Finally...my new ride is ready to roll.

Finally... my new bike is ready to roll. 

Its been a long time coming, after my indecision initially on which frame to go for, then which groupset to use.

Once I saw that BMC made their new sprinters bike in the "Gulf Racing" colourway, we contacted the importer here in Australia to see if I could get one as it hadn't been offered in Australia before.  After waiting only a couple of weeks my new frame arrived from France and we couldn't wait to get it together.

Now I have absoutely no excuse to not go out for a ride!

Spec:

BMC RM01 Frameset with matching post. Size 53cm - 55cm Effective TT

Zipp 303 Firecrest Carbon Tubular Wheels

2011 Campagnolo Super Record 11 Speed Groupset

Rotor 3D+ BB30 Cranks with Stronglight Rings 172.5cm

Selle San Marco Regale Carbon Saddle

Look Keo Carbon Ti Blade Pedals

3T Rotundo LTD Handlebars 44cm

3T ARX Pro Stem 130mm -6 degree

Elite Bottle Cages

Specialized Roubaix Bartape

Vittoria Strada Tubular Tires

K-Edge Chain catcher

Total weight: 6.56kg

Well done Shannon!

Last weekend one of our team riders, Shannon Johnson, blitzed the field in the UCI World Cycling Tour  in Perth to qualify for the World Masters Champs in Belgium later this year.

Shannon won the Time Trial in his age group and came third in the open road race. Not bad for a guy who only started riding  5 months ago!

Well done mate, a thoroughly deserved result!

Easter Hours

From the crew here at Bike 'n' Bean you a safe and happy Easter holidays.

Our store hours over Easter are:

Friday 22nd - CLOSED
Sat 23rd - 9am - 5pm
Sun 24th - 10am - 4pm
Mon 25th - 10am - 2pm
Tues 26th - 10am - 2pm
Wed 27th - 9 am - 6pm

S-Works MTB Shoe Review

Paul (store owner and comedian in training) and I were talking over lunch about what we believe are the best MTB shoes available - and without even having to blink we both agreed on Specialized's S-Works MTB Shoes.  There are a number of reasons as to why we both believe these are the best going around.  We have both ridden Sidi and Specialized over the years along with Adidas and Shimano.

The features we like the most are:

Last Shape - The fit is neither a Slim "Euro" fit or a typical "North American" Bucket fit.  The fit is nicely between Sidi and Shimano's top end offerings which allows them to fit 90% of the public comfortably.

Closure System - With the double Boa lacing system a snug fit is achieved easily and if you do happen to find them a bit tight out on a ride, it's an easy 1 click back to release some tension.  Ratchets and Velco can be very fiddly whilst pedalling, especially on technical singletrack.   The Boa Discs and cable are fully replaceable if you are to damage them due to a fall or stick

Carbon Sole Unit - Nice stiff and light.

Replaceable Sole Components -  as they wear out they are easily replaced - just like Sidi

Rubber re-inforcement on the toe and heel for added protection.

Patent Leather Uppers - Extremely easy to clean, simply a quick wipe and they look brand new.

Innersole - Body Geometry Innersole with much more support than what usually comes with Shoes as Standard.  Most brands charge $50-$60 extra for a Innersole of Specialized Quality.

They have a RRP of $449 AUD and are in stock in sizes 41 up to 47 Euro. Bigger sizes can be specially ordered in.

Specialized Test Saddles arrive

Specialized Romin and Toupe Test Saddles have just arrived in multiple widths, along with Specialized's Body Geometry Saddle fit tool which measures your sitbone width, we can place you on the perfect saddle for optimum comfort.

Along with the Prologo and Fizik Test fleets we have already, we have over 25 test saddles here for customers to try before they buy.

NOS Look KG381 Team Issue Credit Agricole Build - RARE!

Here is Luigi's KG381 Team Issue Credit Agricole frame fully assembled.

Finding a frame like this NOS (new old stock) is literally like finding a needle in a haystack.

This was the CA team bike for 2003 and was produced in extremely limited numbers.

It's built with:

Campagnolo 10sp Chorus Groupset
Campagnolo Eurus Wheelset
3T Rotundo Team Bars
3T ARX Team Stem
Prologo Scratch Pro Ti 1.4 Saddle
Vittoria Rubino Tyres
DSI Carbon Post
Lizard Skins Bartape

There is no doubt this bike begs to be ridden hard for many years to come.

Phil's S-Works Tarmac

Phil, an A Grade Masters rider has been riding a Giant TCR for the last few years, he was looking for a nice new race bike suit his biggest strength - climbing.

After much consideration, together we chose an Specialized S-Works Tarmac to suit.

After completing a full custom bike fit Phil went and rode up our nearest climb - Humevale Road upto Kinglake West,  completing it 30 seconds quicker than he's ever done!

Specced with:

S-Works Tarmac 52 OSBB
Dura Ace Group, 11-23 Ultegra cassette
Specialized Carbon Cranks 172.5, 53/39
Roval Fuse SL Wheels
Specialized Romin Team Saddle 143
Specialized Carbon Classic Bars 42
Specialized Pro-Set Stem
Speedplay Zero Pedals

Total 6.6kg