[socal]

Thanks.

yeah, I haven't been a fan of Pinarello since the 'Prince'

Congratulations on the weight loss Turbo. What did you not like about the Prince?

 

[socal]

I should have made that more clear. The Prince was the last bike by Pinarello that I liked. I don't particularly care for the styling of the Dogma and their lower end models look similar to other makes other than the forks.

I rode the Evo and liked it very much. It is very light. I found it stiff but not unforgiving. The Super Six is a bit more compliant and less expensive.

I recently test rode the BMC Team and Race machine. I prefer the european geometry of BMC's. I found the Team Machine more compliant than the Race Machine- thinner seat stays.

Wheels help with the look of the bike.I like my newly acquired Mavic Cosmic Carbone SL wheels. A lighter alternative is the Mavic Ksyriuym SL- 1500 Grams. The Ksyrium SR is lighter still but difficult to true.

Great choices you have. I think I would go with the BMC Impec.- great European geometry, comfortable and high cool factor.

 

[socal]

However, the EVO Red package is very attractively priced for what you actually get.

Have you ridden with Sram? I could never really get comfortable with it. I prefer having seperate up/down levers vs. guessing at the amount of travel to upshift with the one Sram lever.

 

[socal]

Turbo, buy a used complete high end bike from Craigslist instead of a new groupo. Much more bang for the buck. Examples:

BMC SLX01 52CM Roadbike

2008 BMC Pro Machine SLC 01 53cm

CERVELO RS

 

[socal]

2-3 lap races in the park so I guess that's a CRIT. Going to sign up for a few of these races:

http://www.bikereg.com/inc/content/flyers/2011SSflyerfull.pdf

I'm with you Turbo- looking forward to some crits this spring.

I will need to get a throwaway bike because I don't want to crash the Pinarello. I'm thinking of a Cannondale Caad.

The dealer offered me this. Its a Colnago C59. Campy Super Record. Mavic SLR rims. Incredible ride. The bike, including the manuf of the tubes, is hand made in Italy. Not a throwaway bike...

 

[socal]

In any event I had the chance to ride on the new components. I took a familiar road where there's a slight incline. The last time I rode there I pedaled at 17-18mph. Today on a windy day I went up that same road at 22mph. So the fact that I've lost a ton of weight and have some top notch components was worth at least 4mph on a familiar stretch of road.

The Ultegra Crank is definitely stiffer. My ankle got sore towards the end of the ride. I've lost some steam in my sprint. I seem to have been faster on the old Aluminum Trek that I had before. Maybe the steel is flexing a bit and killing some of my sprint effort. I can't really tell. The bike overall accelerates very well. It honestly felt like a new ride.

Felt similarly on my ride today. My LBS allowed me to swap into a smaller frame with a longer stem- so much better. Also, replaced aero wheel with Mavic Kyserium SR and a Dura Ace cassette- amazing and saved 3/4 of a pound!

 

[socal]

How do you guys rate lightweight wheels against other light parts (crank, shifter, frame)?

I just finished a race to city bike conversion for my wife and am now on to my next project, a hardtail mtb. Starting with a bare frame, because it´s more fun.

After the frame, wheels are the next for lightening...

 

[socal]

I thought it was the opposite actually.

I've been told that a mediocre frame with an excellent wheelset beats a great frame with average wheels any day.

That makes sense Turbo. But if I were building a bike, I would start with a lighter, properly sized frame followed by lighter wheels. Then I would seek a lighter crank/groupo. To me, the frame is the foundation of the bike. It is also the largest single component- largest single weight saving choice. The other stuff is easily and often replaced. In the end it all comes down to how much you have to spend.

BikeRadar.com • View topic - frame, groupset, wheels....which order?

 

[socal]

will your LBS now let you switch back to the correct sized frame? Smaller frame is ok as long as it fits you.....going to a longer stem when most bikes already have too short of a top tube is no bueno.....you would have been better off with the larger frame

I originally bought a 54 CM Center-to-center seat tube with a top tube of 55 CM. We fit the bike with a 90 MM stem. The shorter stem made the bike twitchy on the downhill. LBS replaced the frame with a smaller frame that measures 53 CM Center-to-center seat tube. It has a 54.5 CM top tube and a 100 Mm stem. The replacement bike is lighter and more stable on the downhill. In my particular case, moving down a frame size also resulted in a better fit and a noticeable improvement in power.

 

[socal]

Don't let the pack get away from you...

 

[socal]

Congratulations on completing your first race!