Since we've got cameras, laptops, BlackBerrys, all the related paraphenalia to go with them such as cables and chargers, and we know we'll collect a lot of extra stuff when we're on the race, such as roadbooks, race manuals and so on, there's not much room left for anything else in our wee trolley bags -as we often find when it's time to fly home and our bags are weighed!

It's cool though, we only take two or three items of each type, and once there we quickly fall into our system of wear one / wash one / dry one.  Our undies, socks and t-shirts take a beating, literally, as we delouse them in the bath each night with travel wash. It's a harsh regimen for clothes, particularly since it rained most days we were there, and walking up roads like the Bivio Poggio Salvi, part of the famous Strada Bianchi, which was more like a mud bath that afternoon after two days of rain, certainly tested our washing skills and the robustness of the clothes too.

Fortunately, just before leaving, we got our hands on some of the new T-shirts by Peloton Racer, which we were happy to put to the test on our travels.

Ed in his Campionissino T-shirt, and I meet Richard Pestes.

It's perhaps because we were in Italy, that both Ed and my favourite was the "Campionissimo", a nice shade of light blue and a simple, classy logo celebrating the Italian legend Fausto Coppi - who earned the nickname "Champion of Champions" by winning five Giri d’Italia, two Tours de France, as well as a World Championship and an hour record, together with many other monuments and classics.

Ed wears his favourite 'Milan' T-shirt, whilst interviewing stage winner Matt Goss.

Ed liked the "Milan" shirt too, which features a nice rendering of Cav pipping Haussler last year in San Remo, whilst I really liked the bright orange of the "Kaanibaal" T, a reference to the colour scheme used by Eddy Merckx's Molteni team in the '70's

The other shirt I used was the "Devolder", in tribute to twice Belgian Champ and twice Tour of Flanders winner Stijn.

It's a testament to the quality of the Peloton Racer shirts, that after the less-than-ideal treatment they suffered at the Giro, they're still going strong, they've washed down well; keeping their shape and vibrant colours.

“EUROBIKE 2009” on the beautiful shores of Lac Constance – and VeloResults was right there, courtesy Gregor Russell.

The Continental Tyres Stand.

What’s it all about, Gregor?

"It lets the trade see the 2010 lines; all of the top men from the manufacturers are there, not just distributors - the only thing is that there’s just so much to see that it begins to wash over you, after a while."

What impressed you?

"The new Pinarello Dogma is absolutely stunning (really Gregor!), it‘s unbelievably light, employing the new HM60cf carbon, and the finish is beautiful – it also has custom cable routing for the Dura Ace electronic.

The 2010 Pinarello Dogma.

The Dogma is built to accomodate electronic gearing.

"The Night Rider lighting systems for next year are very neat, very light and bright.

"Giant were displaying their new time trial bike – they have all the data to back up, that overall, it’s the fastest time trial bike on the market.

"The Milani frames were nice; they’re collaborating with Maserati to produce frames.

They call it "the fastest bike in the world".

Any ProTour team bikes?

"Cannondale had Pellizotti’s bike on show – but there was no sign of him.

"Eddy Merckx’s stand was kitted out to look like a Belgian café; with pictures of Eddy’s great triumphs all round the walls – that was cool.

"The problem with a lot of the kit, though, is that it will never reach the UK – you would have import it direct because they don’t have a main agent in this country."

The Eddy Merckx Bar.

And the Merckx bikes on display.

2010 trends?

"Carbon! and white carbon; rims, brakes, hubs.

"Ceramic bearings are cropping up more too; perhaps not at budget prices, but certainly a lot more affordable."

What’s the colour for 2010?

"White! wheels, rims, frames, hubs."

If it's not white, it's not right.

Retro?

"Yes, lots! Viktor will be delighted!

"‘Fixies’ are big and single speeds – Pinarello, Colnago and De Rosa all had fixed bikes; with Cinelli doing a retro single speed bike."

Cinelli with some wild and wonderful track rigs.

‘Must haves?’

"If you have deep pockets – the Shimano electronic; it’s faultless.

"Campag are still working on their electronic 11 speed, word is that they are trying to get the batteries internal – inside the brake levers!"

Mark Cavendish's Tour Scott was there to see. (click for the full image)

Famous faces?

"Zabel was there with Columbia and Scott; Jens Heppner is with Bio Racer; Cipollini is launching a clothing range, but his bikes aren’t ready yet; Chris Boardman was there too – but he was tight lipped about Sky.

"I think he was there to promote his bikes into the European market."

Pippo's KoM jersey from the Tour.

And you met the ‘Pistollero?’

"We were going onto the Giro stand and I literally bumped into him – I did a double take; “that’s Contador!” he was very relaxed, laid back.

Bert was pressing the flesh in the name of Giro Helmets and Glasses.

"Garmin had Chris Sutton – who won the Tour of Britain stage last week – on their stand."

Cervelo, like all the manufacturers, make a big effort here. (click for the full image)

Do Campag and Shimano try to out do each other?

"Both had very impressive stands, but Campag’s was the best designed – very ‘arty.’

"You could try the ergo levers; and they had the components in transparent cases with magnified sections so that you could see how good the finish was.

"Campag is very popular now, there’s not the price difference that there used to be with Shimano.

"Campag have a huge array of wheels now, for every conceivable use.

"SRAM had a big presence – they’ve won the Tour remember, but I don’t think they’re moving that much product in Britain."

And the ‘crazies?’

"A list as long as your arm!

"Rohloff had 14 speed hubs; there was a hall full of electric bikes – including a three-and-a-half grand electric trike!

"Hi tech rollers were a big thing too; where you can get out of the saddle and with variable resistance."

It's clever, but would you buy one? (click for the full image)

And the best looking girls?

"The yellow leather clad ‘Kill Bill’ girls at the Continental party were very nice!"

It's a tough job, Gregor.

I get Dan Fleeman; he gets the Kill Bill Girls – that can’t be right!

When we join the race next week we will of course be bringing you more bike-geek articles!

Liquigas - Cannondale Super Six

First up, Liquigas. They're still in the race, despite Beltran being caught and flung out for testing positive on a Stage 1 control. Later, we'll tell you about the one-off, trick paint job on Pellizotti's machine done by Stefano at Barza Design (see here for the trick paint job he had at the Giro), but for now, thanks to Rory Mason at Cannondale, we can also explain the 'fat at the head and bracket, skinny at the seat stays' looks.

Pello's custom Barza-designed Cannondale.

"That's part of balancing the way the Super Six rides. You want it rigid where you need it (bb area and front end) and comfortable where it matters (seat stays). Our form certainly follows the function."

Talking of form, Pello sits his back in the classic pro position, seat up high, stem long and down low to give an extended but comfortable position.

The new Super Six has an integrated bracket in a huge carbon shell, even the 'world's coolest cyclist' Danielle Bennati can't deflect it (Benna isn't riding the Tour , but stay tuned - this is interesting!) Cannondale have been developing it over the last eight years and the system is now being adopted by other builders. Liquigas - like all good Italian teams should, ride Campag gruppos.

Pellizotti is a big fella.

Back in my youth, Francesco Moser's team decided to go with Shimano and it nearly caused a civil war in Italy!

However, they do ride Cannondale's own ultra-light Hollowgram chainset.

The team colour's of lime green, white and black don't sound appealing, but in the flesh it looks sharp as a tack.

Cannondale have the answers!

We asked Rory if triple Giro stage winner Bennati rides the same frame as Pellizotti; "Benna has a custom geometry due to his position and build. Since the SuperSix is a monocoque in the front triangle, we built him a custom mould. In doing so, we experimented with tube shapes and carbon layups to better suit his riding style. It is possible that some of the information gained in these trials with Benna could make it into production bicycles." You ask those dudes at Cannondale a question - you get an answer!

Benna has the classic sprinter's saddle high, bars down low, with long extension set up. The gruppo is Campag and the cranks are Cannondale's own chainset, of which Rory says; "The Hollowgram Si SL crankarm is machined from two pieces of aluminum and bonded together. It is extremely lightweight (hollow inside with thin walls) and very rigid. It is also very durable and reliable." So now you know!

Benna's bike is a bit different from Pello's.

In Liquigas sharp, green, white and black livery, it all adds up to a stunning looking machine. And with a tanned Benna astride it in ciclamino shorts and jersey, it's hard to get any cooler.

Columbia - Giant 09 Proto

Benny Devcich, High Road's spanner man was happy to give us the juice on the machine on which Mark Cavendish won two stages and the "fairplay" award for the Giro, and has today won his second Tour stage into Toulouse as well, ripping past Jimmy Casper, Oscar Freire and Robert Förster as if they weren't really trying.

Cav rides a bike that is as stiff as possible.

"Mark is riding the 2009 prototype, it has an integrated bottom bracket which is 40% stiffer than the previous frame and with the redesign at the head and square down tube, it's 40% stiffer at the front too.

"The lower head race is up to 1 1/4" with a 1 1/8" top race. Whilst there have been all these increases in stiffness at the bracket and head, a softer ride has been dialed in at the rear, with one of the features to achieve this being the curved seat stays.

Cav wants a beefier stem than this.

"The objective for 2009 is to have all team bikes, irrespective of size at a weight of 6.85 kilograms, that's with a Shimano gruppo and Zipp 202 wheels."

There's not much to add, save - it's damn light!

Lampre - Wilier Triestina

Wilier of Triestina have been around an awful long time, but their big break-through came when the late Marco Pantani used one to charge up mountains at a prodigious rate for Mercatone Uno, back in the mid 90's.

Marzio Bruseghin (Bruz) is a powerhouse of a rider and his win in that tough Giro stage 10 time trial speaks for itself.

We're not sure about Brus' red spokes though.

Bruz is cool, but team mate Fabio Baldato now in his 18th season is beyond cool - he's cult, and the only cyclist in the world who gets away with a beard.

Bruz's machine displays an integrated seat post, but a little different from a lot of the others, inasmuch as there's a fair gap between the saddle rails and the top of the ISP giving much more scope for height adjustment.

ISP's in some people's books mean a harsh ride. It looks to us that Wilier have compensated by curving the seat stays to dial in a little compliance.

The pink and blue jersey colours sound like they shouldn't work, but they do and when applied to the frame with splashes of black carbon visible, it looks fresh and attractive.

Lampre's Wilier.

Despite a world full of composite wheels, if the roads are rough and the descents dangerous, hand built wheels still rule the roost. Campag of - of course - gruppos, complete the look.

Milram - Colnago Extreme Power

Erik Zabel, the pro's pro, fit all year and always there or thereabouts, albeit his best years are behind him. Still, he's placed 4 times in the top 10 on stages in the Tour so far, with a best of 3rd.

His Colnago Extreme Power is the stiffest frame to come out of Ernesto's stable to date; Pez's Charles Manantan comprehensively (that's an understatement!) tested one last year (have a look at the article and some great photos here) so I won't embarrass myself by trying to tell you about it, save it's the internal carbon ribs within the tubes which make it so stiff - 30% so according to Colnago.

Most pro's simply don't "do" stack height.

Zabel is a complete bike-nut: he keeps a bike from every team he's ridden with - and from every season - in a basement flat in his home town, and he's still keen to get data about his performances: after all these years, you have to wonder what he's going to do with it. So his Shimano gruppo includes SRM-dedicated cranks.

SRM's crank offering used to be a bit basic; getting the job of gathering data was more important than shiny looks, but lately most crank manufacturer's offer an SRM compatible model and Shimano's is one of the sleekest.

The Milram blue is attractive and Colnago's decals never date.

Saunier Duval - Scott Addict

Scott have always been at the cutting edge in the lightness stakes. The aluminium frames they made for the short lived French Jean Delatour pro squad were superlite gems.

The Addict came out of the CR1, a frame which set a benchmark for carbon bicycles.

The Addict however, has more aggressive geometry and everything (except the bottom bracket threads) including cable stops and rear fork ends are in carbon.

Riccò's Cobra Scott is very well done.

Almost inevitably, there's also an integrated seat post. Over the last few years the designers at Scott have made a speciality of custom paint jobs for their star's machines; Riccardo Riccò's version is no exception and it gets the full "Cobra" treatment too.

Love it or hate it, it gets guys like me snapping away and folks like you reading the Scott name on websites and in the magazines. The guys at Scott must have known that Riccardo was going to wear the white jersey for best 'Giovani' - young rider - at the Giro (or was it that he was going to win a stage - or more? - at the Tour in the new white-based team kit?) when they chose white for the paint instead of team yellow.

The designers at fi'zi:k saddles get in on the act too, and Riccò sits on a rather fierce looking fanged reptile. Saunier have stuck with SRAM this year, the 'Red' gruppo. A full review of these components appeared on Pez here. The folks at SRAM have huge experience in off road componentry, but their move onto tarmac is a brave one, given the dominance of the 'big two' - Campagnolo and Shimano.

The cobra is painted, it's not a sticker.

The uni-directional gear change on the shifters works beautifully and it's good to see their completely different approach to gear changing. The brakes are minimalistic gems, contrasting with the huge SRAM graphics on the cranks.

"The Cobra" - another example of a self-made nickname.

Riccò is running a compact chainset even on stages which don't include mountains - the mechanics will like that; a lot less chopping and changing of rings and cassettes.

Yes, we know Diquigiovanni and Astana aren't riding the Tour, but we thought that while we're talking about beautiful bikes, we could show you these gems as well...

Diquigiovanni - Guerciotti Khaybar

Diquigiovanni have taken the unpatriotic (well, for Italians anyway) route and gone to Japan for their components. We spotted oversize lower rollers on the rear mechs of Gibo and Hondo's bikes at the Giro; the mechanics don't know what they do; "mountain bike!". We think it's a method of reducing chain friction...

Oversize rollers reduce friction.

If Pello is long, relaxed and streamlined, Gibo Simoni is short, nervous and upright. It's always difficult for small riders to get an asthetically pleasing form on the bike and Simoni alas bears this out.

Guerciotti's are always beautifully turned out.

However, he's one of the most experienced pros in the bunch and when it comes to climbing, there's not much you can tell him. The short stem suits his punchy 'on the tops' climbing style allowing his arms to give strong purchase and his lungs to be open, not constricted by being hunched up, as he scales those Dolomiti monsters.

Gibo's machine has the 'bare carbon' look, the lacquering having been kept to a minimum. Lacquering a carbon frame is purely cosmetic, the GB track team's 'stealth' machines, for example, are left 'bare' in the interests of saving precious grammes.

We like white-based colour schemes.

The rest of Sr. Flavio's squadra ride white machines, which to our eye looks much nicer with the predominantly white jersey.

Like so many other manufacturers, Guerciotti have gone down the integrated seat post route, and it's a neat one; but it's from the "nothing new under the sun" file - English frame builders Carlton had one back in the 70's.

There's a drawback with the system however. If you're a big rider, it makes transporting the machine a whole lot more awkward.

Astana - Trek Madone

The frame that won the Tour for Alberto Contador last year is little changed for his Giro win this year. Change comes slowly at Trek and only for good reason, there's no rush to follow fashions; they were one of the last to eschew conventional headsets and go A-head.

Talking of headsets, there's the neatest and smallest of engraving on the top races; cool!

Check out the engraving - this is very trick.

The 2007 ISP is still neat and has graduations to assist in finding optimal position. The bracket remains big, strong and home to an integrated axle.

What has changed is the gruppo; after a long association - via US Postal and Discovery - with Japan, Johan Bruyneel and Trek have let the sun set on Shimano and returned to Europe and SRAM. Bert winning the Giro was a major coup for the new kids on the block.

Hudz meanz any colour you want.

Bert ran a compact with 34/53 on all the Giro stages, mechanic Alan Buttler tells is that there's no problems with shifting, despite the big 'jump.'

Trek's own Bontrager wheels, with super neat flangeless hubs do the rolling.

In common with most pros, Bert has the stem hard down on the top race with no stackers, 'compact and aero' are the watchwords for a professional's position in this millenium.

You could only get away with this if a) you're wearing the maglia rosa, or b) you're a girl.

The Astana baby blue colour is contrasted with white and dark blue; but pink tape and shifter rubbers to go with the maglia rosa? You be the judge!

Riccardo Riccò, the young team leader for Saunier Duval–Scott and winner of Stage 1 on Sunday, used the new bike in the opening Team Time Trial last Saturday.  

Following the pattern Scott have set with the Addict and the Spark, the Plasma2 is very very light: the medium frame weighs only 1340g and the fork 400g. Note the front wheel cutaway on the downtube too.

The Plasma2 is an evolution of the original Plasma, and it draws upon the years of R&D conducted since its release. The Scott engineers relied on input from professional cyclists on Team Saunier Duval–Scott, along with data acquired from wind tunnel testing, to improve the design.

Scott has also made dramatic improvements in their carbon processes since inventing the “tube to tube” style construction introduced with the CR1.

The Plasma2 uses super-narrow tube profiles - the chainstays for example are only 11mm wide, and the seat tube is only 25.9mm (the equivalent Cervelo is 28.8 and my own Kuota is 32.2mm!).

Scott has further developed and improved their carbon processes, resulting in an entirely new method of maximizing carbon material called IMPSM (Integrated Molding Process).

The first bikes to feature IMPSM were the Addict and Spark models, both category weight leaders last year.

Integrated and very neat fork / head interface.

This process allows Scott engineers to optimize the use of material in critical areas of the frameset using shape, thickness and a unique blend of carbon called HMXSM (High Modulus Xtreme) to save precious weight while maintaining the integrity of each layer of carbon fibre.

The CR1 process was a turning point for carbon bicycle construction as it managed each layer during the process in regards to tension in the fibres, bias of the material and preventing folds and voids in the carbon.

Scott's most complicated and sophisticated carbon structure ever. Top tube, down tube, head tube, seat and chain stays all use the new IMP (integrated moulding process) process.

The Plasma2 features IMP5SM; in this new and sophisticated process the individual top, head, down and seat tubes along with a portion of the chain stays are created in one step.

The Twin TurboSM chain stays are tucked away from the turbulent bottom bracket area, resulting in a very clean aero profile and less drag too.

The Plasma2 represents a 20% decrease in overall drag in the wind tunnel, while retaining it’s lightweight competitive edge.

The down-fin channels wind around the rear wheel, and allows for a narrower downtube construction. There's total internal cable routing as well.

The Plasma2’s Shelter127SM wheel coverage provides an increased area of protection and causes the bike to be more slippery and aero into a headwind.

Seamless wheel coverage: 80 deg on the rear and 47 deg on the front = 127 deg of wind cheating aerodynamics. Even the water cage bosses are aero!

Another feature of the bike are the SDS seat stays, which are much more compliant than standard aero tubing stays, and result in reduced fatigue over the course of a TT split.

The twin-turbo aero carbon chain stays. The alloy hangars are replaceable, and the rear brake position is adjustable to suit the wheel and tyre in use.

The bike carried Riccò and his teammates to 15th place in Saturday's Stage 1 TTT, but they were only a few seconds over a minute down on Team Slipstream (acknowledged TTT experts). That means they lost on average around 2 seconds per kilometre - not bad for a bunch a climbers and non-time trial specialists!

All the cables route through the frame, with rubber seals preventing grime and dirt from entering the frame.

Stay tuned though - the individual TT next Tuesday (20/05) from Pesaro to Urbino, will provide a better indication as to the effectiveness of the Plasma2.

We managed to get a sneak preview and a short ride on an Astana team bike recently when they were in Spain for their first training camp.

First of all it’s great to have another choice other than Campagnolo and Shimano and the SRAM Red is a group that is as competitive as Record or Dura–Ace: it's light; it looks good; and it works like a dream - once you get used to it that is!

Shifters

Unlike their competitors, the SRAM shifters only use one lever to change gear. As you all know, Shimano use the brake lever and an extra lever behind the brake lever, whereas Campagnolo use a lever on the side of the body of the brake and a lever behind the brake lever. Both systems use one lever to go up the gears and another to come back down.

The SRAM “Double Tap” system uses the same lever, behind the brake lever, to go up and to go down. It’s different, but after an hour or so it became second nature.

SRAM double-tap brake lever.

First the look of the lever is similar to Campagnolo Record, but without the small lever on the inside of the body, also the neat little Red logo’s on the black lever makes these levers standout from the bunch.

Full frontal.

Probably the best facet of the levers, after the “Double Tap” function, would be the adjustable reach on the brake lever and gear lever to suit your hand size and the reach of your fingers.

You first adjust the gear lever, then the brake lever to your needs. This is a great function that all brake lever / shifters should have. Lots of carbon is involved to make the RED shifters 10% lighter than the Force shifters.

here is also a choice of cable routing which is great if you own bars with a tight bend for the cabling at the back of the bars, and with the Red you can have the cables at the front.

Cranks

The carbon cranks are also similar to the Campagnolo set in the way it looks, apart from the Red logo.

Drivetrain.

The set weighs in at a feather light 760 grams for the full set and the bottom bracket uses Black Box Ceramic bearings for a smooth, resistance free, pedaling.

The cranks come in six different lengths and three chain ring combinations, 53/39 and compact 50/36 and 50/34, and are made of 7075-T6 aluminum and alloy fixing bolts.

Gearing

The rear derailleur is very light weight and works with great precision; the weight is saved by the use of carbon and titanium.

The rear mech shares a lot of technology with the MTB model.

The pulleys have ceramic bearings and the cage is made of carbon, brining the weight down to only 153 grams and the mechanism will take a maximum 28 tooth sprocket.

The front derailleur has a hardened titanium cage onto the alloy body and now has more adjustability due to the fine tune on the left lever, more like the Campagnolo small clicks.

Alan Buttler, the Astana Mechanic and previously with Discovery and U.S. Postal teams, thought the rear mech the best bit of componentry he had seen for a long time, so with his experience, if he says it's good it must be good.

"One of the best bike components ever".

The sprocket cassette is a wonderful piece of engineering: light, stiff and very hard. In fact everything you want from a cassette, it’s also Red on the inside, so it’s very visible.

The cassette is machined out of a solid block of Chromo-steel that has been heat treated and then shaped by CNC methods. You don’t need to understand it, but when you see one it’s like no other cassette you have ever seen and weighs in at only 160 grams.

When I was at the Astana camp the team were using Shimano cassettes and chains as they were waiting for the gear ratios that they needed, otherwise they would have been on it.

SRAM chains have always been amongst the best, they have the “Power Lock” connecting link which is secure and so much easier than any other system. The pins are hollow for weight saving and strength, top chain.

Brakes

When I looked at the Force and Rival group sets I didn’t much like the look of the brakes and well, I still don’t!

Bert's bike.

Don’t get me wrong here, they work brilliantly, with a sharp feel like Shimano, but that 'skeletonized' look I just can’t get used to, and now I have another reason not to like them, they are silver (which is OK), but with all that black carbon on all the other bits, then the brakes should be black.

I guess the main thing is that they work, which when it comes to stopping that’s very important. They also look very much like the Campagnolo cut away design - and I don’t much like the look of them either.

How does it Ride?

Obviously I was riding a team Trek Madone, the same bike as Tour winner Alberto Contador rides - in fact it was his spare bike, so you can’t get better than that!

We got to ride Bert's spare bike.

The bike felt great as it also was fitted with Bontrager wheels.

The shifters took a little to get used too, but with more practice you wouldn’t have to think about it, it would become second nature changing gear, the gear change is precise and accurate, without any slips or miss changes.

The brakes are very sharp compared to the Campagnolo Record that I am used too.

The chainset doesn’t hit your ankle and looks good too.

Everything else felt as only a top class race bike should, no complaints (except those silver brakes should be black).

Overall I would say the SRAM Red group compares very well with Shimano Dura-Ace and Campagnolo Record, if two of the best teams on the planet use it and are successful and happy then you don’t need to worry.

This review was originally written for www.bikecyclingreviews.com. Check it out if you want to see the original work and some different photos of the group set.

Check out the exotic machines ridden by the world’s top track squads, Australia, France and GB, the common denominator? Dugast.

All the Mavic carbon wheels used by these squads will be shod with the pink tread banded beauties.

The once dominant Clement silks have disappeared, and only German firm Continental rival the originally French products which are now made in Denekamp, Holland, and even then, Continental supply Dugast with their tyre carcasses.

Every tyre has the name hand-printed onto it.

Dutchman Richard Nieuwhuis is at the helm but founder of the company, Andre Dugast now in his 70s is still involved in the quest for the perfect tubular.

The German national team still run Contis but there has to be suspicion that this is only due to sponsorship obligations.

There are no freebies from Dugast, even world champions (or their Federation) have to pay for them.

In total contrast to the super light low drag track tubulars on display at Manchester World Cups, Dugast also dominate the muddy world of cyclo-cross.

In 2003 at the cross worlds at Monopoli, Italy the Belgian rider Sven Nijs decided he would be better spending his money on new tyres for his camper van, the price being roughly the same as for the Dugasts.

A certain Bart Wellens did not agree and put his Euros down on the counter.

The wiry Belgian rode the tubulars, which had been specifically designed by Nieuwhuis to suit the tree root plagued course, to a puncture free victory.

The classic track-rider's equipment, although carbon wheels have taken over these days.

This year at Pont-Chateau, France all the favourites, including Nijs were on Dugasts.

The Elite podium with Wellens again on the top rung was a Dugast clean sweep.

It almost goes without saying that Nieuwhuis had visited the course personally prior to designing the tyres for the championship.

Interestingly, the fibres used to make the cross tubulars carcass’ are the same as those used for up-market ladies lingerie.

Back to a world devoid of tree roots but still involving wood, in the form of timber slats built in to a steeply banked track.

The track tyres are made from natural materials, cotton or silk for the carcass, natural latex for those sexy pink tread bands.

Not much puncture-protection here!

Nieuwhuis recommends cotton for smooth indoor tracks and silk for outdoor tracks where the timber is affected by the weather.

Silk can be used indoors but the already high running pressures, (8-14 bar) should be raised 10%.

The latex tread bands are not vulcanised so are flexible and fast and are only some 15% of the thickness of a normal vulcanised tyres tread band.

The process of vulcanising makes a tyre tougher but slower.

The tread bands are hand glued, using no heat onto the carcass, to save weight the side walls have no protective layer of latex or rubber and must be carefully protected when in transit.

In a match sprint or bunch race a touch of wheels can fatally damage the fragile side walls.

The quality of the raw materials; small numbers of tubulars produced annually (around 2,500 for track use) and the labour intense process mean Dugasts do not come cheap, between €90 and €160 each, but their roll of honour speaks for itself.

One Australian retailer of the product attributes that nations' track successes solely to the super light tubulars, that is an exaggeration but one thing is sure, come the Olympics this year the bulk of the medals will be won on Dugast.

Wilier
Wilier have adopted a ‘one size fits all’ approach for their carbon monocoques. The smaller riders have the integrated seat post chopped short, for the big guys its left long and the head stacked, It shouldn’t look good, but it does.

Lampre Wilier.

Cervelo
The bikes that still set the standard for specialist chrono velos, a new paint job this year looks even meaner than usual.

CSC Cervelo.

Look
Developed from their world-beating track frames with unique steering arrangement, not new, but still neat.

Credit Agricol Look.

Look steerer arrangement.

Ridley
Based on the Noah road frame with integrated seat post and a mean black spray job.

Predictor Ridley

Pinarello
Some new trick details this season, as cool as you would expect from the legendary Italian builder.

Caisse Pinarello.

Gorgeous carbon head tube and fork.

Pinarello seat cluster.

Specialized
Some of the Gerolsteiner Specialized aren’t; that’s Specializeds, I mean, try Walser! Black is the colour for tt bikes this year.

Gerolsteiner Specialized.

Specialized radical bars, nice, but are they legal? (the UCI 3:1 aero rule).

BMC
Radical, we like them, cool colour.

Astana BMC.

Cut off saddles - not exactly legal, but there again, we reckon some of the rules are bonkers, and discriminate against the smaller rider.

Unique steerer adjustment.

Time
Great decals this year, one of the best looking chrono bikes out there.

Cofidis Time.

Gorgeous paint / decal job.

Scott
The ‘stealth’ look still works, but Viktor hates them!

Saunier Scott.

The frame offers a number of features which make it well suited for the cobbled classics, the most physically demanding races of the calendar, both for the riders and their equipment.

Filippo Pozzato's Synapse photographed at the end of Sector 3.

High modulus carbon unibody construction results in a strong and lightweight frame while the optimized tube shapes of the S.A.V.E. chainstays and fork blades, and Triaxial Hourglass seatstays provide the vibration reduction that is crucial for these demanding races.

The optimized tube shapes of the S.A.V.E. fork blades.

S.A.V.E. (Synapse Active Vibration Elimination) is a Cannondale-exclusive technology. The carbon fiber chainstays and fork blades have been strategically molded into a unique, tapered shape. When combined with varying wall thicknesses, fiber layers and fiber angles, it creates enough flex to dampen road vibration.

The Synapse’s Triaxial Hourglass Seatstays provide a tuned ride through the strategic curving of the seatstays.

In addition, when compared to the System Six that Team Liquigas has powered to victory many times this season, the Synapse has a 5mm longer wheelbase which aids in tracking over the cobbled roads.

The Synapse has a 5mm longer wheelbase.

Team Liquigas riders Manuel Quinziato and Roberto Petito have chosen the Synapse as their primary race bike for the 2007 season.

Their feedback was positive and resulted in the team’s choosing the Synapse for their Northern Classics campaign. Petito states: “For longer races and the cobbles, it’s perfect. The Synapse is comfortable, but still very competitive.”

Team Liquigas ride the last few sectors of the Paris-Roubaix route two days before the race.

Quinziato, who was seen on the attack charging up the Cipressa at Milan-San Remo, echoes his teammate’s sentiment: “The Synapse really impresses with its comfort and light weight, and the integrated crank keeps it responsive under power.”

Paolini crashed mid-race on Sunday, damaging his derailleur and forcing a change of bikes back to his System Six, which he then piloted to a fine third-place finish.

Pozzato was in the front group as well, and even put in a strong attack with just 12 km to go, but was pulled back just as the main group shattered into pieces, leaving Paolini to bridge up to the remnants of the chasers and outsprint them for the final podium spot.

We watch the boys chill out in the piazza as we have our lunch.

In last Sunday's Paris-Roubaix, Team Liquigas riders had two hyper-competitive products to choose from, the System Six and the all-carbon Synapse, as they sought to win the toughest race on the calendar. Here at VeloResults we don't think we've seen the last of these boys!

In the 70’s a French union of Stronglight, Simplex and Mafac failed, despite Bernard Thevenet winning two Tours on the kit. Shimano’s Japanese rivals Sugino and Sun Tour tried to get in on the act and despite the neat Sun Tour groupset being ridden by Jan Raas-managed Dutch pro teams in the 80’s, it never made the breakthrough.

Mavic had Toni Rominger, Greg Lemond and Chris Boardman riding their set (complete with huge cranks) into the 90’s but again it never gained mass acceptance.

Enter SRAM, not exactly new kids on the block – their “grip-shift” gears are a legend in mountain bike circles – but new to the rarefied air of the UCI Pro Tour listings where the Saunier Duval team is now kitted-out with SRAM’s new top-end groupset - "Force" (Yeah, yeah, we know – the Force is strong in this one!).

Iban Mayo's bike is running the new SRAM groupset this year.

We caught up with Charles Becker and Ron Ritzler of SRAM at the Saunier Duval team launch in Estepona as they hovered around the mechanics like proud new-fathers around the mid-wife.

Charles Becker and Ron Ritzler.

Shifters

Perhaps the most striking innovation on the groupset is the neat shifter (combined brake/gear lever). Unlike Campagnolo, whose ‘Mickey Mouse ears” up-shift tabs spoil otherwise elegant aesthetics and Shimano who went down the double-articulation on the brake lever route – disconcerting when you are out of the saddle on the brake hoods and the lever moves with your hand – SRAM appear to have got it just right.

Double hidden cables.

A secondary lever, a la Campag and Shimano is situated behind the main brake lever, which is in carbon, also per Campag [Shimano have steadfastly resisted the carbon route so far.] There the similarities end because the SRAM lever, which is made from electro-painted wonder-material, magnesium, moves the chain up AND down the cassette; a firm inward push take you through up to a three cog down-shift whilst a lighter touch in the same direction clicks you down one cog at a time.

Left brake lever / shifter.

If it sounds fiddly, it isn’t, in practice it works beautifully and I found myself thinking; “that would be great on my Giant.”  Thank Brian Jordan from SRAM’s Advanced Development Group in Chicago; it was his idea and a great one at that.

Brakes

The brakes are in forged alloy with titanium bolts and sport the currently fashionable additional strut, a la 70’s Dura Ace on the outside calliper arm.

Dual pivots give mega stopping power.

Dual pivots give mega stopping power front and back – unlike Campag who have eschewed twin pivots for rear braking as too powerful. Ron isn’t a fan of internal cable routing, preferring to keep things simple and accessible; and if you are going to err when fitting gear cables – a little too long is always better than a little too short.

Front Mech

The front changer is – well - a front changer, [until Campag or Shimano eventually release their electric options to the buying-pubic it’s hard to get excited]... it’s like Ron says; “you just make it work and keep it of the way.”

A triple option isn’t available, the new drive towards compact chainsets has all but put paid to the triple for top-end racing machines.

Rear Mech

The rear mech is an exotic mix of aluminium, magnesium and carbon, it benefits from SRAM’s years of experience in the inhospitable world of mountain biking with “one to one articulation” – in other words, the distance you move the gear lever is the distance the mech travels; simple and making for very positive shifts.

The pro's love the very positive shifts.

Gear cables are Teflon-coated to keep those shifts smooth.

Cassette

The cassette is currently available in steel but something lighter isn’t far away, sprockets start at 11 and go to 26; with 34/53 compact chain rings available to cover most bases.

Chainset

Talk of chain rings takes us to the heart of the transmission – the chainset. SRAM bought specialist, top-end manufacturer Truvativ, and it’s that company’s expertise which has resulted in the GXP chainset.

The axle is hollow and of large diameter, it’s bonded into the right hand crank. It’s a sliding fit through the over-size bearings which sit out-board of the bracket shell a la Shimano - this gives a very stiff unit when the left hand crank is secured into the axle with an 8 mm self-extracting bolt.

The chainset is a very stiff unit.

The cranks are - almost inevitably now in pro racing – carbon, up to 175 mm. That is - 177.5 and 180 are in the pipeline. Where they differ from some manufacturers is that the alloy inserts to take the pedal axles and crank fixings have the crank arms cold moulded around them – the cranks are not formed then drilled and inserts added; a process which SRAM think is not as sound as their method.

Cranks and chain rings will be available in compact options down to 34 and 36 teeth; larger, time trial specific rings will also be coming along.

So how has the groupset been received?

Ron, now in his eleventh year with SRAM, explained;

“Whilst this is our first foray into the Pro Tour we sponsored two Continental squads last year, Orbea in Spain and Kodak Gallery/Sierra Nevada in the US. Feedback from both of those squads was very positive and it’s been the same here with Scott.”

How about the weight aspect, Ron?

“The groupset is lighter than Dura Ace and Gilberto Simoni’s Addict is coming in at 6.2 kilograms, that’s below the UCI minimum, so there are no problems there.”

The drive train on Miller's bike.

So who made the first approach?

“We have a great relationship with Scott and I guess it was a mutual process. For our part we were excited at the prospect of our components being mounted on the new Scott Addict – the lightest bike in the pro peloton. This is the biggest development we’ve ever under taken, there were 50 people involved in it, including eight German engineers from the bike component company Sachs, which SRAM also owns.

"Given the investment, we wanted to work with a company we knew and which had mutual respect for us. We’ve had a number of approaches from other squads but we preferred to stick with one team – Saunier, where we can have support technicians with the team all the time as it competes round Europe.”

Then it was time to fish in his pocket for a special carbon spacer for a mechanic – there are those new babies to look after, remember!

VeloResults would like to thank Charles and Ron for their generous time, and we look forward to seeing the equipment perform throughout the season.

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