Aero vs Comfort

Aero road bikes may have dominated the news over the last few years, but all three Grand Tours in 2020 were won on traditional rim braked bikes as shown by Jumbo-Visma, on the Bianchi Oltre XR4, Ineos Grenadiers, on the Pinarello Dogma F12 and UAE Emirates on the Colnago V3Rs. All Italian, and all using much more traditional styling than the extreme aero bikes so favoured by the cycling press and the biggest manufacturers. 

Colnago V3Rs 2020 Tour winning bike (more traditional than aero)

Traditionally Tour riders used super lightweight bikes for the mountains and then switched to more extreme aero models for the flat stages, and TT bikes for the time trials, however, design and technology has now come full circle and riders are now eschewing the extreme aero models in favour of ‘do it all’ bikes that are more focused on lightweight all day comfort rather than extreme aero profiling, such as the Colnago V3Rs ridden to victory by Tadej Pogacar of UAE Team Emirates and the new Trek Emonda’s and Specializeds Tarmac SL7

The all-new Specialized Tarmac SL7 is here and it’s just replaced the SL6 & the Venge

How does this relate to your every day keen amateur you may ask yourself? 

As a bike mechanic and keen roadie, I am fortunate enough to be able to work on, and ride dozens of different models from all of the main manufacturers, and in doing so have learnt what features are beneficial and what features are pointless or detrimental to good engineering, design or comfort. 

Where do I start? - probably with the old engineers adage of ‘cheap, light and strong’ - Pick two? Because all three are virtually impossible to find! 

I can tell you what primarily makes a good bike: 

1. A compliant frameset (Vertical-Compliance is a term to describe the comfort of a carbon fibre bike frame - good vertical compliance infers the frame is good at absorbing chatter from the road surface because of the lay-up of the carbon weave. In essence its a way of saying the frame is comfortable.

2. Wheels that are stiff, lightweight and aero and that meets the needs and expectations of the particular rider, a balance between strength, weight, and so much more.

3. Groupset choice is where the biggest variations can be found depending on a riders intentions - Road bike groupsets should offer seamless performance with crisp and smooth shifting, with durability also being an essential consideration

So, why isn’t every bike a comfortable and spectacular showcase of lightweight sprinting, climbing and descending prowess? 

The answer lies with the survivability of a manufacturers business, or, the ever increasing need to keep selling bikes! Changes for changes sake, eg: press-fit bottom brackets - utter garbage and now many manufacturers have ditched them and returned to traditional threaded BSA bottom brackets once again!

Road, Gravel, Cross, TT, Adventure, Aero, Sportive, Mountain, Commuter etc etc, the list goes on and on and the decision making process becomes mind boggling to say the least!

I’ve just seen the latest gravel bikes which now look like the early mountain bikes of yesteryear ha ha

Let’s discuss ‘Road’ bikes, ie traditional drop handlebar ‘racers’ in old money. 

Nowadays it seems that every new bike has to be more aero than its predecessor, cables hidden inside not only frames but also inside handlebars and stems etc, this isn’t ‘aero’ this is purely cosmetic, for the microscopic aero advantages of a few hidden lengths of cable for 99% of everyday riders zipping along at less than 30kph is practically zilch, yet the mechanical disadvantage of all those tight hidden angles and corresponding cable friction is more than noticeable at any speed, and will only worsen over time!

External cabling on a Titanium road bike - Gear changing perfection!

Internal cabling causes hidden problems and a servicing and maintenance nightmare, often necessitating the use of magnets, cable liners and additional workshop time to replace when compared to the slick, frictionless operation of externally routed cables which can be replaced in a matter of minutes by any cyclist with a few basic skills and rubbed over with an oily rag to stop them rusting away.

The epitome of bad engineering and poor cable routing for the sake of hidden cables.

My next bugbear of modern aero framesets is the non-compliant drastically profiled, stiff and unforgiving tube profiles so often created to save yet more imaginary milliseconds off a personal 40km best effort. 

These weight adding ‘cosmetic’ tube profiles not only amplify every cable rattle, transmission and road noise but they also introduce yet more friction to an already compromised internal cabling nightmare, as well as making the bike uncomfortable to ride in anything but a straight short line and often result in the bike having the turning circle of the QE2! (Check the ‘For Sale’ sites and you will find dozens of unwanted ‘aero’ and TT bikes for good reason - sleek looks don’t always equate to speed, performance and comfort)

Hidden brakes - luckily virtually all manufacturers of non TT bikes have now ditched these failed innovations and reverted back to good old front and back traditional rim brakes where maintenance and servicing is easy, and the brakes aren’t hidden away in direct line of all of the road debris and spray thrown up from today’s ‘varied’ road services. 

Hidden brakes - covered in road grime and hard to maintain

Discs or rim brakes? another much debated topic indeed! There are definite advantages to the foul weather stopping ability of good disc brakes, especially on mountain or cyclocross bikes in muddy environments, notably on long mountainous descents, but the additional weight of not only the hardware but also the beefier forks to handle the additional stresses,  makes for an unnecessary weight gain for most riders, when modern rim brakes offer nearly just as much stopping power for 90% of the time!

(All three grand tours in 2020 were won on traditional rim brakes, and if you watched these pros descent at speeds of 50mph+ your confidence would most certainly be boosted!) 

The additional maintenance, cleaning and associated costs are also a big reason for the majority of cyclists to stick with proven inexpensive rim brake technology, especially as over half the disc-braked bikes I service are already sporting contaminated pads and at up to £40 a set this can soon prove to be a costly and unnecessary expense, which makes a simple wash down an hour+ long mission!

Electric shifting ? Brilliant, a fantastic invention that generally works faultlessly, however, it only changes gear and trims the mechs,  it’s then the same as any other manual groupset, and the running costs are astronomical when replacement parts are required! On extreme aero bikes it helps with cable rattle and friction but in general, despite its fantastic operation it will soon let you down, especially if you’re a high mileage rider in all weather conditions. 

Campagnolo Super Record EPS ‘electronic shifting excellence’ £599 for the rear mech.

The advent of new Shimano 12 speed Di2 WiFi will hopefully cure many of the cable and battery related problems with current Shimano Di2 and make SRAM obsolete over night if the press rumours are accurate. 

Deep section wheels ? The single biggest improvement to any bike so long as the bike is the perfect fit and the groupset is running smoothly, it’s most definitely the wheels! 

Carbon or Aluminium?  For everyday use a good lightweight aluminium sturdy wheelset, that is stiff but not overly stiff and has a long lasting reputable hub would be the perfect choice. Not too deep so as to add weight or be effected by crosswinds, but lightweight and sturdy enough so as to be fit for year round training. I would strongly recommend the Benchmark Campagnolo Shamal or Zonda models for everyday performance hoops. 

Campagnolo Shamal Mille C17 Clincher aluminium Wheelset £800

For racing, posing and for Sunday best then a mid section 40mm carbon wheelset would be a smart compromise over an impractical 50mm+ set of rims which are unsuitable for even moderate wind speeds and most certainly will be a weight hinderance on climbing. 40mm gives a useable advantage for strong riders with noticeable stiffness (acceleration) from the best models and a definite speed-holding advantage for those that ride upwards of 30kph on average. For those lesser mortals then deep section wheels are merely cosmetic and will usually hinder your ride rather than improve it. 

Shimano 9100 C40 Carbon clinchers - all round aero performance £1756

Cheap deep section rims such as those sold by Planet X and on eBay etc do not add extra stiffness (acceleration) and the cheap carbon fairing can cause more speed loss than a good stiff well made aluminium wheel. A good Sunday best wheelset would be the Shimano carbon C40 wheelset with an aluminium brake track

In summary, unless you can afford a bike for every occasion then avoid overly aero bikes such as Giant Propels and Canyon Aeroads and other extreme speed weapons, as their overall usability is seriously compromised unless you value all out speed over day-long comfort.

if you truly want mechanical perfection, time immemorial good looks and all day comfort then a traditional Ti, Steel or aluminium beauty with a mechanical externally routed groupset and high end aluminium wheels is the perfect road bike!

Van Nicholas Ti Eurus Campagnolo Super Record and Shamal Mille wheels - perfection indeed