Alpha Q on O'Grady's Cervelo?

[Wayne]

I received my Cyclesport magazine just the other day and on the cover
is Stuart O'Grady riding to victory on his Cervelo R3 with a Alpha Q
fork clearly shown. Below is a link but the graphic on the web page
is fairly small.

http://www.cyclesportmag.com/

These bikes normally have an Easton fork.

http://www.cervelo.com/bikes.aspx?bike=R32008

This makes me wonder if the Alpha Q was used to give increased tire
clearance or is it possible that is a tandem fork for extra strength?

Anyone out there have a link or info about CSC's explanation?

Cervelo is acting as if he rode a stock R3 in the link above and the
bottom picture on that page appears to shown Sastre on a R3 with what
might be a Alpha Q fork. Does CSC always ride that fork?

I find it very interesting to see the component modifications made
for Paris Roubaix.

Wayne

 

[[email protected]]

Wayne skrev:
> I received my Cyclesport magazine just the other day and on the cover
> is Stuart O'Grady riding to victory on his Cervelo R3 with a Alpha Q
> fork clearly shown. Below is a link but the graphic on the web page
> is fairly small.

> This makes me wonder if the Alpha Q was used to give increased tire
> clearance or is it possible that is a tandem fork for extra strength?
>
> Anyone out there have a link or info about CSC's explanation?
>
> Cervelo is acting as if he rode a stock R3 in the link above and the
> bottom picture on that page appears to shown Sastre on a R3 with what
> might be a Alpha Q fork. Does CSC always ride that fork?

Team CSC has been riding Alpha Q forks for some time:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech.php?id=tech/2005/news/02-02

> I find it very interesting to see the component modifications made
> for Paris Roubaix.

Cervelo did extend the chainstay with about 1 cm. on the 2007 Team CSC
Cervelos for the Paris-Roubaix race, but claim that otherwise the
bikes was std. stock Cervelos. CSC also used 27 mm tubulars for that
race.
They have also used hand built wheels (32 3x perhaps 36 3x too) in
many of the classic spring races. Probably Ambrosio tubular rims laced
on Shimano hubs.

--
Regards

 

[[email protected]]

On Jan 3, 1:00 pm, Wayne <[email protected]> wrote:
> I received my Cyclesport magazine just the other day and on the cover
> is Stuart O'Grady riding to victory on his Cervelo R3 with a Alpha Q
> fork clearly shown.  Below is a link but the graphic on the web page
> is fairly small.
>
> http://www.cyclesportmag.com/
>
> These bikes normally have an Easton fork.
>
> http://www.cervelo.com/bikes.aspx?bike=R32008
>
> This makes me wonder if the Alpha Q was used to give increased tire
> clearance or is it possible that is a tandem fork for extra strength?
>
> Anyone out there have a link or info about CSC's explanation?
>
> Cervelo is acting as if he rode a stock R3 in the link above and the
> bottom picture on that page appears to shown Sastre on a R3 with what
> might be a Alpha Q fork. Does CSC always ride that fork?
>
> I  find it very interesting to see the component modifications made
> for Paris Roubaix.
>
> Wayne



"The Cervélo Wolf SL fork is made by Alpha Q and uses full carbon
construction."

http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech.php?id=tech/2007/projectbike/cervelo-slc-sl07

http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech.php...elo-slc-sl07/Cervelo_SLC-SL_Project_Bike_fork

 

[James Thomson]

"Wayne" <[email protected]> a écrit:

> I received my Cyclesport magazine just the other day and on
> the cover is Stuart O'Grady riding to victory on his Cervelo R3
> with a Alpha Q fork clearly shown. Below is a link but the
> graphic on the web page is fairly small.

There's a bigger picture here:

http://www.cervelo.com/wallpaper/1/w037_2560ws.jpg

> This makes me wonder if the Alpha Q was used to give increased
> tire clearance or is it possible that is a tandem fork for extra strength?

> Anyone out there have a link or info about CSC's explanation?

http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech/2007/probikes/?id=ogrady_paris_roubaix

Created as a special build just for that day, the R3's chain stays
are 1cm longer than normal to provide more mud clearance, and
the matching Alpha Q GS-10 fork wears a bigger 50mm rake to
maintain similar weight distribution as on the standard geometry
R3. In addition to providing more mud clearance, the extended
dimensions also provide a longer wheelbase for a slightly more
stable ride over the undulating cobbles.

James Thomson

 

[Wayne]

On Jan 3, 7:01 pm, "James Thomson" <[email protected]> wrote:
> "Wayne" <[email protected]> a écrit:
>
> > I received my Cyclesport magazine just the other day and on
> > the cover is Stuart O'Grady riding to victory on his Cervelo R3
> > with a Alpha Q fork clearly shown. Below is a link but the
> > graphic on the web page is fairly small.
>
> There's a bigger picture here:
>
> http://www.cervelo.com/wallpaper/1/w037_2560ws.jpg
>
> > This makes me wonder if the Alpha Q was used to give increased
> > tire clearance or is it possible that is a tandem fork for extra strength?
> > Anyone out there have a link or info about CSC's explanation?
>
> http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech/2007/probikes/?id=ogrady_paris_roubaix
>
> Created as a special build just for that day, the R3's chain stays
> are 1cm longer than normal to provide more mud clearance, and
> the matching Alpha Q GS-10 fork wears a bigger 50mm rake to
> maintain similar weight distribution as on the standard geometry
> R3. In addition to providing more mud clearance, the extended
> dimensions also provide a longer wheelbase for a slightly more
> stable ride over the undulating cobbles.
>
> James Thomson

Interesting information about the fork rake. Changing the rake form
the normal 43 to a 50 reduces the trail considerably.

 

[[email protected]]

On Jan 3, 7:15 pm, Wayne <[email protected]> wrote:

> Interesting information about the fork rake.  Changing the rake from
> the normal 43 to a 50 reduces the trail considerably.

Right, which is the opposite of what I'd think they'd want for Paris-
Roubaix. And yet, the racers go on racing...

Maybe riders adapt quickly enough to different frame geometry
(minutes?) that it has a larger "tolerance" than some worry about.

What do you think?

 

[[email protected]]

On Thu, 3 Jan 2008 19:32:37 -0800 (PST), "[email protected]"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On Jan 3, 7:15 pm, Wayne <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> Interesting information about the fork rake.  Changing the rake from
>> the normal 43 to a 50 reduces the trail considerably.
>
>Right, which is the opposite of what I'd think they'd want for Paris-
>Roubaix. And yet, the racers go on racing...
>
>Maybe riders adapt quickly enough to different frame geometry
>(minutes?) that it has a larger "tolerance" than some worry about.
>
>What do you think?

Dear AF,

Any change in handling may be justified by improved solid-frame
"suspension"--Paris-Roubaix isn't so much a matter of frantic
cornering as banging over cobblestones

Increasing rake from 43 mm to 50 mm may be just heading back to the
1890s, when balloon tires, bigger wheels, and what look to us like
strangely sloped forks helped riders cope with the much rougher
"roads" of that era:

http://i10.tinypic.com/82w3c69.jpg

With 38 mm (and larger) tires on 28-inch wheels, a 1168 mm wheel base,
and that stretched-out fork, that kind of solid-frame bike was
routinely ridden over stuff comparable to Paris-Roubaix.

The shift to steeper modern forks, shorter wheelbases, smaller wheels,
and narrower high-pressure tires seems to correspond to improvements
in the roads. The modern Tour de France bicycles might well not
survive the old Tour courses:


http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/aldoross/pd/Rocky_TdF_1922.jpg.html

http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/aldoross/pd/Jean_Aerts32.jpg.html

http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/aldoross/pd/Cailloux01.JPG.html

http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/aldoross/pd/deluge_1936.jpg.html


http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/aldoross/pd/BobetBartaliBrule.jpg.html?g2_imageViewsIndex=1

http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/aldoross/pd/Izoard.jpg.html


http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/aldoross/pd/Wet+Conditions.JPG.html

http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/v/aldoross/pd/Cailloux.JPG.html

Cheers,

Carl Fogel