Tabla de contenidos para June 2016 en Cyclist

A win for Froome will be met with a collective shrug by the great mass of sports fans. That’sashame because it diminishes the enormity of the achievement Time to place your bets. Will Chris Froome take his third Tour de France victory this July? The bookies certainly think so, placing him (at the time of writing) as the 5/4 favourite, ahead of Nairo Quintana (2/1), Alberto Contador (7/2) and Richie Porte (14/1). Anyone I talk to about the Tour seems to agree that Froome will probably win, almost to the point where it has become tiresome in its inevitability. The consensus is that Sky will control the peloton, attacks will be neutralised, data will be analysed and a victory will be extracted from the race with all the clinical efficiency…

To download this route go to cyclist.co.uk/48italy. Beginning in Corvara, head south on the SS244. After Arabba, swing right on to the SR48 to climb the Passo Pordoi. Turn right on the SS242 to head north over the Passo Sella, then head right on the SS243 over the Passo Gardena and back into Corvara. Repeat, but this time go left at Arabba on the SR48 to Andraz. After the town, swing left – staying on the SR48 – to climb the Passo Falzarego. At the top, head left on the SP24, then follow the SP24 and SP37 down to the SS244, from where you take a left turn straight back to Corvara.…

‘A ketone is another energy source,’ says Kieran Clarke, professor of physiological biochemistry at Oxford University, and inventor of the first ketone-based drink DeltaG. Clarke’s discovery has excited the cycling world a great deal, and rumours have spread that bottles of ketone drink have been sold for €2,000 (£1,500) each to pro cyclists. A ketone is normally metabolised by the body to create energy, and originates from fat. ‘It’s produced normally when you haven’t eaten or when you’re on a ketogenic diet,’ Clarke says. ‘The research was originally funded by the US army. They wanted somebody to invent a really efficient food and we said we could do that.’ The drink created by Clarke means that you can put ketones straight into your body that can be turned into energy.…

2007 Quits economics degree to turn pro with South African team Konica Minolta. Wins first stage of his career at the Giro delle Regioni. 2008 Signs for Barloworld and rides first Tour de France, finishing 83rd. 2009 After discussions with British Cycling’s Rod Ellingworth, Froome switches allegiance to represent Britain instead of Kenya. 2010 Joins Team Sky. Finishes 2nd in the British national time-trial championships and rides in his first Giro d’Italia. 2011 Cements potential as Grand Tour contender with 2nd place at the Vuelta a Espana and top 15 finishes at the Tour de Romandie and Vuelta a Castilla y León. 2012 As a domestique he wins Stage 7 and finishes 2nd to team leader Bradley Wiggins at the Tour de France. Wins bronze in the Olympic time-trial and…

To download this route, go to cyclist.co.uk/48argyll . Leaving Dunoon, follow the A885 and A880 to Ardentinny. Stay on this road as it heads north-west, then turn right on to the A815 until Strachur. Turn left onto the A886, then the B8000 for 23km to Otter Ferry. Turn left on the B800 and climb the Bealach an Drain. Turn onto the A886 to Colintraive and take the ferry to the Isle of Bute. Head to Rothesay and turn right at the roundabout on to Bishop Street, then left to climb the Serpentine. Return to the ferry port, cross to Colintraive and follow the old coast road beside Loch Riddon. It rejoins the A886 after 5km. Turn right onto the B836, then after 16km right again onto the…

‘A good weld should be smooth and symmetrical, with all the puddles – or dime stacks – a consistent size and shape,’ says Independent Fabrication’s lead welder, Keith Rouse. ‘TIG welding stands for “Tungsten with Inert Gas”, so you have your inert gas, argon, which acts as a shield to stop oxidisation and contamination of the weld, and then you have the tungsten, which is the electrode at the end of the welding torch. The tube you’re welding is earthed, so that when the electrode is close enough to the metal, but not actually touching – like millimetres apart – it causes an electric arc, which creates extreme heat. You control the heat by controlling the amps with a foot pedal, and that heat makes a tiny molten puddle, which…

Workstand Latex gloves Bucket full of hot soapy water 2 x sponges (one clean/one oily) Cloths and rags Assorted brushes (old paint/ toothbrushes will do) Chain cleaning device Degreaser Bike wash/ cleaning solution Clean water to rinse Water disperser (like WD40) Chain lube (use ‘dry’ lube mainly) Sandpaper (for brake pads) Polish Allen keys Stanley knife/ scalpel for removing flint from tyres/muck from brake blocks Mug of tea…

TRAVEL We flew to Lyon, which is serviced by most major airlines, and then drove 90 minutes to Bourg-d’Oisans. We used a transfer organised by More Than 21 Bends (morethan21bends.com) that cost £160 for the return trip to Lyon, or you can opt for an £80 pick-up and drop-off from Grenoble train station. If you can find a flight to Alpe d’Huez (AHZ) airport, you can just roll down the hairpins to Bourg-d’Oisans. TOURS Phil from More Than 21 Bends showed us the region’s secret tracks on top of sorting accommodation and travel. More Than 21 Bends offers a gravel-specific five-day supported cycle holiday, including B&B in shared rooms from £349. The company can also arrange bespoke trips for groups of six or more, and provides a range of accommodation…

Trek wasn’t the first bike brand to use rear suspension in its frames but it’s the only one that can claim real success. The original Domane won the Strade Bianche, E3-Harelbeke, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix all under the power of Fabian Cancellara, but it has always suffered from accusations of feeling unbalanced. The rear end of the frame was as comfortable as they come, thanks to its IsoSpeed Decoupler, but the front end felt harsh in comparison. The new Domane SLR hopes to change all that. Trek has taken the lessons it learnt from adding a suspension unit to the rear of a frame and repeated that at the front end. ‘Ever since the first Domane, people have been asking us to put an IsoSpeed in the fork,’ says…

Dear Frank Can we have a rule about hand signals? I’m all for safety, but every group ride is now accompanied by so much shouting and pointing at every pothole and drain cover that the whole experience is spoiled. Graham, by email Dear Graham A well-oiled group can be a wonderful thing. I think the extreme of that is watching riders peel off the front in track racing where the lead rider just flicks the wheel, shoots off up the banking to reduce their speed and then falls neatly and precisely onto the back of the line. Poetry in motion was ever thus. Such fluidity takes lots of practice and communication. Experience obviously counts out on the roads but in an environment with such unpredictability we can’t always prepare, so…

TRAVEL Monarch Airlines (monarch.co.uk) flies to Venice Marco Polo from London Gatwick, Birmingham and Manchester, with prices starting from £64 return. Transfers from Venice to Alta Badia are available via taxi, shuttle or shared buses. ACCOMMODATION Hotel La Perla (hotellaperla.it) in Corvara offers bespoke ‘Leading Bike’ cycling packages, including meal plans, guided tours, laundry services, bike hire and more. The on-site Pinarello Passionate Lounge features some iconic bikes, including ones that belonged to Sir Bradley Wiggins and Miguel Indurain. Three-night packages start from £286 per person, which includes hire of a Pinarello Dogma F8 and the services of a mechanic and soigneur. Special Giro d’Italia packages are now available. INFORMATION Visit the Alta Badia tourism website (altabadia.org) for information on the new ‘Bike Friendly’ infrastructure, which means cyclists can pick…

Cyclist did four tests over six weeks, measuring power, heart rate and blood lactate. The test lasted 65 minutes, with a 10-second, 30-second, 2 x 1-minute, 5-minute and 20-minute maximal effort, and a set recovery period between each interval. The figures are average watts. The shortest efforts improved the most, with the best result in the final test. ‘The 30-second power showed the most marked and consistent increase relative to baseline. For this type of effort, fatigue is caused by a drop in muscle ATP and the accumulation of metabolic acids, so this may reflect the dual effects of creatine and beta–alanine,’ says Katusha’s Rob Child. The effects on lactic acid and reduced fatigue over longer efforts weren’t evident, with no significant increase in overall five-minute or 20-minute power. The…

With a newly signed contract nestling in his back pocket that will keep him with Team Sky until the end of 2018, Chris Froome is sitting pretty at the head of one of cycling’s superest superteams – one that has won the Tour de France three times in just five years of existence. Which is quite incredible when you think about it. Froome is one of only five riders who remain from the original 26-rider Team Sky roster from 2010, the others being fellow Brits Ian Stannard, Peter Kennaugh, Geraint Thomas and Ben Swift. And the fact that the team has retained a British core is a bonus for the man who will lead their assault on the Tour this year. ‘It’s nice to have that kind of “home” feeling…

At the start of the aero revolution, the time-trial market was saturated with long-tailed, aerofoil shaped helmets. Now, though, a diverse spectrum of designs has arisen, from the snub-tailed Kask Bambino and the mid-length Lazer Wasp, right up to the full-tail Giro Advantage. Why are there such distinct differences? Surely one shape is the fastest? ‘Strictly speaking, a long tailed TT helmet – assuming the shape is correctly designed – can be faster because in aerodynamic terms, a streamlined aerofoil-like shape can be between 10-20 times lower in drag coefficient than a spherical shape. So a long tailed TT helmet is essentially turning your approximately spherical head into a more efficient streamlined shape,’ says Specialized’s head of applied technologies, Chris Yu. ‘However, this can backfire where the helmet isn’t designed…

‘Be organised to save time,’ says Team GB and Team Wiggins mechanic Nick Walling. ‘Have everything laid out, and work systematically – drivetrain first, then wash off from top to bottom.’ ‘Check the hole in the underside of the bottom bracket,’ says Walling. ‘This gets blocked up with dirt and can’t let water out, which is what it’s there for.’ ‘Consider buying cheaper chains and replacing them more often,’ says pro mechanic Rohan Dubash. ‘If you’ve shelled out £250 on a chain and cassette you’ll want to keep it for years and are more likely to be riding around on worn-out sprockets. A 105 instead of Dura-Ace won’t make much difference overall.’ ‘Polishing is important,’ says Walling. ‘It really stops the dirt sticking, so makes your bike much easier to…

Taking a light bike to the Alpen Brevet seemed like a no-brainer. This Giant Defy Advanced SL0 had already received high praise when Cyclist initially reviewed it, commending its low weight, super-stiff chassis yet comfortable demeanor. The disc brakes were the icing on the cake just in case it poured with rain. It appeared the perfect partner and it definitely did not disappoint. I took the liberty of switching the groupset, from Shimano Dura-Ace to Sram’s Force 1x11 set-up (46t chainring with 10-42t cassette). While it might seem counterintuitive to reduce the available gears for this event, it provided the ultimate testing ground for 1x11. I certainly never lacked a low-enough gear for the ups and never found myself spinning too crazily on the downs.…

Lightweight Edelstoff Bike Wear Jersey £119, gilet £139, bibshorts £179, base layer £55, lightweight.info For German carbon specialist Lightweight, adding a range of premium road cycling clothing is a bit of a curveball, far removed from its highly regarded, super-light carbon wheels, but our first impressions are that its line-up, released for spring/summer 2016, oozes quality. What’s more, the prices – much more so than its top-end wheels – are down to earth considering that these garments boast up-to-the-minute fabric technologies such as Coldblack, and were created by a dedicated team of fashion designers, thankfully not by its wheel engineers in their spare time. Lightweight claims 30 experienced riders have tested more than 45 prototypes over 30,000+km in a period of two years prior to production, so we’d hope this…

In terms of clothing, road racing has taken its time catching up with track racing and time-trialling, disciplines where watt-saving boffins have been scrutinising bodies and bikes for years in search of aerodynamic gains. Glance at the pro peloton now though and it might as well be a bunch of TT riders – minus the disc wheels and aero bars, of course – as helmets, shoes and kit are all as slick as possible. But clothing demands a different approach. Riders carry food, they may need comfort breaks, and there’s always a chance of facing all four seasons’ weather in one day. And so the speedsuit is the road racer’s answer to the TT skinsuit. The addition of rear pockets and a full-length zip, plus the use of more versatile…

‘Tramadol is an opiate like morphene and ketamine and those sorts of drugs. There’s no evidence to show that it makes you go faster’ Ketones, that’s the thing. Perhaps a ketogenic diet. They’re all on tramadol, salbutamol, fluticasone, codeine, caffeine. People say they use beetroot juice, nitrates in the water bottle, bicarbonate of soda before the race and there’s this protein gene – it costs £100 a shot and apparently it gives you a 10% boost. Everyone’s on it. When it comes to discussions about what the pros use to enhance performance without risking a doping ban, there is a lot of speculation but very little fact. The list of foods, supplements and chemicals that potentially offer a speed boost is huge, and the benefits uncertain, so Cyclist decided to…

‘I’ve no doubt that Richie Porte will be up there this year. He knows how we’re going to ride. He knows how I think!’ Chris Froome is suffering. His face gives nothing away, but neither Nairo Quintana, Alberto Contador or any of his other rivals are anywhere to be seen. In fact, Froome isn’t even on a bike. He’s sitting on a comfy, padded chair in the members’ lounge of the RACV Healesville Country Club, an hour’s drive north-east of Melbourne, where Stage 1 of the Jayco Herald Sun Tour finished a little earlier in the day. Despite that, his pain is very real. ‘It’s not easy,’ Froome tells Cyclist. ‘I’ve got to admit, it’s really not easy leaving home now.’ The 30-year-old British rider became a father in December…

GETTING THERE If you’re driving, pick up the M8 northbound from Paisley, then the coast road through Langbank and Port Glasgow to Gourock. It’s a £12 car ferry journey from McInroy’s Point to Hunter’s Quay in Kirn. A separate ferry runs from Gourock to Dunoon itself. Fares for the six-hour train journey from London Euston (with one change at Glasgow) to Gourock start from £138. From northern Scotland, take the A82 from the north coast of Loch Lomond, then the A83 to Cairndow. Take the A815 southbound to Dunoon. ACCOMMODATION The Douglas Park Guest House ( douglasparkguesthouse.co.uk ) in Kirn provided a friendly welcome, en suite rooms and the best cooked breakfast I’ve eaten in years. It also has a big garage in which to store your bike.…

Col du Cluy 7km The gravel ascent up to Alpe d’Huez offers consistent gradients and stunning views. The gravel itself has patches of loose stone but is generally well-packed. Lac du Verney 2.8km A towpath that follows the west coast of the hydroelectric reservoir north of Bourg d’Oisans. It’s technical and rocky, interspersed with inlets of water. A good test for wide tyres. L’Eau d’Olle 1.5km A gravel track along an elevated bank beside L’Eau d’Olle, a mountain river that flows down from Lac du Verney. It’s flat but has stretches of loose and stony surface. Alpe d’Huez Airport 1.2km A short excursion from the main route from La Sarenne. It begins with a rocky trail up to the airport, before flattening…

One thing’s clear in cycling: marketing hyperbole often causes confusion and scepticism, leading you to question manufacturers’ cutting-edge and unique claims. You’ll see the term ‘proprietary’ used countless times in relation to fabrics. The implication here is that a manufacturer has created and developed a fabric with certain features (such as waterproofing or breathability) for themselves. Gore (WL Gore & Associates) is a rare anomaly in that it both mills its own fabrics and creates its own range of clothing. Most apparel brands don’t create their own fabrics – for them, it makes economical sense to purchase fabrics under licence from an external mill. That’s why, as well as Gore’s Windstopper fabric featuring in its own range of bike garments, it also pops up in many other brands’ gear too.…

TRAVEL Cyclist flew with Swiss Air from London Heathrow to Zurich. From there we rented a car and drove to the start town of Meiringen. It takes roughly two hours and very picturesque it is too if you do it in daylight. ACCOMMODATION We stayed at Das Hotel Sherlock Holmes in Meiringen (Arthur Conan Doyle set the clash between Holmes and Professor Moriarty at the nearby Reichenbach Falls, hence the hotel’s name). It’s a three-star hotel with its own restaurant that caters especially for guests riding the Alpen Brevet with a big pasta meal the night before and an early and plentiful breakfast in the morning. It’s bike friendly too, obviously, but the best part is the location – just a few hundred metres from the start and…

In praise of… Grand Tours p49 (TOP TO BOTTOM) Le Coq Sportif Vuelta a Espana replica jersey, £N/A (discontinued) lecoqsportif.com Le Coq Sportif Tour de France replica jersey, £62 lecoqsportif.com Santini Giro d’Italia replica jersey, £79 fisheroutdoor.co.uk Mountains Of The Mind p60 Kask Mojito helmet, £100 velobrands.co.uk Oakley Radarlock Edge sunglasses, £185 uk.oakley.com Santini CoolZero jersey, £89.99 fisheroutdoor.co.uk Santini B-Cool bibshorts, £139.99 fisheroutdoor.co.uk Louis Garneau Course socks, £11.99 evanscycles.co.uk Specialized S-Works shoes, £259.99 specialized.com Banks And Braes p100 Poc Octal Raceday helmet, £190 2pure.co.uk Oakley Jawbreaker Prizm sunglasses, £175 uk.oakley.com dhb Blok jersey, £40 wiggle.co.uk Castelli Nanoflex armwarmers, £30 saddleback.co.uk dhb Blok bibshorts, £50 wiggle.co.uk Castelli Nanoflex kneewarmers, £35 saddleback.co.uk Defeet Levitator LeMondster socks, £11.99 i-ride.co.uk Bont Blitz…

If you close your eyes and think of America’s only winner of the Giro d’Italia, he’s probably wearing a 7-Eleven top, a wool beanie, some neoprene diving gloves and what look like a pair of ski goggles while riding through a blizzard on the Passo di Gavia in 1988. In fact, if you think of Andy Hampsten in any context, he’s no doubt sporting a pair of the Oakley Factory Pilot Eyeshades that he and Greg LeMond helped popularise in the 1980s. In their sole season together in 1986, the Americans rocked a flamboyant range of sunglasses featuring almost every colour of their Mondrian-inspired La Vie Claire jerseys. Meanwhile, grizzled team patron Bernard Hinault – the triple Giro winner – clung to tradition with his black Ray-Ban aviators which, although…