Giant TCR Advanced SL 0 review

I thought I most post this review of the Giant TCR Advanced SL 0 which appeared recently on bikeradar.com as its one of the new bikes being ridden by one of our members. Greg picked his up from our great sponsors Cyc'd for Bikes here in Brisbane and if your thinking of getting yourself onto a Giant there is no better place to go than to see Jaaron and the team at Cyc'd for Bikes. Note the price referred to in the review is a UK price not an Australian price.

Giant TCR Advanced SL 0 review

Giant claim the TCR Advanced SL 0 frameset is the lightest they've ever produced, and with an all-up weight of 6.72kg for a bike complete with Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 and deep section carbon wheels, we’re inclined to believe it. With its quite radically compact frame, it’s easy to see the DNA running through from the very first Mike Burrows-designed TCR of 1997.

Up front is where most of the improvements for 2012 have been made. The head tube is massively oversized, with a 1-1/4in top bearing and 1-1/2in lower. The carbon fork steerer is shaped to fit, and flows into a broad shouldered fork that tapers into slim legs and carbon dropouts.

The chainstays broaden from carbon dropouts to a huge boxy bottom bracket section designed to take a press-fit bottom bracket. The left chainstay incorporates what Giant call an RS sensor; when combined with the crank sensor and a compatible head unit, this ANT+ device transmits wheel speed and cadence. A handy addition.

The Giant does a fine trick of combining a remarkably surefooted and positive ride with brilliant handling. We’d put this down to the incredibly rigid front structure, and the masses of standover height that allows you to throw the bike around. The huge head tube is topped with a solid and stiff box section all-carbon stem and a carbon bar solid enough to be wrenched on under sprints, but with enough spring to kill any discomfort from poor road surfaces.

The road race geometry and short wheelbase make for an exciting ride. Our test conditions included wet and icy roads; on plenty of bikes that means a tip-toed approach to high-speed corners and twisty roads, but the TCR inspires such confidence that we found ourselves taking far more chances than we normally would.

Dura-Ace Di2 is everything you’d hope for on a £7,500 bike and it performed impeccably: positive shifts, powerful brakes and a silent, smooth operation. Some might think speccing Giant’s own P-SLR1 aero wheels is purely a budget-trimming measure. We’d disagree. The design isn’t dissimilar to Zipp or HED’s latest creations: carbon rims with an aluminium brake surface and a wider tyre bed than most clinchers.

The hubs are Giant branded but made by DT Swiss and are smooth, brilliantly sealed and mated to DT’s aero spokes. At 1,575g a pair these wheels are no heavyweights, and available aftermarket for £1249.99, they’re hardly cost cutting either.

Giant’s own tyres have deep enough sidewalls and a rounded profile perfectly matched to the impressive wheels. The bigger volume of what is still a 23mm tyre adds comfort but not at the expense of speed, as the sticky compound offers ideal levels of grip in a sub-200g package.
The SL Zero is difficult to fault. It has one of the very best framesets around with sharp, reactive handling, excellent wheels, a top-of-the-range carbon Fizik Arione saddle and quality all-carbon cockpit. It’s an out-and-out superbike, as the high price and low weight bear out, and it’s one of the finest handling, most exciting and rewarding of them all.

Cyc'd Cycling Club takes first victory

It seems that Cyc'd Cycling Club is going to make an impression on the local Brisbane cycling scene sooner rather than later with another strong showing at the Murarrie crit track yesterday.

During the ride this morning a lot of people were interested to hear about Kent's effort in C Grade yesterday but Kent, being the shy and humble individual that he is, declined to talk too much about it at all despite the probing questions from Gav, Jase, Brad, Greg and Row who were obviously hoping to pick up some tips from Kent who is now two wins from his last two starts. Row was heard to ask "Mate how did you position yourself going into the last lap I always seem to struggle with being in the right place at the right time?" while Gav asked "what's your secret to that explosive kick as you come around the lead man I'm there but just can't seem to explode like you do!"

I know many were hoping that he would pen a blog to let others know how he has managed to get himself into not only a winning position but how he executes the final frantic sprint to the line but alas he said that writing himself up "just isn't my style mate". Well I could have let it rest there but having witnessed yesterday's event close up I feel qualified to write just a few words about his efforts.

I must say he appeared rather restless, not nervous, more anxious given he had not raced at Murarrie before and with the expectations and hopes of Cyc'd Cycling weighing heavily on his shoulders.

The track was rated by me as "treacherous" with water on the track in at least 4 places and a bit claret on the track on the last bend courtesy of an accident which occurred in A Grade some 30 mins earlier.

The B Grade boys tried to fire Kent up by telling him that he had better win since he was racing in the "ladies" C Grade. Kent just shrugged this off as he entered the zone and took off with other 35 highly tuned elite C Grade riders.

Kent took to the new track like a duck to water and positioned himself mid field sussing out the opposition which included a very handy looking 13 year old lad who looked like a junior GreenEDGE member, would he be good enough to outwit the old fox come finishing time only time would tell.

As I watched the events unfold I also had the privilege of watching B Grade who were on the track at the same time as C Grade and from my vantage point I could see Greg, Craig and Gav featuring prominently in the pack but back to Kent.....

As usual he was exquisitely placed to cover any moves by a breakaway or simply save the legs for an all assault come the final lap. Watching him effortlessly move up and down the peleton was a real pleasure to watch....was this really only his fourth crit race??

Back to B Grade momentarily....the pace just didn't seem to be "on" and the Cyc'd boys were a little nervous which ultimately resulted in Craig, the gun sprinter, getting into a three man breakaway unheard of I hear you say, what was he thinking I hear you say but obviously the big boy had a plan in mind and Greg and Gav executed their part perfectly slowing the peleton down even further and at one stage I thought C Grade would actually catch and pass them. Craig did the majority of the work for about 6 laps but in the end the peleton chased them down as Craig was left to his own by the other breakaway compardrees. Gav and Greg contested the final sprint but alas their efforts saw them fall just short with a 6th and 7th place.

I must say watching this unfold I was concerned that Kent, without any Cyc'd team members to help him out may suffer the same fate.

My concerns proved unfounded as the 3 lap to go board was brought out by the Commissar and kent seemed to almost glide forward 6 places. Two laps to go and another 6 riders were passed leaving Kent in 10th with one lap to go. The pace was really on now and from I stood I could tell they were reaching speeds of in excess of 50kph. One rider made an early dash to the front and Kent ever vigilant followed his designated lead out man (not that the guy new it of course) and as they rounded the final bend it all of a sudden appeared to be going pear shaped as an Ibis decided that it wouldn't get of the track!!! Through the furry of feathers I looked to see who would emerge and there was Kent tacked right on the WRCC riders wheel with others struggling to get on.

It took me back to the good old days of HTC Highroad watching Renshaw lead out the Manx Missile but this time it was some poor unsuspecting WRCC rider who would tow Kent to within 50m of the line before he unleashed a withering sprint to easily take the victory. No fancy salutes no outrageous hand gestures just a a slight tilt of the head as he rode past me as if to say "job done".

Unfortunately the B Grade guys were in a serious debrief about what happened in their race and they missed the finale of C Grade so I feel blessed to have witnessed it all so that I can retell the story of Cyc'd Cycling's first official win.

Now Kent begged me not to embellish the story too much "mate just give them a few of the facts nothing more just tell it as you saw mate that's all I ask". Well I hope I have done it justice mate it was a good win after all.

Until next time

Yours in cycling

Anon

February ride stats

Now that have set up the Cyc'd Cycling Club on Strava.com we are able to easily track our riding stats for each month.

In February we had 10 members on Strava (we now have 15) with those 10 riders achieving the following stats:

• 148 rides
• 56,373 meters climbed or 5,637 meters climbed per rider
• 5,720 kilometres ridden or 572 kilometres ridden per rider
• 217:07 hours of riding or 21:42:42 hours per rider

We look forward to march being an even bigger month.

Wet weather - toughen up!!

I saw this picture today and thought about the times we cancel a ride because of the wet weather. Perhaps we should heed this advice....

Mt Mee Smashathon!!

Well today was the day we had all been looking forward to with mixed emotions.....excitement knowing that we would be facing one of the iconic Brisbane rides, Mt Mee, while at the same time feeling somewhat nervous about it as well.

Fortunately we had good numbers for the ride with 14 (although that changed very quickly to 13 when a phone call was received by one of the riders) turning up for the 100km ride. It was great to have Smiddy legends join us today with Sharky, Row (now a regular with the Cyc'd crew), Greg fresh from his 5th place yesterday in B Grade crit and Mark (new to our group but a proven super domestique who as were to learn loves to dish out some serious pain to the peleton). They joined regular Cyc'd riders Shane, Brad, Brock, Jenno, Andy, Matt, Macca, Andrew and Kent making up the group.

Greg's new GIANT TCR Advanced SL with flash Cosmic wheels and Dura Ace Di2 bought from our sponsor Cyc'd for Bikes received the obligatory ooohs and ahhhhs from the assembled group. No honestly that thing is a real weapon and there was a little "bike envy" going on today.

Special mention to a few non attendees for the Mt Mee smashathon were:

Craig - Happy 29th today mate (had a cake waiting for you at top of Mt Mee!!)
Gav - Happy anniversary to you and Viv (guys debated long and hard of whether hat was a legitimate excuse but numbers fell your way mate)
Jase - Happy 60th to your mother-in-law (numbers didn't quite go your way on that one I'm afraid!!)

The ride out to Petrie was quick no make that fast!! Some riders were asking if the ride had changed to a flat Sandgate ride. No the pace was just ON big time and seemed we just couldn't wait to get to the Mt Mee climb.

The pace at the front saw a bit of disarray in the group but everyone hung in there and we regrouped at Dayboro before setting off on the Mt Mee climb with the finish being about 8ks from Dayboro the last 6 of which is a steady 5 - 7% climb.

The climbers among the group Mark, Rowan, Sharky and Greg soon gapped the rest of the field and went off to contest the KOM while the rest of us settled into a good tempo which would see us make our way to the top in the best shape we could.

Full credit to the group of Andrew, Shane and Brockie Valverde for giving it a really good go and hanging tough to finish in the group after the 4 climbers. We haven't seen much much of Andrew lately and now we know why he's been on a training camp in the Alps!!

The same guys for Brad, Macca, Andy, Jenno and Matt great effort up Mt Mee guys. Here are some pics at the top of the Mt Mee climb. Some tired but happy legs. KOM was shared by Rowan and Mark well done guys.

The decent was quick with Macca at one stage allegedly passing a motor bike on his way down.

Time for a quick coke and donut at the famous Dayboro bakery and it was time to head back home via Samford.

Looking at Strava I see that I did 20 odd km from Dayboro to Samford about 9 minutes faster than I've ever done it so thanks to Sharky, Rowan, Greg and Mark for that!!!

The Samford range seemed a walk in the park compared to the earlier Mt Mee climb and we enjoyed the pace line coming down the range and back into the city.

The group started heading their own way home but we still had 8 for coffee at Conti. There were some tired lads their sipping their coffee or double short macchiato if you are Shane!

Sharky always one for a surprise pulled another one out when he presented Kent with a trophy for his first crit win last week in C Grade. Not just any trophy but a trophy he won in a crit back in the 80s complete with a personalised plaque thanks Sharky your a dead set legend!

Trophy presentation Sharky style

We all knew the day would be tough and it was but not just because of the 1,400 odd metres of vertical climbing but because we lived up to our motto "Ride Hard" well done guys. Mt Mee smashathon.....done!!

Cyc'd Cycling Club launched

Over the past few years our regular Sunday cycling group has undergone a few name changes as it has grown from a few guys enjoying a social ride to around 25 regular riders. In 2009 we adopted the name "Team Peroni" after the Italian beer who's jersey we wore on our weekly Sunday rides.

In late 2011 with the support of Powerade we kitted ourselves out in Powerade jerseys and became "Team Powerade".

At the time we didn't know it but slowly we were moving towards establishing a more formal structure to our group and while we rode as "Team Powerade" it really was still very much an informal cycling group.

In January this year we took the big decision to form a cycling club and after a few months of hard work we have done just that and we are now Cyc'd Cycling Club!!! A fully incorporated association which is affiliated with Cycling Queensland and Cycling Australia.

While we have a new name and a new club we intend to keep the same fun attitude towards our riding.....ride hard, have fun and enjoy our coffee!!!

You can check out our new website at www.cycdcycling.org  and find out more about our club.

We have a great logo for the club which:

We are very pleased to have secured Cyc'd for Bikes as our major sponsor. Without their help this would not have been possible so to Jaaron, Fiona and the Cyc'd team thanks for all your support.

We hope that you will continue to follow our blog and the goings on of Cyc'd Cycling Club.

Photos of weekend racing

Thanks to Shane's wife Kylie for taking some great photos of the guys in action in B Grade on Saturday.





Powerade takes inaugural victory!!

Ok it was a C Grade criterium and it may not have been quite as exciting as when GreenEDGE won their first race but as they say a wins a win and that's what we had today.

Team Powerade fronted up for the Nundah crits this morning with Gav, Shane and Craig in B Grade and me (Kent) and Brad (doing his first ever race) in C grade.

While crits can always be a bit of lottery we were all confident of a good showing after a great week of training on Mt Gravatt, Mt Cootha and of course the good old riverloop. Craig in particular had set some blistering times along the flats and Gav and me had managed a few PBs up Cootha while we all went crazy coming down Cootha (read earlier post The Crazy Things We Do On A Bike).

C Grade was first away with 49 keen riders heading off for 40mins plus 2 laps around the 1.2km circuit. Things went pretty much according to plan as the group settled into a good pace of just over 40kph. A couple of small breakaways were attempted but nothing stuck.

Brad and I found each other and rode comfortably in the middle of the pack. I was determined not to expend any more energy that necessary so that I could give the finish a real good go. Brad was looking like an old hand as he moved confidently towards the front looking the consummate professional.

When the 2 laps to go board came out I couldn't help but hear the screams from the big crowd as the Powerade boys yelled for us to get get to the front!!! Thanks boys great advice as it turned out.

As we commenced the second last lap I did as I was told by Gav and the boys and started moving forward with Brad close at hand. Now in side the top dozen I was feeling good for a good dig on the last lap if the opportunity presented itself. Unfortunately as I was to find out later Brad had missed the 2 lap to go board and was uncertain if we were on the final lap.

As we rounded the final bend with 450m to go I was just where I wanted to be, third wheel, but then I noticed one rider had somehow skipped clear and was about 80 metres in front. While I had hoped to suck a wheel for a while longer the time had come to commit so when a small gap presented itself I went for it and managed to scrap through. Apparently my early start to the sprint had caught a few contenders by surprise and I had clear air. The lone rider in front was pedalling through wet concrete and I was upon him with still 150m to go. No time think what was going on behind me I just put the head down and went for it praying that none of the other 48 riders were about to swamp me on the line. It wasn't to be and I held onto the lead briefly thinking as i approached the line should I zip up the Powerade jersey how should I salute the crowd what was that thing Contador does with with a pistol again!!! No it was just head down and hope like hell I got to the line first.

The boys were ecstatic as we chalked up our first victory in the Powerade kit. Brad finished a strong 8th and given his slight confusion on the last lap it was a great race for his first crit...well done mate.

The race had covered just over 31km in 45min at an average speed of 41.2kph.

Kent collecting his prize for first in C Grade 

B Grade is always a far more tactical race and that's how it panned out again today. A six man break away got away and Gav did some hard yards early on to control the chase and keep the speed high for Craig. Shane was struggling a little but dug deep and held on in the peleton.

After the initial breakaway was caught another smaller group made a decisive move and got away again staying away until just over two laps to go. the 3 Powerade boys were all well placed with Craig and Gav in particular looking good as they moved forward with Shane still in the frame.

As can happen in crits the final lap is a free for all and not everything goes to plan and this is what happened with all three Powerade boys getting held up on the vital last bend. Craig managed to find a clear line but by now two riders had skipped free and Craig raced on for a gallant third with Gav and Shane finishing strongly. With a big field of 69 riders a great effort by all three guys.

All in all a great day for the team with a first, a third and a couple of top 10 ten performances.

Craig picking up the cash for third in B Grade