Grant.Reuter wrote:
japarker24 wrote:
Reliability?
$$$$$ and ability to get new parts.
Most of the pros don’t have support crews with them and don’t have a trailer full of spare parts. If you’re in the middle of one of these smaller towns on a Saturday the odds of finding something mechanical that will
Work vs finding an electronic shifting piece is significantly higher.
I was doing a race someone in Illinois a few years ago. The derailed bolt holding the cable managed to somehow strip/loosen before the race. They had mechanical support on site they got me a cheap 9 spd deraileur and had it installed for me in like 5 mins. Not perfect but it worked. The odds of that happening with Di2 just isn’t there.
This...
Without the mechanical support that pro cyclists have, many athletes are doing their own building/breaking down bikes often for travel around the world over the course of the season. Mechanical groupsets are more resilient than electronic, and as mentioned, in a pinch, if something breaks, you're far more likely to be able to find a serviceable replacement piece depending on where the race is, than to replace an electronic component. And of course there is the cost component. While many may have bike deals, few have sponsorships from a frame and a component manufacturer, and other than the very few consistently at the top of the rankings, given how little most ITU pros are making, it's not surprising that many are favoring the less expensive mechanical option, because the cost of replacing parts is lower...