grumpier.mike wrote:
duncan wrote:
snaaijert wrote:
I think also relatively few Spesh riders rode the old Venge. Really only the sprinters and even then not always. I always found it quite ironic for a company that is so gung ho about aerodynamics. Compare that to how many Canyon riders ride the Aeroad and there's a huge difference. Valverde is always on the Aeroad, same as Rodriguez. I think only Quintana is on the Ultimate and that may be a fit thing because he's so tiny.Agreed, for instance 85% of Katusha rides the Aeroad CF SLX. Even Canyon was suprised by the demand from the pros for this bike when they launched it, and struggled to supply them all. (I have one myself, and it's an impressively capable bike.)
I would guess it has more to do with ride quality than anything else. The ProTour guys spend 5 hours a day racing, so many of them are interested in a bike that is both stiff, yet "relatively" comfortable. Giant and Cervelo have the same issues with their teams riding the TCR and R5 over their aero offerings. Let's face it, almost nobody rode the original S5.
If you think about Trek, the decoupler on the new Madone makes for a pretty comfortable ride and Cancellara rode the Domane gravel bike over an old Madone. Canyon may have figured out how to make the new Areohead ride as well as the Ultimate, or maybe the Ultimate is kind of a turd. Part of Specialized's problem could be the the Tarmac is so good not many people want to ride anything else.
after u ride a bike with the decoupler u just don't want to ride anything else; SOOOOOOO comfortable!
I have a domane and I would to try the new madone with the decoupler :)
The entire event (IM) is like "death by 1000 cuts" and the best race is minimizing all those cuts and losing less blood than the other guy. - Dev