Pro-cycling thread

They've won classics, just not monuments :P

And didn't you blame their crashes on the tyres?

And bog-standard for Hayman, if not bog-standard. They didn't even mod the bottle cages

Since the disc brake intro?

I didn't blame their crashes on anything. Someone asked what tyres they were using and I posted the FMB link.

Why do you need to mod bottle cages? Because some teams have shit bottle cage sponsors.

They put sandpaper on the inside to stop the bottles popping out over the cobbles

I know what they do. I'm saying it's only necessary if your cages are shit in the first place.

Elite ftw

There is no other sector where they've moved to hydraulic disc brakes then gone back, as the performance is superior to existing braking systems. The manufacturers, who pay a lot of money to get teams on their bikes, want it, and consumers appear to want it too (take cx as an example, discs are used sparingly by the pros, but at a local league level the majority of riders are now on discs). Ultimately pros will have to adopt them, so the CPA (which is toothless) should either engage constructively or pipe down.

Cyclocross and MTB don't have the crash potential at speed that road racing does. Disc brakes make perfect sense there. Adding additional danger into a sport where multiple riders crash at speed into each other doesn't seem worth the trade off.

Manufacturers do indeed want disc brakes so they can sell gravel/adventure bikes to the general populace. As for the (majority) of consumers wanting it ? Difficult to tell really. Disc brake bikes are selling, but is that because they're being pushed by the industry ?
Using your Cyclocross example for instance, of the forty Cyclocross bikes listed on Evans, 38 have disc brakes. It's not a suprise therefore that amateur cross races are dominated by disc brakes.

I'm pushing for the UCI to mandate disc brakes for track cycling.

Everybody watch Dan McLay's sprint; Cipo is back!

https://twitter.com/CyclingHubTV/status/720615618983145473?lang=en-gb

I'm definitely not a #buyer but had enough dodgy moments on rim brake bikes to want to try discs when they became readily available on road bikes. I built up a Kinesis 4S disc and I can honestly say the difference is like night and day. There's an improvement in the dry, but they really shine when the weather turns grim. I'll never buy another rim-braked roadie.

Pure filth, love it.

The layman benefits most from discs, pros not so much to warrant them. Problem is the layman wants to emulate the pro, even if their needs do not match. So manufacturers need to the pros to promote their product, the buyer wants to ride on what Cancellara rides even if he isn't Cancellara. The way I see it, the discs will eventually be forced on the peloton....or a strike!

Boonen's comment on big balls personified there.

Lots of factors here.

Performance isnt everything. And this statement means different things to us plebs vs the pros.

For the plebs I'd say mmmmmmaybe blaming rim brakes is a user error.

For pros I reckon its a case of 'if it aint broke why fix it?'

Bottomline is most dont need disc brakes on road bikes; plebs and pros.

And there is still long way to go for them in terms of tech. In terms of design they are still an afterthought.

This on the other hand ..

Awesome shots.

It's like he was surfing through, and such incredible finishing speed

a DSS1 on the other hand

NO

Datum?

Donhou not custom.

Anyway, we have to meet up for a screech ride.

Most likely up Col Du Swains coming Tuesday.

Beasted up in 50:21 this week.

Screeching uphill impressive.

best sprint finish you'll see for a while http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/videos/racing/dan-mclays-sprint-win-gp-de-denain-incredible-video-2?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Social

There were elite bottles being ejected all over the place at P-R, saw lots of sky blue ones.
most teams are on elite (custom race) or tacx (deva) aren't they?

For pros I reckon its a case of 'if it aint broke why fix it?'

I don't think it's that - Pros do adapt to new tech for marginal gains. 8/9/10/11 spd, clipless pedals, electronic groupsets, wider rims/tyres. If disc brakes came without two additional cutting edges added to the bike they'd be (slowly) all over them.

"Blaming rim brakes"? Blaming them for what?

Blaming disc brakes for launching them over the bars?

Disc brakes save expensive rims and especially so in this damp shitty fuckin' country. No matter which way you cut it, disc brakes stop better. On long descents they save hand fatigue - hence picking them for my Ultra bike. On stuff like audax in 25% downhill on shitty lanes I'm really looking forward to disc brakes actually slowly my fat arse down instead of that gritty "oh half my brake pads have gone now" grind down hill.

Road racing in a bunch - I'm still not sure. What if the rotors were shielded and ALL riders were using discs? Would it be the big issue with the riders still?

Afterthought? Really? CenterLock, flat-mount calipers, integrated hydro/di2 shifters? They're probably more aero than that caliper brake you pictured :P