Tom Boonen invited to test Colnago V4Rs after criticism of Tadej Pogačar's bike

[gemship]

Originally Posted by lavi

If I were a Pro Tour carbon guy, the Colnagos would likely be the top of my list. Even with 1.2 mph slower, I wouldn't care.

That's a big "if" for all of us. Aren't pro tour carbon guy's just a bunch of studs humping mares? I mean they need a ride to chase their dreams.

[lavi]

Originally Posted by gemship

That's a big "if" for all of us. Aren't pro tour carbon guy's just a bunch of studs humping mares? I mean they need a ride to chase their dreams.

Colorful description (not a criticism), and I agree.

[monkeybanana86]

Wait what? Colnagos slow? Well how else do I show off my logos.

[gemship]

Originally Posted by lavi

Colorful description (not a criticism), and I agree.

Haha thx well once upon a time I chased my dreams of being light and aero and if I had to do it all over again,well put it this way.... I would gladly be without the 16lb. carbonfiber two wheeled clothes hanger and have another 5k in the bank. So yeah live and learn and I totally get that these pros are just on another level than I'll ever be,heck they can out ride me on just about anything not to be taken seriously. LOL

So an interesting thought here that I think has been talked about in the past is that most pro riders don't really make a lot of money at it but of course they get all the perks of riding super go fast cycling equipment which is the opposite of us mere mortals paying to play.

[fignon's barber]

Would love to have seen video of Ernesto's reaction after reading the Boonen article. Hard to take Boonen seriously any way. Last year he was spouting about how Jaegher made the greatest bike, when virtually the whole cycling world knew they were far below average.

[Nomadmax]

It ain't the arrow, it's the Indian.

[72gmc]

Originally Posted by fignon's barber

Would love to have seen video of Ernesto's reaction after reading the Boonen article. Hard to take Boonen seriously any way. Last year he was spouting about how Jaegher made the greatest bike, when virtually the whole cycling world knew they were far below average.

Hey, being a gentleman racer in sports cars is probably expensive. And not everyone has David Beckham's promo deal with Qatar ...

[Wakatel_Luum]

Originally Posted by fignon's barber

Would love to have seen video of Ernesto's reaction after reading the Boonen article. Hard to take Boonen seriously any way. Last year he was spouting about how Jaegher made the greatest bike, when virtually the whole cycling world knew they were far below average.

I don't believe Ernesto has that much influence there anymore.

He refused to have his signature on the latest from the company.

[Peter P.]

Aero is over-rated, especially when 85% of the wind resistance is the rider and not the bike.

Even at the pro level, the differences between riders is a vastly greater factor than the bike.

If Boonen gave a more detailed answer into his argument I would listened to his argument. Instead, it was all static.

Nevertheless, I still think Boonen was a great classics rider.

[572cv]

I always liked Colnago, in part because back in the day, they adopted the same basic strategy for a lugged carbon bike as Serotta did. And the ride of a Meivici is terrific. I guess that is a thread drift, hope no one minds.

[JSL]

There's about 85 pages of discussions regarding this subject over on Weight Weenies based on Tour magazine tests. Granted, the new Colnago isn't tested yet, but most of the modern aero bikes fall within a 20-30 watt window from best tested to "average" fast.

There's a lot more to "fastest", but for arguments sake let's just focus on Boonen's comments about the actual bike being slow. Guys train for years to gain a handful of watts, so throwing 20-30 out the window, assuming the Colnago is on the bad end of the graph is a big ask.

I'd like someone smarter than me to explain what 25 or so watts means at 40 km/h for a pro cyclist. I'm sure the info is out there somewhere, but I can't find it.

I'm guessing it's not the 2 km/h Boonen notes, but I'm also betting it's not inconsequential.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by KJMUNC

Their counterclaim says they've “not heard a single complaint” from either UAE Team Emirates or UAE Team ADQ relating to the bikes supplied to both....but that's not what Tommeke was suggesting.

Other bike brands have radically embraced aero for marginal gains and Colnago just hasn't. Of course their white paper supports their claims....other bikes may be more aero, but remember "it's not about the bike"

Meanwhile, already in 2023 Pogačar has won four times in just nine days of competitive racing. All while riding the new Colnago V4RS.

Hmm, maybe it isn't about the bike. Funny that tommie has chosen this spat. Maybe he asked for a Colnago and wouldn't give him one...

I'm guessing it's not the 2 km/h Boonen notes, but I'm also betting it's not inconsequential.

Maybe in a wind tunnel w/o a rider but those '2km/h', if everything else is equal..With a PERSON, on a bicycle, outside, in varying conditions, with varying conditions of the RIDER..it never is 'all things being equal'....

I think the 'areo' differences of this Colnago is lost in the noise of the rider riding outside.

but the aero benefits of a frame are often wildly exaggerated in the dynamics of a 200 rider peloton

BUT the stuff of marketers for all the frame/bike companies.

[oldguy00]

Even in a wind tunnel there is no way there is anywhere close to 2km/hr difference. Maybe 0.2 km/hr.

There have been plenty wind tunnel and track tests done to compare frames, the difference is typically tiny, almost within margin of error. Keep in mind, aerodynamically, the frame is also just a tiny part of the whole system.

Then add in the fact that in road racing they are drafting in a pack, and the aerodynamics of the frame is even less important...

[saab2000]

Originally Posted by oldguy00

Then add in the fact that in road racing they are drafting in a pack, and the aerodynamics of the frame is even less important...

This is so often forgotten. I’m not going to say it’s meaningless, but the aero benefits of a frame are often wildly exaggerated in the dynamics of a 200 rider peloton. I get that marginal gains matter but there’s a lot of noise aerodynamically speaking in a bike race and a lot of the wind tunnel data is lost in that noise.

[oldguy00]

Originally Posted by saab2000

This is so often forgotten. I’m not going to say it’s meaningless, but the aero benefits of a frame are often wildly exaggerated in the dynamics of a 200 rider peloton. I get that marginal gains matter but there’s a lot of noise aerodynamically speaking in a bike race and a lot of the wind tunnel data is lost in that noise.

Yup, definitely. But I think even worse is the misleading advertising. They will claim that a frameset is '10% faster'. And that makes people think they'll go from 40km/hr to 44km/hr. They are not understanding its just the frameset that is 10% faster, which in the overall rider/wheels/frame/components system, is absolutely minuscule, like nothing.