3 Reasons Pros’ Bikes Are Better Than Yours… And 2 Why They’re Worse

[@bikeradar]

Which pro bike tweaks would you like to make to your bike?

[@kuma_score7536]

narrower bars, maybe not 36CM but I'd want a 40CM over my current 44CM bars. I'd also like to set my bike up as tubeless possibly with a liner since I have the bad habit of not carrying spares

[@Bendersnatchling]

Pogacars hair through the helmets air vents to purposefully induce turbulence to keep the airflow from stalling. That's some next level stuff right there!

[@notso100]

My main ride is a custom Cyfac XCR, polished stainless and naked brazing, Mitch Docker said it was one f the most beautiful things he had ever seen, I can't ride like him but he made me feel so good that day, so I will stay with that

[@dickieblench5001]

Rim brakes

[@alpercino2172]

I’ve 40cm aero bars on my BMC with the hoods at 36. Works for me for 200 miles a week. Im retired and in my 60s but was a 1st cat in my 20s and never stopped riding. Flexibility is the key. Stretch every day.

[@and2244rew]

I’ve accepted the fact that my use case is very different than the pros. Basically ride the gravel bike everywhere. I can still drool over the race bikes though.

[@matteodiluce9387]

Have been riding my Scott Team Issue for 25 years and still love it. But now I'm building a carbon endurance bike, more for the fun of it and the stiffness, of course. Integrated cockpit at 380 mm hoods, but only a 90 mm stem for comfort. Instead of liners I use latex tubes for comfort and speed plus a little sealant for safety. Rolls amazingly, and gives me peace of mind in case of a puncture, because it will always keep some pressure.

[@JonFairhurst]

Narrow bars aren’t uncomfortable. I’m 6-2 and I use 39mm bars. In general people ride with bars that are too wide for their shoulders. Slammed and long would be a problem. Few of us have that flexibility, let alone the ability to support our upper body weight for more than a few minutes. But to go faster, it’s probably easier to train to get a bit more aero than to add tens of watts to our lungs, heart, and legs.

[@quarkonium3795]

Exactly; it seems like the consumer standard is only just starting to move away from 42 cm bars and towards smaller ones. I think 40 cm is more appropriate for the average shoulder width and a lot of people would be very happy with 38 cm bars

[@JonFairhurst]

⁠My first road bike since college was a “Variable Road” bike, which was kind of pre-gravel. It came with 48cm drop bars, which resulted in shoulder and arm discomfort. I went to 39cm at the hoods with a touch of flare, and my hands are now straight in front of my shoulder joints. I made that upgrade just before the recent narrow bar trend, mainly for fit and comfort. I happened to choose aero bars, since that’s the leading edge - and it was cheap compared to buying an aero frame or wheels. I had no idea that the narrow hoods would give as much aero benefit as they do. Nice side benefit! That’s now my winter/lock-in-public bike, and I now have a semi-aero, light carbon bike. Both have the same bars, saddle, pedals, and fit. I’d hate to have to go back to wider bars!

[@diehardbikes]

Its all about stretching daily. It makes more of a difference than you realize. Everybody, even pros, underestimate the benefits of stretching.

[@JonFairhurst]

@@diehardbikes I agree. Stretching really helps. But there are limits, based on one’s body, age, and health.

[@alpercino2172]

Agreed. My hoods are at 36 on 40 bars. Works for me.

[@devinmorrison7131]

Imagine being stuck on a 8.26kg aero bike in the tour and lugging that turd up every mountain pass, forget about it!

[@jeffholder1156]

I am perfectly happy with my, old, Lemond Tourmalet in Reynolds 853. Goes plenty fast for an old man like me.

[@barryaronson9697]

At 65 years old, I might be able to hang on for the neutralized portion at the start of a stage. However, there isn't a bike in the world that could keep me in the peloton after Christian Prudhomme waved is yellow flag.

[@livibam]

Been running a 130, 38 cockpit, 0mm setback on post with a 170 crank for years now. I’m very comfortable on my rides.

[@tlkris]

i've been using tubeless inner liners for a couple of years now. I'm not saying that they prevent me from getting more punctures, but having that peace of mind that I can still finish my ride once I get a major puncture is a big deal.

[@tweeling1977]

It doesn't matter which bike your ride, the output power and endurance comes from the rider healthiness lifestyle habits 😂

[@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188]

I had a 6,8 kilo Look bike, with added SRAM 60 wheels. And I hated finding the cable holes near the bottom bracket. The top tube had a guide inside, so no problems. When building my bike I had the shop fit the crank.

[@TakanashiRikka22]

Perfectly happy with my rim brake 6.9 kg pinarello razha 2015

[@gregmorrison7320]

The Factor 02 Vam was no where to be seen during the Tour, all riders were on the Ostro that I could see and I was looking out for it.

[@magicknight8412]

Got my aero bike down to 8kg with 60mm deep section wheels and still plenty I could do to get it under that so I am happy with my setup!

[@TheRainmanBachelor]

1. 2/3 of pros get their team kit and send the kit to Assos to get inserts sewn in. 2. Riders don’t ride common size helmets they get their heads measured. 3. There is still re badging of frames going on you just don’t see it. 4. As soon as pros settle jn to their training at home the gloves come off. Or - on. They’re usually a mismatch of their team kit and anything that they find comfortable. Gloves. Socks. Warmers. Etc.

[@whynotride327]

I don't know about getting their heads measured but even Ray Charles could see that their helmets are MUCH different than what we can buy. Much smaller and closer fitting. I would like to know where you got your 2/3 stat from?

[@TheRainmanBachelor]

@@whynotride327 Velomanti I think. Oh and custom shoe sizes are rampant now bc of BOA closures.

[@savagepro9060]

BikeRadar, the opposite of GCN . . . some days!

[@davidneely9400]

"Imagine wearing 5he same outfit for work every day of they year...". As someone who was in the military for longer than the combined pro careers of most pro teams, I think I can imagine that one.😂. Plus, not have to figure out what I want to wear when the morning comes too early isn't a bad thing!

[@stevestewart-sturges2159]

Love my Ritchey WCS 46 bars and 14 stem, slammed... long low and mean

[@lomilomi3535]

my tarmac sl5 with bora ultra tubulars weighs 7 kg...and it is 6 years old...oh and it is pplenty fast enough as well....just sayin...also with rim btakes...

[@rogerwilliamson7161]

I love rim brakes. Greetings from Germany.

[@pennyblue6372]

rimbreakes are the past

[@lomilomi3535]

@@pennyblue6372 you obviously have never lightweight racing tubular wheels with high quality lightweight tubular tyres on rim brakes…nothing compares to this…the pros ride what the sponsors give them… most of them hate disc brakes…fact

[@sebastianszalek6345]

15 years ago lightest bikes used to weight 7kg as well. Currently many teams have 2 types of bikes. 1 lightweight climbing bike and the second heavier aero bikes with very deep wheels and aero frames for flat stages where the weight it's not that important.

[@savagepro9060]

Some pros use non-sponsored equipment, but cover them with 'fake' stickers!

[@christopheparisse9499]

Wouldn't mind trying narrower handlebars and slightly longer stem. But I wouldn't also mind to try before buying. Which is difficult for amateurs

[@lorenzodestefano4043]

amateur can still ride rim brake bikes and this is the best advantage with pros. I have a Bianchi xr4 that with high profile tubeless whelles sits around 6.9 kg, an aero bike with a climbing bike weight (with climbing wheels it is around 6.7). Whith modern disc brake it is almost impossibile.

[@pepessz32]

The biggest mistake every new riders (including me of course) was to copy that aero and #slamthatstem style of pros. For everyone who's new into cycling, please, for the love of God, don't. You'll make your whole cycling experience much better and enjoyable.

[@vincentkrause7097]

Which are the differences between the women and men tour bikes? How can they get the same aero position if they are smaller and have to use the smalest frames available?

[@marcodelvalle5101]

Inserts in your tires are a fantastic option and they are not expensive. They should be more impartial when giving advice

[@LosihoTTT]

Fastest ? Because of the rider in the saddle. Most expensive ? Sure. Lightest ? Please. Due to disc brakes and stupid wide tyres on tubeless wheels, most are way over the 6.8kg limit.

[@atilaj4446]

the only thing stopping me from getting a you-beaut superlight/aero/electronic/disc/tubeless/carbon everything pro bike is... Budget.!!! until that changes I'll stick with the Bianchi 928/ S-R campy set up.. at least I can get 25mm tyres on, just. 😝

[@dorianjones8150]

That's crazy 'cause I'm definitely slamming my 130mm stem and riding 38mm bars.

[@ulfhansen6924]

185 cm (6ft 1). 380 mm wide integrated handlebars with a 120 mm stem. 170 mm cranks. Aero bike with 88 mm rear and 46 mm front. 32 mm Conti rear, 23 mm front. Latex tubes. Ultegra 11 X Di2. 8,1 kg. Probably too fast for me…

[@Sutlore007]

Man, I really do love to have a privilege of personal bike mechanic and a service car. I just want to... focus on riding.

[@dathrevann]

Sounds more like setup differences rather than bike differences. Anyway videos must be made eh😂😂

[@jackyharuhiko]

The difference is that their bike is 5x the cost of your bike and they don’t need to pay themselves for it.

[@cesarjom]

I'm happy with a team bike over any LBS bought 😁

[@pigupigu]

My bike puts a pros to shame

[@kuma_score7536]

pro bikes, cost more then a car. my bike, pocket lint and 6 pack of beer pro bikes, high end gears and componentry. my bike, gears? pro bikes, full carbon. my bike, 4130 Chromoly overall I don't see to big of a difference XD

[@anurag-21]

For an obvious reason a latest 10k$ bike is way better than my 1.5k$ 8 yr old bike

[@fredericpressel1611]

Hey Folks! Oh the new Team Name 😅 Lidl ist not pronounced Liddl like Little. Ist a slow i and an solo d, so more like the name Lee plus a Del. Kudos from Germany

[@l.d.t.6327]

2:38 "don't rush to buy a narrow bar: it could land you with a very sore back" You just linked the bar width to back soreness. Really? Don't spread fake info please.

[@garysladek9110]

Rather have my own, thanks.

[@stevemead6862]

spot on

[@petetube99]

My bike has rim brakes so in that respect it's demonstrably better than any pro bike.

[@byc1013]

won't stop the freds buying these bikes so they can do 25 mile loop to the cafe on a sunday and then head home to a shoutey wife.

[@rhettscal]

Sponsor Pay, Sponsor Way!

[@georgiatrudell7787]

This bike was really easy to assemble kzbin.infoUgkxMesz3KOGEmwmvyKQfLfrRSUXLFzfVHZA and required very few adjustments out of the box. The wheels did not require any truing/adjustments. The frame had some small scratches, but nothing major.I did replace the seat though - the seat it came with was very uncomfortable. The tires need to be re-inflated every 4-5 days, but this appears to be quite common for the narrow 700x25 tires.Overall, in my opinion, this bike looks and rides like a much more expensive bike.

[@1945CCCP]

Ooops. Why you know that my bike is inferior?! (Shall i report an abuse to ut?)

[@rafaelmedina604]

Also you Bike will always looks awful with the tool kit bag in the saddle, something that Pros never

[@mikemelbrooks]

Thousands of people have to wear a uniform for work, not everybodys change each year like a cycling pro,s. Perhaps you are out of touch with many cyclists.😉

[@montrose252]

#1 reason they are less good: Disc Brakes!

[@pennyblue6372]

i know a former junior pro who now sponsors a team. he knows alot of swiss pros right now. they all would never go back on rim because of the modulation of discbreaks and they all need to rode in all weather conditions

[@adamgurule1458]

I'll pass, those bikes are for the nubies w money. No real cyclists wants one of those

[@bikepackingadventure7913]

Really could not care less about Tour de France. I hate constantly being asked at work about the Tour de France I also drive a car, it does not mean I like F1 motor sport is my normal response to the Tour de France question I even have less interested in the Tour de France bikes, bicycle manufactures need to make bikes for normal people rather basing their road bikes on elite level racers. Most overweight middle aged cycles don’t need and don’t have the flexibility to ride them 🤔😂😂😏 🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱

[@kpizzle1985]

All mainstream manufacturers make bikes for 'normal' people, it's not their fault if 'normal' people choose not to buy them.

[@veganpotterthevegan]

The big bike companies are only in business thanks to making bikes for normal people. That said, as a bike fitter, most average roadies have no issue fitting on race oriented bikes without tons of spacers.

[@livibam]

Missing an unreal race this year.

[@bikepackingadventure7913]

I don’t like golf either but I would rather watch golf than cycling sport. Maybe if the reorganised cycling to make it easier to understand, maybe it would be more enjoyable to watch without needing a ‘Basic understanding translator of cycling racing, book’ 😏😂

[@veganpotterthevegan]

@bikepackingadventure7913 if you can't understand cycling, I suggest you stick with sesame street because golf(while also simple) has more complicated rules than cycling does.