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FEATURES: LIVE FROM THE TEAM LIQUIGAS TRAINING CAMP, PT. 2
Zap
December 16, 2011
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The Liquigas boys spent just under two hours out on the road aboard their TT bikes, some on the previously used Slice and some top tier riders aboard the pre-production Slice RS.
But, before they hit the road, it was a good effort at the breakfast buffet - keep your hands clear of the meat plates!
And then there was the work to be done to keep the riders hydrated out on the road. Following the abbreviated TT effort, the riders came back to the hotel and promptly jumped on their road bikes for follow-up two hour ride.
Here it is; the new and old. Although they are still unsure when the radical & angular Slice RS will hit the market, until then Cannondale offers two different versions of the well proven Slice; the $2450 Carbon 5 and the $3100 Carbon 4. The Speed Shadow seattube leaves hardly any gap between tire and frame.
Yes, Cannondale's own Naero-Tec (get it - narrow tech?) seatpost still looks a tad funny (to put it nicely), but now wrapped in official team livery, the RS has a much better look to it than previous versions. Of course, having a pair of Mavic wheels always makes everything look just a tad faster as well.
This is the bike built for Daniel Oss. His bike runs a Cannondale SL Hollowgram crank with Si Aero spider.
Cannondale joins the growing ranks of bike brands who have realized that if you're serious about winning a Grand Tour time trial, you better be running in-board brakes.
Similar to mountain bike brakes used two decades ago, here's a close-up view of the TRP side-pull brakes used on the Slice RS.
Even more difficult to design and operate are the under the chainstay mounted brakes (need proof - see below). The brake placement harkens back three decades to when early mountain bikes ran their brakes in the same place. While it may make aero sense for a modern day TT bike (although many say that with the new aero placement there has been a decrease in stopping power) , it made no sense on a mountain bike and any honest interpretation of mountain bike history would have to acknowledge our sister 'zine Mountain Bike Action for playing a leading role in getting the brakes moved up on the seatstays - where they remained until the advent of disc brakes.
No, that's not leftover powdered sugar on the floor, but aluminum shaving from a mechanic trying to get a rear brake to fit and work properly.
Must be nice to have a big wheel budget eh? Mavic Comete wheels have been a staple of the Liquigas team for years now.
Each of the newly built Slice RS bikes were given the once by the mechanics - here seen checking the chain line.
You'll always find a variety of bends when it comes to aero extensions and few companies offer as many versions as Vision Tech. All the TT bikes were running SRAM's R2C aero shifters.
Not a single bike goes out the door until the seat height, set back and level are checked.
Before he hit the streets of Olbia, Peter Sagan made sure that the seat height on his TT bike matched that on his road bike. You do know the measurement of your leg extension don't you?
Peter Sagan in action. Many observers feel that the 23 year old Slovakian rider will be a real force in the future.
The older Slice bikes run seatposts with two position saddle mounts. The majority of riders ran their saddles on the rear mount...
but a few did run with the the forward mount. No, it's not the most elegant design is it? Although saddle choice was mixed among the various Fizik offerings (the new Kurve were just showing up in boxes), when it came to their TT bikes, most of the riders opted for the TT specific Fizik Ares (about 65mm shorter than the Arione).
Ivan Basso's bike enjoying some downtime.
Basso was running the Vision TriMax Carbon TT BB30 crank.
After all his years in the Peloton, Ivan Basso remains a captain of the team.
By the time the Giro d'Italia comes around you can expect to see the entire team aboard the new Slice RS.
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