Yes, they are just riding P3C at the TT’s. But I think they will ride the new Soloist Carbon on some stages too. Try to read Cervélo’s latest newsletter:
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The Tour is around the corner, and this year we’re trying something quite neat and unique and we hope you come along for the ride. As usual, Cervélo co-founder/owner Phil White will travel with Team CSC for the entire Tour, making sure that all the equipment remains in tip-top shape, and advising the team about equipment choices for each individual stage profile. With his all-access pass, he can go places even the journalists aren’t welcome, from the team car to the mechanics rolling work shop to the massage table.
This year, Phil is equipped with cameras, voice recorders, a videographer and cell and satellite connections. Whenever he can connect to our media center, he will upload brief audio snapshots, in-depth audio reports, still photos and if all works out video journals. As there is no limit to Phil’s access, the only boundaries will be technology. As anybody who has been to the rural areas of France can attest, it’s not always easy to get connected. So come along and see what happens, it’s as much a guess for us as it is for you.
How do you get this? First of all, it is absolutely free. As to how to get it, you can find all the information here
After Gerard flew to the Giro with the first Soloist Carbon prototype and got feedback from Christian Vandevelde, Fränk Schleck, Bjarne Riis and Carsten Jeppesen (the equipment manager), we went back to the drawing board and designed new lay-ups for the frame. After six more iterations we finally had a frame that met all our criteria and that we were confident would meet the needs of the team riders. It is always difficult to translate the riders’ needs into test data in the lab, but over the years we’ve gotten better and better at it. With Soloist Carbon V7 ready to be tested, we sent our Customer Service technician Chris Bastie (the same guy who answers your e-mail questions) to Europe with the latest prototypes to confirm this was the right lay-up. Here is his story:
When I took this job at Cervelo I knew there would be exciting opportunities to travel around a bit so when I was asked to take some Soloist Carbon Prototypes to CSC in Europe I jumped at the chance. With the tour around the corner time was of the essence. The riders needed to get on the bikes as soon as possible to make sure everything was going to work out so I was off on my jet setting tour of Europe not more than three hours after I got the frames in my hands.
I flew from Toronto to Geneva and was set to drive to Morzine in France for the second to last stage of the Dauphiné Libéré. After getting lost in the first 30 seconds I got my bearings and met up with the team mechanics at the race hotel. The riders were on the road but there was plenty to do at the truck and the mechanics were hard at work. I joined them and started building a Soloist Carbon that would end up being for Kurt-Asle Arvesen. I immediately was impressed with the CSC truck and how efficiently it was all set up. When you are on the road as much as these guys are everything has to be as easy as possible or you’ll burn out in a hurry.
It was a beautiful summer day in the mountains and I found myself building a prototype bike for a pro cyclist in a small mountain town as Santiago Botero zoomed by, stringing out the field. It could not get better than this I figured. How wrong I was.
CSC is a great team and run with the typical “do it right the first time” mentality of its Danish management. After talking to the team’s equipment manager (and sometimes directeur sportif) Carsten Jeppesen I got the impression if you can’t make it on CSC then you probably aren’t going to make it at all. I was quite surprised at the level of support the riders receive. They seem to only have to concern themselves with eating, sleeping and riding while everyday tasks like carrying your bags, making meals etc. are left up to the soigneurs.
The next day I was given the privilege of riding in the second team car to Avoriaz. I knew it was going to be the ride of my life when Carsten said openly that “this is going to be scary but remember, I know what I’m doing”. Well he was not kidding. All drivers apparently must be fully licensed race car drivers! The twisty descent down the mountain at break neck speed was almost a bit more than I could handle and I almost threw up. All I could think of was I was glad I had not eaten the lunch the soigneurs had packed us or it would have been all over. I counted myself a bit lucky for being in the second car as I assume the pace was a little slower than the first car that must make sure it keeps up with the race. The lead car also got rear ended by another team car that day! Their real concern was not the accident as these things happen but more if the car could be fixed in time for the Tour. After the impact the rear hatchback would not open anymore and that would be a problem in the Tour.
Kurt had ridden the Soloist Carbon up and down the twisty mountains and was very pleased with the ride. He commented that the front-end rigidity was very good and diving through the corners was effortless. Chalk one up for the new bike.
After the Dauphiné Libéré we immediately crossed the Swiss Alps to get to the third stage of the Tour de Suisse the next day. After getting through the mountain passes on roads that I could never imagine supporting car traffic I thought the hard part was behind me but now I was driving my own rental car trying to keep up with Carsten who was also going to the Tour de Suisse. He may have a race car driver license, but I don’t! Suffice to say I was happy to arrive alive.
Another day and another race. We arrived after the time trial which was disappointing as I would have loved to see that but again there was not time to lament; more work had to be done to get the boys on the road. At Suisse I met a new mechanic named Henk from the Netherlands that loved the job like I thought no one could. Together we built a Soloist Carbon for Jens Voigt and got Bobby Julich’s crazy rings to work on another proto. It is extremely important to mimic the exact position of the riders’ current bikes as even a slight change can send their body into a knot when you ride as much as these riders do.
Henk was a great mechanic and in a free moment at breakfast (after the morning work was done) I had the opportunities to pick his brain on ways to improve our bikes. He was an unbelievable resource and at the same time it was nice to see he didn’t have that many requests and overall he was very happy with the equipment.
Again I was given the opportunity to drive to the stage finish in Austria with the team car. This time I was assured it would be a more enjoyable ride and boy was it. Passing through the Swiss and Austrian countryside while stopping for free treats the race sponsors were giving out…. Well, now I know why the directeurs sportifs are heavier than the riders!
The stage took us up to an Austrian ski town, up a slope I knew I could not do myself without a 39-27 gearing. The riders were using 39-23 and 25 and going way faster than anyone I know ever could. The pack started to spread out and the radio squawked out that we had to go up to Andrea Peron so away we went passing dropped riders. My heart zoomed with the thought of being able to lean out the window to adjust a derailleur but Andrea was fine. On the decent into the finish we were surrounded by riders weaving in and out of the cars. Fortunately the drivers have a special horn language to warn each other of approaching cyclists.
Jens did not say much about the bike, which was good news. He is not afraid to speak his mind so if there was anything wrong I was assured he would have told me.
After another late night of helping the mechanics my whirl wind trip of Europe ended. The next day I was back in Toronto to try and catch up on the work that awaited me back home. I started to relate the mechanics’ job to mine. For all of us, there is little time to stop and smell the roses during the season, but since we love what we do we can’t complain. Well, we can, but nobody would listen.
By Heather Travis
Picture It: Ironman Coeur D’Alene (Idaho), Cervélo staffers man the Official Ironman North America Bike Sponsor booth complete with their fleet of P3SLs, Soloists and one 56cm P3 Carbon all available for test rides. Along comes Brent Foster, a Professional Triathlete from New Zealand , to give the P3C a test. Forty minutes later Brent came riding back into the tent with only one question (and a huge smile), “please tell me I can ride this Sunday (for the race)?”
Brent liked the P3C so much he wanted to take a bike out for an IM event, having only been on it for 40 minutes. “The fit, the ride……oh…. everything I put into that bike it pushed out, it’s perfection,” Brent said. Needless to say, most athletes are not fond of change before race day, let alone changing to a new bike. Brent even took out the Demo Shimano tri shoes because he liked how comfortable they were.
Chris, our in-house Customer Service Technician who had just returned from Europe and was now in Idaho for the test ride program, made some minor fit adjustments to the P3C, and (for lack of a better expression) it was off to the races.
Breaking the IM CdA swim record with an overall time of 45:48, Brent was first out of the transition area (well ahead of Simon Lessing) on his Demo P3C and in his Demo Shimano shoes. Brent completed the bike with the 8th fastest bike split and finished off the event in 5th place.
Congratulations to Brent on an amazing IM showing from all of us at Cervélo.
P3 Carbon
With all the excitement surrounding the P3 Carbon, it is easy to lose track of what it is all about. In the end, all that matters is that P3 Carbon owners achieve their goals, whatever they may be. So it is gratifying to see Ivan Basso win his first ever time trial in the Giro on his P3 Carbon, or see Brett Foster, a pro triathlete, borrow a P3 Carbon the day before race day and finish fifth at Ironman Idaho (see the story elsewhere in this newsletter). But most importantly, it is rewarding to see how much people like the bike when they have a chance to take it out for a test ride.
We now hold test rides at all Ironman North America events, and it is quite amazing to see the reaction people get when riding a P3 Carbon. They feel fast, they feel comfortable, and usually the grin across their face says it all when they come back from their ride. Of course, the drawback is that the demand for the P3 Carbon is just getting higher and higher, so even though we are close to our projected ship quantities it’s not enough to meet demand. But by all accounts, it seems to be worth waiting for.
Bicep Compressors:
Bicep what? Definitely one of the unsung heroes in our 05 range, the Bicep Compressors offer your arms……well, the best way to explain it comes from Dwayne in our bike sales department: “they are like batteries for your biceps”.
Using our Peak Pro full compression fabric (the same ultra wicking, ultra breathable, ultra compression fabric used on our popular FBD 2.0 Tri Short and super aero TT Skinsuit the Solitude 2.0) the Bicep Compressors are ideally worn under your jersey and help to support your upper arm on long hard rides.
Have you ever gone up a climb out of the saddle and wonder why it is your arms are killing you while your legs are just getting warmed up? The Bicep Compressors help the muscles in the bicep/triceps by increasing blood flow. The increase in blood flow decreases the lactic acid build up and thus improves your rides letting you ride harder and longer before feeling the effects of a great workout.
Here in Toronto we are early in our riding season and we all know how much those first few rides out hurt. Wearing the Bicep Compressors now and throughout the season help keep arms energized and using the Peak Pro fabric reduces pain and tightness in the back and shoulders.
Arms are your primary shock absorber when riding, so why not treat them to a little energy boost. We also offer the same great shock absorbing “batteries” for your full arm with our Full Arm Compressors. Oh, and did I mention that not only do both styles come in black, but they also come in super pro, super sexy white.
To view our entire apparel offering, read more about these awesome compressors and to find your local Cervélo Apparel dealer, please visit www.cervelo.com/apparel.
© All Photos Tim De Waele
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