Caisse d’Epargne put half of their riders on ‘cross bikes at this year’s Paris-RoubaixJames Huang
The aluminium frames were punctuated by carbon fibre seatstay assemblies to help damp vibrationJames Huang
There are no cantilever brakes in Campagnolo’s catalogue so the team make do with Shimano stoppersJames Huang
Butted 7005-T6 aluminium is nice stuff but it still doesn’t compare to the team’s usual Pinarello Prince carbon bikesJames Huang
TIG welding joins the tubes togetherJames Huang
Though the frames may not be ultra-special the parts are Campagnolo’s still-elusive Super Record 11James Huang
Caisse d’Epargne riders set off on 25mm-wide Continental tubulars with extra sidewall protectionJames Huang
The other half of the Caisse d’Epargne team set forth on their usual Pinarello Prince road bikesJames Huang
Milram’s Focus bikes ready to go just before the startJames Huang
Milram rider Niki Terpstra used a Focus Mares Team ‘cross frame for Ghent-Wevelgem but opted for a regular road bike for Paris-RoubaixJames Huang
Milram’s special Continental tubulars were roughly 25mm wide and wore a fine tread for extra gripJames Huang
Sealed derailleur cables and housing from Gore keep road grime from interfering with shift performanceJames Huang
Fizik’s new dual:tape already includes a layer of padding down its centre but a little bit extra beneath is a good way to go at Paris-RoubaixJames Huang
Lampre riders adopted a familiar formula for their Paris-Roubaix bikes, combining attributes of road and ‘cross frames for a special rideJames Huang
A seatstay assembly borrowed from a ‘cross bike provides extra tyre clearanceJames Huang
Double-wrapped bars and supplemental brake levers were common sights at this year’s Paris-RoubaixJames Huang
Most of the Katusha riders used hybrid Ridley creations based around their X-Fire cyclo-cross frameJames Huang
Katusha riders were prepared for nasty conditions with lots of tyre clearance both front and rearJames Huang
We’re not sure how bad conditions have to be to justify this much room thoughJames Huang
A mid-level road fork with carbon blades and an alloy crown and steerer is used up frontJames Huang
Save for the team-specific logos and sponsor-appropriate parts, these bars could have been found on just about anyone’s bike at Paris-RoubaixJames Huang
It’s not often that you see this much tread for a road race, but then again, Paris-Roubaix is no ordinary raceJames Huang
Buried within the stack of Ridley X-Fires was the lighter and faster Damocles of eventual second place finisher Filippo PozzatoJames Huang
During this weekend’s mostly dry and sometimes even dusty Paris-Roubaix, several teams split their riders between road and cyclo-cross bikes, while others opted for road/cyclocross hybrids.
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While Milram’s ‘cross riders sported full carbon creations (which we showed you last week from Ghent-Wevelgem), Caisse d’Epargne’s Pinarello ‘cross bikes were fairly mundane in comparison to their usual Prince speedsters.
The TIG-welded aluminium frames were built with butted 7005 tubes and augmented with carbon seatstay assemblies, while the matching forks used alloy crowns and steerer tubes – thus assuredly making them far heavier than the all-carbon forks on the Prince.
Since team sponsor Campagnolo don’t make cantilever brakes, Shimano stoppers were fitted at either end. Otherwise, Caisse d’Epargne continued to be one of just a handful of teams running Campagnolo Super Record 11 components (most are still on standard Record 11).
The usual crop of Paris-Roubaix gear was also on hand, including box-section aluminium tubular wheels, wider tubular tires, taller gearing and more heavily padded bar tape.
Road-cross hybrids for others
Lampre and Katusha bike sponsors Lampre and Ridley carried over the unique road/‘cross hybrid machines they used last season.
Katusha mated their Ridley X-Fire ‘cross frames with mid-range road forks – complete with weighty aluminium crowns and steerers – in order to gain additional tyre clearance and bottom bracket height.
Save for the rear 4ZA cantilever brake, the rest of the bike is fairly standard-issue road fare including a production Campagnolo Record 11 group.
Wheels are the usual box-section aluminium tubulars with relatively wide tyres – here labelled as Vredestein but looking more like something from Dugast or FMB – and gearing is typically tall for Paris-Roubaix.
Most of the katusha riders used hybrid ridley creations based around their x-fire cyclo-cross frame:James Huang
Most of the Katusha riders used hybrid Ridley creations based around their X-Fire frame
Lampre’s Wilier creations – the same machine Alessandro Ballan used to nab third place last year – required a tad more creativity.
A ‘cross bike seatstay assembly – flipped around so the empty brake studs face forward – was spliced in with other Wilier carbon road frame components to net some extra clearance and length while a longer fork is used up front to balance things out.
Long-reach brake calipers are used front and rear, and some Lampre riders also used a single supplemental brake lever on the bar tops for additional control on the pavé.
Lampre riders adopted a familiar formula for their paris-roubaix bikes, combining attributes of road and ‘cross frames for a special ride:James Huang
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Lampre’s Paris-Roubaix bikes combined attributes of road and ‘cross frames
