Aero Revisited by Nick Legan and Caley Fretz Photographs by Brad Kaminski
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decade ago the aero road bike segment didn’t exist; today it is redefining how race bikes are made. Ten years after Cervélo led the way with its aluminum Soloist, Specialized, Felt, Scott, Litespeed, Ridley, Blue and others are fighting to make race bikes that best their round-tubed competitors. In the past, significant aerodynamic gains came at the cost of frame stiffness, which explains why many racers preferred round-tube bikes. But what do the aero bikes of 2012 have to offer?
In our second round of aero road bike testing (For our first test, see Velo April 2011) we once again made use of the independent test facilities at the A2 Wind Tunnel and Microbac Laboratories, Inc., ensuring objective testing of aerodynamics and torsional stiffness. For the wind tunnel, we prepped each bike by setting a standardized bar height and cutting off the excess steerer tube. We ran cables as short as possible on each of the bikes while remaining operable for daily use. We removed the saddles (something the wind rarely sees) and made sure the same amount of seatpost was left exposed on each bike (measured saddle rail clamp to bottom bracket center). Gear selection and crankarm position were also carefully set and locked in place. Lastly, we used the same set of wheels for each test, a pair of Enve Smart 6.7s with 23mm Vittoria Corsa CX tubulars inflated to 100 psi. No water bottle cages were installed, nor were pedals or any other accessories. To test torsional stiffness, Microbac replicated our earlier tests, which measure frame deflection at three locations under load. For more detailed information on that test, see page 84. Numbers, however, only tell part of the story for VeloLab, so wooly hardman Nick Legan and racer wunderkind Caley Fretz undertook the majority of on-road testing, which
totaled more than 150 hours of saddle time. We also solicited input from a number of Velo editors; together we put the bikes through their paces across varied conditions (though mostly cold ones). After last year’s round of testing, we were excited to see how the latest aero road models stacked up against each other and their predecessors. Cervélo’s S3 took victory last year and the new S5 already has an impressive palmarés. But Specialized has entered the fray with its world championshipwinning Venge, Litespeed’s C1 was our Buyer’s
Guide Editor’s Pick in 2011, and the Scott Foil had impressed us enough last summer to put it on the cover of this year’s Buyer’s Guide. Cervélo’s competition is stronger than ever. The first thing that struck us was how much stiffer all the bikes felt compared to last year’s steeds. The stiffest frame in our 2011 test, the Ridley Noah, would have placed 4th in this test, only beating the S5. Clearly manufacturers have worked hard to make their go-fast aero machines more well-rounded. In addition to measuring our test bikes against one another, we explored what sort of advantage these aero machines give a rider over a traditional, round-tubed road bike. The answer: quite a bit. Riding at 30 mph, these bikes save a rider between 9.8 and 20.5 watts. When you’re on the rivet, digging for another 10 watts is a big task. Read on for more specifics on which bike might be right for you. They’re all great machines, but each has a unique personality. While we did rank the bikes first through fourth, be sure to look at the points in the categories that matter most to you. By reading carefully, you’ll find a bike that best caters to your needs.
A2 Wind Tunnel in Mooresville, NC
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3/16/12 5:27 PM