As Keepers Tour crossed from dream to reality and routes over the cobblestones of Northern Europe were sketched out, with it came the familiar tingling in my fingertips and uneasy sensation at the base of my spine as my mind starts its irrevocable journey towards categorizing as mandatory an unnecessary indulgence. I was going to need a wheelset and tubular tires that were up to the job.
The folklore goes a long way towards that justification; Paris-Roubaix is the race where every trick of the trade is exploited to deliver riders safely to the finish. Equipment which usually carries riders for a season or more finds itself in the trash heap after a single day on in Hell – maybe good enough for training but certainly not be trusted for another race. Special wheels are built, and only the strongest tubulars are glued to the rims. Aldo Gios, De Vlaeminck’s mechanic, is said to have aged his tires in his wine cellar to allow the rubber to harden, making them more resistent to punctures.
Ignoring the possibility that there may be some difference in strength, speed, or skill with which the Pros ride over the Cobbles, it didn’t take me long to determine that it wasn’t so much a matter of wanting a set of tubulars for Keepers Tour, but that it was indeed my obligation. I have a responsibility, after all, to the attendees of trip that I not fall off my machine and bash my head open on a cobblestone. Messy, certainly, but it may also frame the event in a somewhat negative light, and I think we’d all like the opportunity to do this again some time. The only way to assure I don’t suffer some catastrophic equipment failure and jeopardize the trip was to build a set of wheels based on the same components the Pros select for the purpose, and line them in the same rubber they choose. Logical, really.
The seduction of symbols was the first phase, followed quickly by the art of building wheels. The final step was to procure the right tires for the job. FMB is perhaps the most revered name in hand-made tubular tires; inspection of photos of Roubaix will reveal the pale yellow or green sidewalls of the FMB Paris-Roubaix tire on many of the wheels bouncing over the cobbles – often rebadged on order to satisfy sponsorship obligations.
I needed a set, naturally.
The tires were ordered in December, as from January onward Francois (of Francois-Marie Boyaux from which FMB takes its name) becomes overburdened with orders from the teams riding Roubaix and indicated he wouldn’t have time to squeeze in an order from a nobody such as myself. They arrived in February, at which point they displaced a few bottles of wine to age in the darkest corner of our basement which doubles as our wine cellar. Having mounted another set of tubs on the wheels in order to bash the bejezus out of the wheels so as to make myself a little less certain that I buggered the wheel building process, they had to wait until this past week to be mounted.
They have not yet been ridden, but they certainly look the business.
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Gluing on a tubular tire is a glorious study in patience and settles beautifully in the intersection between art, science, and ritual. And the glue smells distressingly fantastic.
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View Comments
@Velosophe
Sheeeit, that's the spirit. Tubs and those wheels, there must be a better word than upgrade. The bike looks fast just sitting there. Nice.
@Gianni
Truth be told, the entire shebang is brand new to me. Went from 80's italian steel with 9sp Dura Ace and Open Pros to this. Yeah, upgrade is a bit lacking of a description!
It's a two-wheeled revelatory rocket ship!
@Velosophe
Momma, you skipped the aluminum and titanium steps and went straight to rocket ship! Why not? That steel bike is not seeing the light of day anytime soon. You know what is fun? Train on the steel during the week and haul ass on Cervelo on the weekend. It makes it feel extra great.
@Gianni
Awesome. I might have to do that to keep renewing this crazy rocket booster sensation. I do love steel frames. Being new to the carbon thing, I must say I was a bit shocked to unbox the frame and wheels. Surely these wafer-thin plasticy things cannot withstand what I intend to do unto them!
@Velosophe
Beautiful bike and really nice wheels.Really like it.Good to know that you're enjoying tubulars riding qualities.If you're new to tubulars I think you will like and appreciate the article in the link below if of course you haven't read it already.Cheers.
http://velonews.competitor.com/2011/03/bikes-and-tech/frances-fmb-tire-maker-for-the-cobbled-stars_164665
During commentary in the Women's MTB XC World Cup race today, Thomas Frischknecht mentioned that the Scott MTB team he manages has one mechanic who does nothing other than build wheels and install tubular tires.
Is this standard for road teams, too?
http://live.redbull.tv/events/59/uci-canada-xco-women/
Another one from FMB
http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/article/inside-the-fmb-workshop-35668/
So, for those of us without the ability (that is cash) to purchase two FMB's I was wondering what you run on your climbing/racing wheels? I now have my new carbon Easton Aero wheelset and I am going to purchase some tubs for them. I am planning on running the Easton carbon wheelset as my daily (except for rainy/wet days) wheelset and when I occasionally race.
I want a bit of a durable tub but something light enough to not be putting a super heavy tub on my carbon wheelset. Does anyone have any experience with the Vittoria Corsa Evo CX Tire? Or how about the Vittoria Corsa Evo SC Tire?
I run the Vittoria Pave EVO EG Tire on my HED C2 Belgium tubular rims which are my wet weather, tough wheelset and they are great.
Thanks, just looking for testimonies before I purchase the tubs.
@Buck Rogers
There is not much difference between Corsa Evo CX and Corsa Evo SC to be honest.If you are after tan classic sidewall just like Cervelo R3 pictured above go for Evo SC.They are both great racing tires but not so good for training or riding/racing in the wet.If you can spend a bit more Veloflex Carbon is a fantastic tubular however it's gonna cost you around 100$.
The best all-rounder for the price tubular for training,racing with very good puncture resistance and durability is Continental Competition.Not as supple as Vittoria/Veloflex because of the butyl inner tube however it lasts forever and much more grip in the wet.
Try Vittoria Corsa Evo CX or SC if you have never ridden on them.They are fucking super fast,no doubt,as long as you pump them up right.Don't use the pressure below 100 PSI on them because it's a waste.In the dry conditions the grip is awesome and you can corner very well.And Buck...watch the forward >>>>>>>> direction when gluing.Good luck mate.
@Buck Rogers
I've been running 25mm Corsa Evo CX, they run great and are smoooooooth but I've had a couple more punctures than I'd like. Trying Veloflex Arenbergs next but (a) I'm told they benefit from aging and (2) I am not going to put them on till I need to replace the Vittorias what are on the Ambrosios now.