2017 'PRO' cycling discussion.

[sovereign]

[Imaking20]

It's funny how much time he doesn't spend on a Venge.

[53x12]

It's funny how much time he doesn't spend on a Venge.

Because the Venge ViAS is terrible. He spent time on the 2015 Venge when he first got to Tinkoff.




When Cav was on a Specialized sponsored team, he had no problems taking the original Venge for many wins and being on it just about all the time.





This newer Venge just isn't so good.

[Imaking20]

Well, I haven't ridden the Vias, but that's not really the feedback I get from local guys I know riding it. Several sold their old Venge and their Tarmacs and consolidated to just the Vias.

Cav and Sagan are very different riders though, I get the feeling Sagan just prefers a more comfortable bike most of the time (because I don't remember seeing him on the old Venge even half the time). My comment was sparked more by the impression that aero isn't everything for Sagz.

[nathanong87]

It's funny how much time he doesn't spend on a Venge.

[maquisard]

Everyone loooooves Cookson!

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/damian- ... -election/

[Imaking20]

See photo at the top of the page. Also, how many of his wins in 2017 have been aboard the Tarmac? I don't even remember seeing the Venge at ToC

KBK


Stage 3 at Tirreno was aboard the Vias.

Stage 5 on the Tarmac


Edit: his win at ToC this year looks to have been aboard the Vias.

[nathanong87]

See photo at the top of the page. Also, how many of his wins in 2017 have been aboard the Tarmac? I don't even remember seeing the Venge at ToC

Edit: his win at ToC this year looks to have been aboard the Vias.

not a win, but winning hearts effort. My point is there is no point.

[Rondje]

Woods ever had a hard crash on descent? He started the descent as first with a head start and ended last of the group I think. Now I'm not a fan of wet roads either, but I didn't expect him to lose time on Pozzovivo on the downhill.

[Imaking20]

Yeah, and I'm not suggesting it's statistically significant. Just that my perception is he's not on the Venge as often as I'd expect.

[LouisN]

Woods is pretty "new" to cycling, being from a running backgroud just a few years ago.
He was known to be a pretty bad bike handler, falling quite often in road races.

Louis

[Sacke]

Woods is pretty "new" to cycling, being from a running backgroud just a few years ago.
He was known to be a pretty bad bike handler, falling quite often in road races.

Louis

With the injuries that he got back from, who can blame him for not wanting to waste another season recovering from injuries?

I much rather see him lose time on descents, but prove his ability on climbs, rather than fall on a stage that may or may not be decisive for him to leave his mark in cycling.

He is not young either, so not like he can afford to be injured and without results for too many seasons.

[Imaking20]

But, he rides for Cannondale...

[tranzformer]

Well, I haven't ridden the Vias, but that's not really the feedback I get from local guys I know riding it. Several sold their old Venge and their Tarmacs and consolidated to just the Vias.

The Venge ViAS is probably the worst braking, handling and ride feel aero frames that I have ridden and spent extensive time on. Just wasn't a good bike at all. I haven't ridden the ViAS since they moved it to a disc frameset only. I have heard that helped with the braking (any improvement would have been better than the original ViAS). The ViAS just isn't comfortable regardless of running nice wheels, nice tires, proper air pressure, riding with nice bib shorts and a comfortable saddle. Just an underwhelming frame to be honest.

Ride it yourself and see what you think. I also wouldn't take what other local guys do, especially if they ride for a team sponsored by a Specialized shop. Most of those guys get solid discounts on their bikes, so selling off old bikes almost nets them equally to getting a new bike each year or every other year. Personally, I'd rather be riding the current Tarmac over the ViAS and ideally would rather wait for the new Tarmac to be released and if that checked out, would go with the Tarmac over the ViAS.

[Imaking20]

These guys are [i]very[/] affiliated with a Specialized shop, as am I (to a lesser degree) but that doesn't mean there's any pressure for us to be on the Vias. As for rim vs disc, the guy who sold off his Tarmac, Roubaix, and Shiv in favor of the Vias is on a disc version. He handles commuting and really poor weather on a Diverge and everything else on the Vias.

Did you also spend appreciable time on the old Venge? As far as comfort, the new bike can't really be worse than that.