romulusmagnus wrote:
You're completely missing the point. The speed they calibrated to is an industry stand to quantify deltas in product on a consistent basis, even as that measure (grams of drag) is itself incredibly stupid and inaccurate for real world application
But for instance, the difference between the DA and IA is about 50 grams of drag (from memory?). The industry quoted difference between the P5 and SC is similar
So before they added this critical component to find such a massive discernible difference in drag, we are supposed to buy that this completely impractical, offensively expensive bicycle was already very fast (I.e. According to Rapp, faster than the shiv). Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit
Also, the bike looked like shit without this piece of hardware (if you weren't running that specific p5 front end, which is itself ridiculous because it's UCI legal...why Cervelo and 3T combined can't do better than some asshat in Highlands Ranch Colorado is beyond me)
This bike is shit
Wow. I had no idea I had generated such rage in someone. I've got probably roughly 8,000mi on a Dimond. I do a lot of the same workouts. On a lot of the same roads. Based on what I've seen, the Dimond is faster than the Shiv. That's with the same wheels, sometimes the same tires and sometimes not, same tubes, different bottle configuration (BTA + downtube vs BTA + behind the seat, which is certainly a noticeable difference), same saddle bag, different brakes (Magura vs Tektro), virtually identical position, same helmet, sometimes different clothing but sometimes same, different shoes, and of course the huge variance of weather. Is it a LOT faster? No. I'd say that I see pretty much what the data TJ got from FASTER showed - they are close. For a different rider, with a different setup, might they see something different? Of course. But for me, I believe the Dimond is faster.
As far as the 25g of savings from the aerobox? I don't know about that one way or the other. With rider or without? With what bars? How many spacers? Etc, etc, etc. Do I think it's faster? Almost certainly. 25g faster? Who knows. Do I agree that it was probably something they should have included in the design from the outset. Yes. Absolutely.
The new fork is demonstrably faster on the Dimond than the old one. At least at low yaw - which due to the nature of the topography where I train is typical. TJ said it stalls more quickly, which is not a surprise. How that will play out in various races, I do not know.
I had my first chance to get into the tunnel on the Dimond with Zipp at ARC. Unfortunately, comparing different tunnels is generally a bad idea, so I'd be reticent to compare CdA numbers on the Shiv at Specialized to CdA numbers from the Dimond at ARC. Further, the data from ARC seem bad anyway as there was tire rub on the platform due to - IMO - the ARC roller system being not the most ideal. But we didn't catch that until later in the day. So basically all the morning runs were way high for a number of athletes. The data was so off that it's basically garbage. Unfortunately.
There are a lot of great bikes out there. I do not believe that the Dimond is dramatically faster than any of the very good ones - P5 or Trek SC or Scott Plasma 5 or Specialized Shiv or... Nor do I believe it is measurably slower. Or, more specifically, that the variance between bikes largely will come down to fit, bars, other equipment (bottle placement), etc. And that ultimately it's likely nearly impossible to determine the "best" bike for you without significant time and expense. So just pick one of the very good ones and be happy.
Does the Dimond have flaws? Yes. And, in my experience, so does every other bike. The Shiv has flaws. The SC has flaws, based on not only what I've seen but discussions with athletes who ride it. Etc. Etc. Etc. At any given moment, I'd say the "fastest" bike is likely the one that came out most recently. The new Canyon certainly seems like it might hold the title, though at the requirement of an electronic groupset. Though it's hard to know how much is the fact that it's under Jan Frodeno...
Anyway, if you feel there needs to be a support group for people I've lied to, feel free to start one. I'm happy to chime in to try to clarify where I can. Or simply to let people bash me. In the meantime, I'd simply say this:
"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." - Seneca | rappstar.com | FB - Rappstar Racing | IG - @jordanrapp