideration though. A heavier, very aero optimised bike, will be faster than a 400g lighter less-aero bike in many racing situations. The most aero bikes are often around 7kg or more. I'm sure Contador knows that though; but he needs to explain away his failure from last season somehow.
Of course, Contador isn't comparing Speshy's aero Venge to Trek's climby Emonda. He barely used the Venge anyway. He's comparing the Tarmac to the Emonda: Specialized lightest bike to Trek's lightest bike.
Actually, while googling for frame weights, I found out the Tarmac isn't even meant as just a climbing bike, it's meant for allround racing which would explain why Alberto never used the Venge and is using a Madone for flat stages this year. It also explains why the Tarmac is presumably heavier than the Emonda. Still, the issue remains: it is Specialized's lightest bike. And to answer your swipe at Berto that he "needs to explain away his failure from last season somehow", I'm sure you're aware that 400g makes a huge difference, 1kg lighter equals 30s faster on Alpe d'Huez. So, with a lighter bike, he might have won both Catalunya and Paris-Nice last year.
Unfortunately, I can't find the video in which Alberto talks about the Trek bikes, but I distinctly remember him mentioning that the Emonda is actually below the weight limit (so they need to add weight).
carolina said:Lol... So many riders already won in the mountains with a specialized tarmac, using the weight argument makes no sense. It's only 400 g. That's less then a water bottle.