Bike Check: Greg van Avermaet's Paris-Roubaix BMC – Bike Magazine Australia

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Each rider had a spare BMC Granfondo. Their 2nd spare bike was a teammachine.

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Last year’s Shimano C50 wheels were the choice for the team. But not for van Avermaet

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All in all, the team had 45 sets of wheels on race day, spread across 9 team cars.

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A special solution was painted onto the sidewalls of the Vittoria tubulars, for extra strength. This is something cyclocross racers have done for years.

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The man with the golden arm bands.

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Stefan Kung opted for 30mm tubulars.

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van Avermate’s Granfondo RBX.

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An extra brake lever was added for van Avarmaet’s bike. He is using a 3T carbon bar. Of note, his bar slipped which was the mechanical issue he had in the race.

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The larger tubulars just squeeze into the Granfondo frame and long-drop Shimano calipers. Greater flexibility with tyre size is one of the reason some teams used disc brake specific bikes.

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The Vittoria Corsa tubulars were run between 85-95psi for the team riders.

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van Avermaet was the only BMC rider using the new 40mm deep Dura Ace wheel.

Each rider had a spare BMC Granfondo. Their 2nd spare bike was a teammachine.

2 / 12

Last year’s Shimano C50 wheels were the choice for the team. But not for van Avermaet

3 / 12

All in all, the team had 45 sets of wheels on race day, spread across 9 team cars.

4 / 12

A special solution was painted onto the sidewalls of the Vittoria tubulars, for extra strength. This is something cyclocross racers have done for years.

5 / 12

The man with the golden arm bands.

6 / 12

Stefan Kung opted for 30mm tubulars.

7 / 12

van Avermate’s Granfondo RBX.

8 / 12

An extra brake lever was added for van Avarmaet’s bike. He is using a 3T carbon bar. Of note, his bar slipped which was the mechanical issue he had in the race.

9 / 12

The larger tubulars just squeeze into the Granfondo frame and long-drop Shimano calipers. Greater flexibility with tyre size is one of the reason some teams used disc brake specific bikes.

10 / 12

The Vittoria Corsa tubulars were run between 85-95psi for the team riders.

11 / 12

van Avermaet was the only BMC rider using the new 40mm deep Dura Ace wheel.

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Paris Roubaix is the Queen of the Classics, and dishes out punishment to riders and their bikes like almost no other event. Here’s a look at the BMC Granfondo used by race winner Greg van Avermaet.

All images, and tech insights from Phil Gale

Last Sunday the Queen of the Classics, Paris-Roubaix, was run in superb spring conditions. Riders left Compiegne, north-east of Paris, in highly favourable conditions. There was a tail wind, the sun was shining, and most riders were in short sleeves. A race that’s known as the Hell of the North, due to the numerous sections (or secteurs) of cobblestones, is often marked by wet and foul weather.

The race winner was Greg van Avermaet, from the BMC Racing Team, who conquered the 257km route in a time of 5:41:07 – a new fastest time for the event.

There are 55km of cobblestones in Paris-Roubaix. Unlike the Tour of Flanders the Sunday previous, most of the cobblestones in Paris-Roubaix are flat, not on climbs. So the speeds are far higher, as are the risks and consequences of a mistake.

Riders typically run wider tyres at lower pressures and shallower profile wheels for more compliance. The whole BMC team ran last year’s Shimano C50 wheels, which aren’t shallow at all, and Vittoria Roubaix specific tubulars, treated for extra strength. However, van Avermaet used the new 40mm deep Shimano Dura Ace wheel which is wider and allows for a larger tyre volume.

The BMC team chose bikes that are a little more forgiving. In this case, van Avermaet eschewed his shiny new BMC teammachine which he used at the Tour of Flanders, where he placed 2nd, and reached instead for the BMC Granfondo. While it lacked a flash custom paint job, the Granfondo had other features useful to van Avermaet and his BMC team mates.

The geometry is more upright, and a little slacker. The fork also has offset drop outs, while the back end of the bike sports pencil thin seat stays and dropped chain stays to aid vertical compliance. It’s a completely different bike to the BMC teammachine which we tested earlier this year. The Granfondo is also capable of taking the 28mm Vittoria tubulars that the riders used – or even the 30mm model used by one rider.

The BMC Granfondo bikes were built with full Shimano Dura Ace Di2, but some riders on other teams prefer to stick to a mechanical group set for the cobbled classics. Some teams also use last year’s equipment due to the heavy toll on bikes and equipment on such terrain.

For more details on the BMC Granfondo, head to their website.