Dom's new steed

Within the next few days, the "masher" Dominic will be taking delivery of the latest addition to his stable:




The Specialized Transition Pro, a slippery wind-cheating machine, if there ever was one.

Features

 *  Specialized E5 AEROTEC frame, fully manipulated Columbus aero tubing, compact Transition race design.
 *  Specialized FACT monocoque carbon aero fork, carbon legs, crown, and steerer, Speed Zertz.
 *  Profile Lava, OS stem and Specialized Zertz Transition bullhorn bars.
 *  Shimano Dura-Ace components with carbon aero brake levers.
 *  FSA K-Force MegaExo, 2-piece carbon crankset.
 *  Zipp 404 (58mm rim height), carbon clincher wheelset - no dimpling on rim.
 *  Body Geometry Toupé Gel saddle.


What I'd recommend

 +  Upgrade all bearings to ceramic hybrids (not so much for the reduced friction, but more for the lower weight).

 +  Lose the stock Specialized saddle and get the Sella Italia SLR carbon fiber / titanium saddle (140 grams). You can add a sweet dedicated carbon fiber saddle bag for it too.

 +  If you have a cast iron butt, you can go for the 76 gram (!!!) Sella Italia SLR C64 saddle. What's a little pain for more speed, eh? :-P

 +  Replace steel hardware with titanium upgrades from the following merchants:

       HBC, LLC
       Racebolt, LLC
       TekBolt
       Ti Kinetics
       Mettec
       SRP
       Redmist

 +  Find out why the supplied Zipp 404 wheelset are non-dimpled. Dimples increase aerodynamic advantage.




Dom's vintage Scott USA Race Pro with Cloe at the Mandai Army training grounds.

       In other news, I'm very happy with Xero™'s lightweight rim tape (see previous post). They shave off 14 grams per wheel. I never thought losing 28 grams of rotating (and unsprung) mass could make such a difference. On a 35 mile (56 km) ride, my average speed went up by 0.9 mph (1.44 km/h) without any perceptible increase in effort. Woot!


Bike Porn

Campagnolo's 2007 Shamal Ultra wheelset is so tempting. They whisper to me each time I step into Colin's shop at Sixth Avenue.



They are even dynamically balanced and are available with ceramic hybrid bearings as an option.





Weight: Front 605 grams. Rear 790 grams. Total 1395 grams.

Hubba! Hubba! Hubba!