- So the Northern Classics are here upon us,
and it's probably my favorite time of the season.
Actually, it is my favorite time of the season.
But what makes these races so special
are those cobbled sectors.
And this is probably the only race in the calendar
where pros make a huge difference in their selection
of equipment for the race.
So you're likely to see all sorts of different
things being used.
And what we're gonna look at today
is how to make your bike ready for the cobblestones.
But the good news is,
it's not just limited to cobblestones.
So maybe you've got rough roads in your area,
or you just like a little bit of extra comfort.
Today, let's have a look.
(upbeat electronic music)
So using wider tires is a pretty popular choice
at these Classics, the reason being that you can run
a lower pressure without increasing
the chance of puncturing.
That's good news all times of the year, let's face it.
In the Tour of Flanders, though, generally the riders
still use 25 millimeter wide tires.
Which they use in most races throughout the year.
However, Greg Van Avermaet apparently has been using
28 millimeter tires this year in the run up to these races.
I wonder if he used them yesterday.
I didn't quite get to have a good old look though.
So for the more brutal cobbles of Paris-Roubaix,
you can in fact see riders using 30 millimeters.
Almost the standard as the width of tire,
sometimes even wider.
As for tire pressure, as low as 65 PSI.
Just to put that in perspective, when I started racing
a long time ago, it was so common, not obviously
Paris-Roubaix, I didn't ride that, but you would use
23 or 21 millimeter wide tires with 120 PSI.
That's such a big difference.
So not only do we see wider tires being used at those
classics, we also see different tread compounds.
Yep that's right, so take for example continental
and their competition limited tubular tire.
Its actually got a different side wall to the tire.
So a little bit tougher than the standard one, so that's
going to help bouncing over those cobbles.
Also the tread compound, so it's slightly gripper,
so slightly softer that means, so that'll help you over
those cobbles too, where they're quite often a little
bit muddy, a little bit dusty, and they can
be a tad slippery.
Now what you can also expect to see is teams roll out
tires that are totally unbranded and they're likely
to be some hand made artisan numbers.
So from the likes of FMB, Dugast, that kind of thing.
What I'm going to do though is fit a pair of 28
millimeters on my bike so I'm ready for the rough stuff.
(upbeat electronic music)
Now nobody wants to drop a bottle whilst out riding,
and to be perfectly honest with you, cobblestones and
water bottle cages traditionally are not a match made
in heaven, that's for sure.
The reason being you're hitting those cobbles at such
force, you'll quite often see bottles just fly out of
those bottle cages and cause mayhem behind, believe me.
Now the pro's, they've got a couple tricks up their sleeves.
What have they got, well they've got some grip tape
and also metal bottle cages.
First up grip tape, self explanatory really,
self adhesive tape that you can put on the inside of
your bottle cages to help give a
little bit of extra resistance.
Do be careful though, because they do wear away at
the bottles on the outside.
So if you've got your favorite prize possession bottle
that you really don't want to ruin, probably best
to avoid using that.
And also keep an eye out for any leaks, and also
don't be tempted to put it on your saddle
because there was a very famous photo on the internet
a while ago of a tundra rider who had some grip tape
on his saddle, and yeah, the results were eye watering.
(screaming)
Now the other option is the alloy bottle cage.
Now with this, basically you want to push down on it
so its a little bit tighter to actually insert the bottle.
Reason being that's going to give a firmer grip.
So what am I going to do?
I'm going to do one of each, one carbon cage with a little
bit of grip tape, and one alloy one, see what works best.
(upbeat electronic music)
So vibrations from cobblestones can be absolutely massive,
I told you they were rough, didn't I?
So in the worst case scenario, a chain can actually dislodge
from a chain ring and essentially leave a rider
spinning in mid air if that makes sense.
So how do the pro's combat this?
Well firstly, they can use a chain catcher,
so that attaches to the front derailleur mount
and then sits down there on the inside.
So in between the inner chambering and the frame itself.
So if your chain was to do dislodge and go
all the way over there, you're not going to
actually lose it totally.
You're just going to go on to the smaller chain ring
rather than going down and damaging the paintwork of the
bottom bracket, which is never a good look.
Now for chain rings, something on the inner ring like
a 46 tooth, is pretty common in Paris-Roubaix
and for the tour of Flanders 42 or 44,
that's not unheard of either.
The reason being, if you are to dislodge that chain
on to the inner ring, your difference in cadence is going
to be minimized by having a
larger inner chambering selection, so there we are.
I don't think ill be going for a 46 tooth inner though.
Although, I have actually got a 46 tooth inner ring here
and if I was riding Paris-Roubaix for instance, for Sportif,
I think I'd put it on.
The only problem though, you may well find yourself
with at home is you need to make sure that there is a
chambering available for your chain set particular model.
So for instance this Shimano One, I couldn't find anything
bigger than a 42 commonly available.
So ill actually have to put this one on to an old chain
set at home, and whack that on instead.
(upbeat electronic music)
Now this one is a proper pro hack,
little bit of handlebar tape on the platform of your pedal.
But why? Well actually it can help reduce a little bit
of fatigue, so if you imagine how brutal
those cobblestones are, 200 and what, 260 kilometers and
a quarter of it roughly offroad, on savage ancient roads.
So what you're going to do is cut up that tape
and put it across the center of your pedal,
and actually it works a bit like double wrapping
your handlebar tape.
So essentially, you're removing just a little bit of
vibration through your stiff carbon soled cycling shoes.
Now the second benefit of that tape in that pedal
is actually they're gonna keep your feet slightly more
secure in the pedals because it's not uncommon
believe me, to actually see a riders foot
bounce out of the pedal.
(cursing being bleeped out)
So it is going to make clipping in and out
a little bit tougher
so pay particular attention at road junctions.
Otherwise there'll be the embarrassing moment of
(creaking and crashing)
falling over because you can't get your foot out.
So just be aware of that.
(upbeat electronic music)
So most riders, they tend to actually ride the
cobblestones on the tops of the handlebar.
Why? Well you can have a very loose grip over the
handlebars so that you're not holding on for dear life,
because that's not what you want to be doing.
You want to essentially let the bike find its own
path through the cobblestones.
Plus you can put a little bit of extra weight back
on the rear wheel so that you're not putting everything
on the front end, which could end pretty badly on cobbles.
Now obviously you're riding up there,
you can't break there can you?
Because when you're hitting that pave at speed,
the last thing you want to do is start
moving your hands around a lot.
Especially if you're not confident on them.
So a number of pro's actually fit these
cross top break levers.
They look like miniature mountain bike breaks don't they?
So the reason behind them really is that you can still break
whilst up there, so if there was an incident in front of you
it's not a problem to come to a stop.
As well as being able to just feather the breaks
to be able to control your speed too.
Now using cross top break levers is not as common as
it once was, when it seemed like every other rider in
the Peloton was using them for Paris-Roubaix.
However, in more recent times two riders
have actually used them to success.
So that's Greg Van Avermaet and John Degenkolb.
Now I've had to actually borrow Stevie G's bike, one of
my colleagues, to show them because I can't fit
them onto my bike sadly and I love
those integrated handlebars.
So good news for Van Avermaet and John Degenkolb,
I won't be able to use them so therefore
won't be able to challenge them.
Sorry lads.
(upbeat electronic music)
Now if you can't break whilst riding from the top,
it makes sense that you can't change gear whilst riding
up there too, but you can.
How? With electronic gears, that's how.
So if you're using Shimano or Schram, you can
in fact use a climbing shifter here on the top of the
handlebar, or the R9150 shifters from Shimano two,
or in Schram's case the blip's,
they simply mount up here
connect to your electronic shifters,
and you can then change gear up here on the pave.
Also another option is the sprint shifters,
so from Shimano I've got sprint shifters fitted down here.
Now they only actually control the rear derailleur
so nothing with the front.
Schram's blip's though, they can control both derailleurs.
So again you can simply fit them down here on the drops
and you can change gear.
Although admittedly you're gonna be riding
much on the drops on the cobblestone.
Some riders though in the past have done it,
Tom Boonen for instance.
(upbeat electronic music)
Now one of the easiest and most common things you're going
to see on a pro's bike Paris-Roubaix and in most
cases Tour of Flanders too,
is double wrapping of handlebar tape.
And what is it? Exactly what it says on the tin.
It's just putting on another layer of bar tape,
and to simplify the process, really you're going to
have to remove just a few centimeters here at the end
of the handlebar, and then a few centimeters
here at the top.
So with a knife or a very sharp blade, cut away that layer
and then remove it, and then the same there,
and then just wrap your bar tape.
Now there is a huge variety of handlebar tape available.
Most riders though, they will opt for using exactly
the same as what they've already got fitted.
Therefore they know exactly how it feels
and how it handles in the wet.
Because handlebar tape can become slippery
and if you're not used to it, yeah,
could well lose your grip.
Now something else which riders do use but it's not always
instantly recognizable is in fact an old inner tube
underneath the handlebar tape.
No, it's not inflated, don't worry.
It's simply cut up into sections, and that rubber just
provides a little bit extra dampening.
Now interestingly Tom Boonen, who was three time winner
of Tour of Flanders, four time winner of Paris-Roubaix,
I think he knows a thing or two about riding on cobbles.
He never used to use gloves, that's right,
never used gloves in those races.
The reason being he said he could get
a better feel for the roads.
So, there we are.
Maybe it could be to reduce the chance of getting
any blisters from a pair of gloves
rubbing on the palms, who knows.
Right, you are ready now to go out and hit that pave.
Your hands are going to be comfortable,
your feet aren't going to come out,
your chain's not going to come off, and most of all
you're going to have so much fun doing it.
Remember to like and share this video with your friends too,
and also if you want one of these
limited edition cobbled classics t-shirt.
Head over to the GCN shop at shop.globalcyclingnetwork.com
And for another great video,
this time how to double wrap your handlebars.
Click just down here.