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For Mathieu van der Poel’s victory at Strade Bianche, eagle-eyed viewers noted that he was aboard the same Canyon Aeroad which is currently the subject of a stop-ride investigation.
All Canyon-sponsored athletes were forced to change bikes after Van der Poel’s handlebars inexplicably broke during the final stages of the Samyn, leaving the Dutchman to throw some of his bars and finish the race with his lever. gears suspended by cables.
Before the race, it was rumored that Van der Poel and his teammates would switch to Canyon’s lightweight racing bike, the Ultimate, which shares the same high-end CFR carbon setup as his favorite Aeroad racing bike. However, once the race started it became clear that Van der Poel was on board an Aeroad.
Cycling initially reported that the frame was the Aeroad CF SL, the budget frame that follows the same lines and tube profiles as its more expensive sibling, due to the cable entry ports located on the shoulder of the tube. direction.
However, in an Instagram post, Canyon admitted that Van der Poel actually drove a “ suitable version ” of the top-of-the-line Aeroad CFR.
“Mathieu won today on a suitable Aeroad CFR which was fitted with our CP00010 cockpit,” reads the Canyon press release. “This setup will continue to be piloted by our teams as we investigate the incident with cockpits CP00015 and CP00018 that emerged with Mathieu’s bike at Samyn on Tuesday.”
The adaptations mentioned are undoubtedly the addition of cable entry ports in the chassis, and a possible fork switch to the one used on the CF SL. Whether it was a Canyon engineer or team mechanics who performed the adaptations is not confirmed, but Canyon has confirmed that all of its sponsored teams will continue to use the adapted Aeroad CFR.
The decision to adapt the frame to accept an unconventional cockpit system goes a long way in shedding light on the importance of aerodynamics versus weight for Van der Poel. Many of his teammates, along with various riders from Canyon’s other sponsored teams, Movistar and Arkea Samsic, used the pre-existing Canyon Ultimate CFR, in what undoubtedly would have been a much simpler solution.
The Aeroad CFR frame weight is cited by Canyon at 915g, while the hyper-light weight of 614g is cited for the Ultimate CFR. We’re not aware of any aero tests that directly compare the new shape of the Aeroad frame to that of the Ultimate, but the difference is clearly significant enough for the Dutchman.
With Van der Poel cycling on the WorldTour stage, Canyon also took the opportunity to reaffirm the pending stop notice: “By taking responsible measures for the safety of all riders, we have contacted the owners. Aeroad CFR and Aeroad CF SLX models equipped with the CP00018 or CP00015 cockpits, asking them to stop riding their bikes while we fully investigate the problem with the shifter clamp interface on the bars . The statement continued. “We will update them to inform them of any progress and clarify next steps in due course.”
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