when we think about recent advances in
bike technology might think about frame
material so transitioning from steel
through to carbon fiber or we might
think about the race to improve
aerodynamics or to reduce weight but one
thing we probably all overlook is
geometry and that that would be a
mistake because this right here is one
of the most important bikes of the last
20 years this is the iconic giant TCR
its DNA has spread to all corners of the
bike industry in fact is so well
integrated now that you probably
wouldn't even think to look anymore but
when viewed next was offspring the
family resemblance is striking this 20
years it's jr. is the giant TCR advanced
SL disc
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so go on then why is this bike so iconic
so legendary what 20 years ago all rode
bikes had horizonte top tubes and they
had to come in upwards of 10 different
sizes just to accommodate all heights of
rider and then there was actually very
little opportunity for adjusting the fit
of your bike once you had actually
chosen the frame size giant meanwhile
had recruited the services of maverick
bike designer Mike burrows and then
perhaps most famous for designing
another iconic bike the Lotus monocot
which Tuesday is still the fastest ever
bike at the our record now the burrows
had looked to the mountain bike market
and seen how few sizes were needed in
order to accommodate all riders and then
he also saw the other benefits that a
compact frame would bring so improve
stiffness improve comfort through a
longer seat post flexing away and then
also light away and a benefit to road
riders at least improved aerodynamics so
Burroughs took 16-inch mountain bike
frame from Giant and Julie built it up
as his road bike now giant themselves
first saw that mongrel bike back in 1994
and their European president Yan Dirksen
himself I see an ex pro cyclist is
immediately a big advocate because you
see giant despite being the biggest fly
brand in the world selling six point
three million bikes per year actually at
that time didn't really sell anything in
the road market but in this they saw a
big opportunity to stir things up so
it's just two years later the aluminium
total compact road was born
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now by large us road cyclists a quite
traditional bunch and so in order to be
convinced to the merits of contact road
frames we needed to see them in action
now fortunately for giant team unsay the
legendary spanish team were quick to see
the benefits haven't been shown early
samples it's perhaps not surprising
really because they're an iminium frames
at a time way there still to this day
quite incredible 900 grams and the frame
could double up as both their Road and
their time trial bikes there was then
just one last piece of the puzzle Jai
needed to convince the president of the
UCI at the time be slightly infamous
Hein Verbruggen not to ban their
revolutionary frame says now that was
easier said than done but common sense
did prevail t month they started winning
and a legend began
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so here we are then 20 years on riding
the latest and greatest TCR ironically
enough actually this one is currently
banned by the UCI although that is
because the disk race of course and not
the frameset now we saw on that early on
thay team bike but those first frames
were made out aluminium and actually
wasn't until 2003 that we've got our
first carbon-fiber TCR then this one now
is currently made out of giant advanced
grade SL carbon fiber which I'll admit
as a name it doesn't exactly tell us
very much but the scales don't lie this
weighs just over 7 kilos for a complete
bike and that's built up with Rams new
eat out HRD and then the early promise
have improved stiffness from that
compact frame geometry all those years
ago still very much lives on Giants say
then testing this bike has the best
stiffness to weight ratio of any road
bike out there you can see where that
comes from the fittingly labeled giant
down tube blends into an oversized
bottom bracket a great power transfer
and then have neglected the front end
either this is a very good thing they
put consider amount of time into
developing that overdrive steerer which
keeps the front end tracking nicely and
that we help no doubt buy those 12 mil
through axles the difference between the
old and the new is it has to be said
pretty striking it's beautiful as that
old bike was as fantastic as it still is
to ride this one is just so much stiffer
and it feels an awful lot faster I mean
it is an out-and-out race bike even down
to the chainstay length which giant of
somehow managed to keep the same on this
disc bike as their rim break version in
fact for the traditionalists out there
you can ride this bike
and not really remember that you're on a
disparate bike until you actually come
to put your brakes on it in which case
you'll definitely know and that to my
mind it's a good thing and it has to be
said there's no surprise this is an
out-and-out race bike it was designed
and developed with help from John
Allison and then before then giant
Shimano
and before them rubber Bank and before
them highroad and then before them
t-mobile until we get right back to
start again we team on say in fact this
bike has amassed a huge number of
victories including we have to say B
1998 British men's Road Race
Championship under one Matthew Stephens
oh yeah in fact you could probably argue
that this is the most accessible model
of road bike ever I certainly certainly
would have threw one of them now I know
there are still people out there the
struggle at the site of a compact Road
frame yes even after 20 years but should
we all nevertheless be a little bit
thankful to giant for creating the TCR
in the first place well yep I think we
should actually they simplified sizing
they streamline the manufacturing
process which has helped usher in mass
market carbon production as among other
things and they also created a lighter
and stiffer bike now yeah those things
would have happened inevitably anyway
I'm sure but someone had to start it and
this was the genesis now I talked a
little bit earlier about Schramm's
eat app HRD groupset if you want to see
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