Hincapie's "Commuter" Fork

I imagine that we'll hear the "it was obv. damaged in the earlier
crash" explanation.

Quoted message said:

I imagine that we'll hear the "it was obv. damaged in the earlier
crash" explanation.

Interesting point. The focus has been entirely on the carbon blades (and
sometimes on carbon fork columns). In this case, it was an aluminum fork
column that failed, so yes, it is a fork issue, but not directly related to
all the prior buzz (of which I am a major noisemaker). There are going to be
a lot of questions asked... and it's not at all clear from what I've read
just how different that fork was from a stock production model (if at all).
Film (lots of it) at 11, as they say.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

This also begs the question of whether Hincapie could have gotten a
bike change and somehow regained his position with two teammates in the
lead group?

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Quoted message said:

I imagine that we'll hear the "it was obv. damaged in the earlier
crash" explanation.

Interesting point. The focus has been entirely on the carbon blades (and
sometimes on carbon fork columns). In this case, it was an aluminum fork
column that failed, so yes, it is a fork issue, but not directly related to
all the prior buzz (of which I am a major noisemaker). There are going to be
a lot of questions asked... and it's not at all clear from what I've read
just how different that fork was from a stock production model (if at all).
Film (lots of it) at 11, as they say.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

This also begs the question of whether Hincapie could have gotten a
bike change and somehow regained his position with two teammates in the
lead group?

From VeloNews:
Hincapie was taken to a hospital in Roubaix for x-rays, which revealed
shoulder injuries that could require surgery.

Quoted message said:

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Quoted message said:

I imagine that we'll hear the "it was obv. damaged in the earlier
crash" explanation.

Interesting point. The focus has been entirely on the carbon blades (and
sometimes on carbon fork columns). In this case, it was an aluminum fork
column that failed, so yes, it is a fork issue, but not directly related
to
all the prior buzz (of which I am a major noisemaker). There are going to
be
a lot of questions asked... and it's not at all clear from what I've read
just how different that fork was from a stock production model (if at
all).
Film (lots of it) at 11, as they say.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

htis said:

Quoted message said:

This also begs the question of whether Hincapie could have gotten a
bike change and somehow regained his position with two teammates in the
lead group?

B. Lafferty said:

From VeloNews:
Hincapie was taken to a hospital in Roubaix for x-rays, which revealed
shoulder injuries that could require surgery.

Boonen also upped the pace just after the Hincapie incident.

"Donald Munro" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

htis said:

Quoted message said:

This also begs the question of whether Hincapie could have gotten a
bike change and somehow regained his position with two teammates in the
lead group?

B. Lafferty said:

From VeloNews:
Hincapie was taken to a hospital in Roubaix for x-rays, which revealed
shoulder injuries that could require surgery.

Boonen also upped the pace just after the Hincapie incident.

Too bad Tyler wasn't there to tell the guys to slow down. Opps......wrong
race. Sorry. :-)

From the Cyclingnews article, looks like George was unknowlingly
setting up the steerer for the breakdown.

SD: Yeah and [Gent] Wevelgem. And yesterday on the reconnaissance, they
rode for three hours on the cobble sections. Actually, we were stopped
on the side of the road watching the team go by, all seven riders, and
as George went by, he said: 'I'm hitting every hole, I'm trying to break
them'; he was actually trying to tear them up!

Sorry guys I should have been more specific. What I meant was, "In the
unlikely event that Hincapie thought there was something squirrelly
with his front end after the initial crash (taking "Hunter's" word from
the second post here that there was an earlier crash,) could he have
executed a bike change and regained his position with two teammates
blocking or pacing him back?

http://www.bontrager.com/Road/Components/Forks/5808.php

28.6mm(1 1/8in): Diameter
335mm: Steerer length
50mm: Offset
385mm (45mm crown dia.): Crown height
690g: Weight
$229.99: Cost

I wonder how "stock" it was too. It's not like it was kerrayzay
light--690g? I'd say that's really very heavy for standard road
purposes. My Al cross fork is less than 600g.

For that much weight they should have gone lighter and jammed a
broomstick handle down it.

CH

Quoted message said:

For that much weight they should have gone lighter and jammed a
broomstick handle down it.

CH

My guess is that the blades may have been stock, but not the upper end. I
can't see them riding on a 660gram fork (although in retrospect, it may have
been a very good idea).

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

On 4/9/06 5:39 PM, in article
[email hidden],

Quoted post said:

For that much weight they should have gone lighter and jammed a
broomstick handle down it.

CH

Boonen's fork had a steel steerer.....

Quoted message said:

Boonen's fork had a steel steerer.....

The guy could win on a Schwinn Varsity. But he's got way too much class to
show off by doing so. He's not the next big thing... he IS the big thing.
Very impressed with that guy. I find myself wanting him to win almost as
much as Zabel (for different reasons, of course).

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

"ST" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On 4/9/06 5:39 PM, in article
[email hidden],

Quoted post said:

For that much weight they should have gone lighter and jammed a
broomstick handle down it.

CH

Boonen's fork had a steel steerer.....

Quoted message said:

Interesting:

(From CyclingNews.com talking about George's Paris-Roubaix bike)

Scott Daubert: One thing I forgot to tell you about is that George is
running with a different fork; it has a longer axle to crown dimension,
and it has a longer rake than the normal Bontrager Race Lite fork.

CN: Is this something new you'll bring into the Trek line?

SD: No, it's actually from Bontrager's Satellite line, almost from
their commuter level, but it has dimensions that are appropriate for
Roubaix. It's an in-house made fork, made at Trek from OCLV carbon,
it's just on a different model bike.

CN: Is it a steel steerer?

SD: No, it's aluminium; it's been blasted then anodized black.

Coincidentaly, I just built up my new Trek frame yesterday. Carbon fork
w/ Al steer tube. First Al steer tube I've ever owned. Cut the steer
tube last night and went for a long mountain ride today. Very nice bike
and then I see what happened to George later today.

Bret

Jim P said:

From the Cyclingnews article, looks like George was unknowlingly
setting up the steerer for the breakdown.

SD: Yeah and [Gent] Wevelgem. And yesterday on the reconnaissance, they
rode for three hours on the cobble sections. Actually, we were stopped
on the side of the road watching the team go by, all seven riders, and
as George went by, he said: 'I'm hitting every hole, I'm trying to break
them'; he was actually trying to tear them up!

How stupid is George?

Combine his foolishness with the powerful magic of 23 Flemish mages
working against him, and the end result was predictable.

Yeah, that stupid George. Why he should have been as smart as that
world famous Kyle Legate. Now there's a name that trips from the lips
like "piece of [censored]" or "so stupid his father was about to shove him in
a gunny sack and toss him in the river".

For several years I've been saying that I was REALLY nervous about
aluminum steerers because of the way aluminum fails by fatigue without
any warning.

However, you have to admit that we haven't seen any specific Al steerer
failures until this one.

Could this simply be a manufacturing defect?

That would explain a lot. It would also get Trek off the hotseat for
having a fork failure so it will take someone like you talking to
someone really knowledgable at Trek before we'd ever know the truth.

Same thing with me. I have al steerers on my Colnago Super and my Look
KG 241. Think I'll change out the fork in the Look since I have a new
all carbon fork on the shelf.