Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Road Cycling
Reload this Page >

Disc Brakes Letting Some Pros Down

Notices
Road Cycling “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.” -- Ernest Hemingway

Disc Brakes Letting Some Pros Down

Old 05-16-22, 08:03 AM
  #1  
Miles2go
Zen Master
Thread Starter
 
Miles2go's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 999

Bikes: Cervelo R5 - SuperSix

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 75 Post(s)
Liked 89 Times in 42 Posts
Disc Brakes Letting Some Pros Down

There have been at least a couple of Giro riders that have over-temped their disc brakes and shot right off the road. Maybe if they increase the size of the disc rotor by several factors, the increase in surface area will prevent that...then again...there's always rim brakes. Get the popcorn started.

Pro Blames Disc Brakes for Losing at Giro
__________________
Ron - Tucson, AZ
Miles2go is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 08:09 AM
  #2  
WhyFi
Senior Member
 
WhyFi's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: TC, MN
Posts: 39,505

Bikes: R3 Disc, Haanjo

Mentioned: 353 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20791 Post(s)
Liked 9,436 Times in 4,663 Posts
He apparently suffered a broken spoke, which he claimed was caused by his disc brakes becoming overheated.
WhyFi is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 08:19 AM
  #3  
Mojo31
-------
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Location: Tejas
Posts: 12,617
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 9519 Post(s)
Liked 6,265 Times in 3,453 Posts
When you lose you look for excuses, regardless of the type of competition you are in.
Mojo31 is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 10:09 AM
  #4  
Miles2go
Zen Master
Thread Starter
 
Miles2go's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 999

Bikes: Cervelo R5 - SuperSix

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 75 Post(s)
Liked 89 Times in 42 Posts
I guess it is human nature to discount the word of someone having road racing as their actual profession, riding more miles than most everyone reading this article, having bikes which are maintained by some of the most skilled mechanics, etc.
He breaks down how crappy of a day it was for him, on many levels, including disc brake issues....but there's no matching forum wisdom.
__________________
Ron - Tucson, AZ
Miles2go is offline  
Likes For Miles2go:
Old 05-16-22, 10:16 AM
  #5  
Iride01 
I'm good to go!
 
Iride01's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 14,802

Bikes: Tarmac Disc Comp Di2 - 2020

Mentioned: 50 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6099 Post(s)
Liked 4,730 Times in 3,260 Posts
Obviously you just started watching Tours and Grand Tours. Back in the days of rim brakes only there were also plenty of issues. Like the rim getting too hot from braking and the tire rolling off the rim.
Iride01 is online now  
Old 05-16-22, 10:23 AM
  #6  
Miles2go
Zen Master
Thread Starter
 
Miles2go's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 999

Bikes: Cervelo R5 - SuperSix

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 75 Post(s)
Liked 89 Times in 42 Posts
Originally Posted by Iride01
Obviously you just started watching Tours and Grand Tours. Back in the days of rim brakes only there were also plenty of issues. Like the rim getting too hot from braking and the tire rolling off the rim.
Right, those were the days of tubeless tires right? oh, wait...I think we're talking about tires glued onto the rim. ....wonder what happens when you heat up glue. Yeah.
__________________
Ron - Tucson, AZ
Miles2go is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 10:25 AM
  #7  
Seattle Forrest
Senior Member
 
Seattle Forrest's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 23,208
Mentioned: 89 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 18883 Post(s)
Liked 10,645 Times in 6,054 Posts
Originally Posted by Miles2go
I guess it is human nature to discount the word of someone having road racing as their actual profession,
Really?
Seattle Forrest is offline  
Likes For Seattle Forrest:
Old 05-16-22, 10:59 AM
  #8  
WhyFi
Senior Member
 
WhyFi's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: TC, MN
Posts: 39,505

Bikes: R3 Disc, Haanjo

Mentioned: 353 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20791 Post(s)
Liked 9,436 Times in 4,663 Posts
Originally Posted by Miles2go
I guess it is human nature to discount the word of someone having road racing as their actual profession, riding more miles than most everyone reading this article, having bikes which are maintained by some of the most skilled mechanics, etc.
He breaks down how crappy of a day it was for him, on many levels, including disc brake issues....but there's no matching forum wisdom.
So when someone cites an off-the-wall absurdity as an excuse, we're supposed to swallow it because they've ridden more miles than us? I might buy your line of reasoning, but you're going to have to tell me how many miles you've ridden, first.
WhyFi is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 11:03 AM
  #9  
veganbikes
Clark W. Griswold
 
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: ,location, location
Posts: 13,274

Bikes: Foundry Chilkoot Ti W/Ultegra Di2, Salsa Timberjack Ti, Cinelli Mash Work RandoCross Fun Time Machine, 1x9 XT Parts Hybrid, Co-Motion Cascadia, Specialized Langster, Phil Wood Apple VeloXS Frame (w/DA 7400), R+M Supercharger2 Rohloff, Habanero Ti 26

Mentioned: 54 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4251 Post(s)
Liked 3,863 Times in 2,578 Posts
Look I get that they ride a lot but a decent portion of them when it comes to bikes really not very knowledgeable, they are like the cycling friend every needs to schlep to the bike shop to question the actual professional who sells and works on a wide variety of bikes daily vs. the one bike that rider rides. Trying to blame disc brakes for spoke failure is absolutely silly. Having too few spokes which is the trend these days and loading them with the brake force at the hub is causing issues and also using smaller rotors and things like that. Now if the mechanics went and said yeah that was the cause I would say OK maybe something to that but just being a rider doesn't mean you need to know about the bikes and how they work beyond just operating them while riding.

Every pro is going to want to have something to say when they didn't win. Sometimes it is positive like "hey he was just a better rider, I need to train harder" and sometimes it is "my brakes overheated broke a spoke and yada yada".

Regardless though whatever braking system they use someone is going to say another braking system it better. That is part of the fun.
veganbikes is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 11:17 AM
  #10  
genejockey 
Klaatu..Verata..Necktie?
 
genejockey's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 17,649

Bikes: Litespeed Ultimate, Ultegra; Canyon Endurace, 105; Battaglin MAX, Chorus; Bianchi 928 Veloce; Ritchey Road Logic, Dura Ace; Cannondale R500 RX100; Schwinn Circuit, Sante; Lotus Supreme, Dura Ace

Mentioned: 41 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10243 Post(s)
Liked 11,595 Times in 5,942 Posts
Originally Posted by Miles2go
Right, those were the days of tubeless tires right? oh, wait...I think we're talking about tires glued onto the rim. ....wonder what happens when you heat up glue. Yeah.
Tubular. And these still are the days of tubular tires in the pro peloton, though some are riding tubeless, I hear.
__________________
"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."

"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
genejockey is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 11:39 AM
  #11  
Troul 
Senior Member
 
Troul's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Mich
Posts: 7,291

Bikes: RSO E-tire dropper fixie brifter

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6 Post(s)
Liked 2,909 Times in 1,884 Posts
The operator needs to know when to respect the equipments limitations.
If the course they faulted on was ridden by the same person, using a bicycle not equipped with disc brakes, exerting the same level of performance [& techniques] , & before the current mishap; would the times & speeds be equal or any better?

In the end, the general non pro rider will buy what they want.
__________________
-Oh Hey!
Troul is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 11:50 AM
  #12  
Koyote
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 7,764
Mentioned: 37 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6881 Post(s)
Liked 10,871 Times in 4,636 Posts
Sometimes spokes just break.
Koyote is online now  
Likes For Koyote:
Old 05-16-22, 12:00 PM
  #13  
cxwrench
Senior Member
 
cxwrench's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Nor-Cal
Posts: 3,767

Bikes: lots

Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1958 Post(s)
Liked 2,932 Times in 1,489 Posts
Originally Posted by Miles2go
I guess it is human nature to discount the word of someone having road racing as their actual profession, riding more miles than most everyone reading this article, having bikes which are maintained by some of the most skilled mechanics, etc.
He breaks down how crappy of a day it was for him, on many levels, including disc brake issues....but there's no matching forum wisdom.
I was a pro team mechanic for over a decade and I'll just say this: Pro racers are some of the most ignorant, under educated, know-nothings when it comes to bicycles that I've ever had the pleasure of dealing with. Most of them have absolutely zero clue. The only things they're truly good at are riding, eating, and sleeping. Believing a pro that says his spoke broke because the disc brake caused it to get too hot is an absolute joke.
cxwrench is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 12:14 PM
  #14  
ClydeClydeson
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2019
Posts: 1,606
Mentioned: 8 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 580 Post(s)
Liked 921 Times in 518 Posts
Yes, discs get hot, sometimes very hot, and yes, sometimes hot enough to cause braking issues. No, that heat will not be sufficiently transferred (through the 'spider' on the rotor and through the hub's disc boss and out the hub's flanges) to the spokes such that it would cause the metal of the spokes to weaken... that's absurd.

Disc brakes DO, however, put a load on the spokes in a way that rim brakes do not - rim brakes stop the rim directly, while disc brakes stop the rim by exerting force on the hub which pull on the spokes to stop the rim. Enough to break spokes? Maybe over the medium term after many miles. If that is how that pro's spokes broke then it is an issue of not replacing the wheels or spokes soon enough, or of some other problem with the wheel build or configuration. It's easy to forget that lots of riders in that event (and many other events and grand tours) use disc brakes, yet only one person complained of the disc brakes causing spokes to fail.

Perhaps the rider got to the finish line and the team mechanic was embarrassed that a bike in their stable had a problem, and rather than admit the wheels didn't get the attention they needed before the race, or that the wheels given to the team by a sponsor had a failure, used the excuse that it was the discs' fault,
ClydeClydeson is offline  
Likes For ClydeClydeson:
Old 05-16-22, 12:45 PM
  #15  
surak
Senior Member
 
surak's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Location: Seattle
Posts: 1,949

Bikes: Specialized Roubaix, Canyon Inflite AL SLX, Ibis Ripley AF, Priority Continuum Onyx, Santana Vision, Kent Dual-Drive Tandem

Mentioned: 20 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 871 Post(s)
Liked 725 Times in 436 Posts
waiting for Specialized to slap "for flat and uphill riding only" stickers on the revised Roval wheels, then have their marketing claim the next version with more spokes to be safe for downhills and the fastest yet.
surak is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 12:54 PM
  #16  
Kai Winters
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Northern NY...Brownville
Posts: 2,556

Bikes: Specialized Aethos, Specialized Diverge Comp E5

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 234 Post(s)
Liked 444 Times in 257 Posts
Maybe he is correct and had a problem with his disk brakes.
Perhaps he overheated the rotors by too much, continuous braking.
Perhaps the brake pads were fairly worn or a bit contaminated which resulted in overheating and loss of braking power. We've seen videos showing the pro mechanics washing, etc. team bikes...they are not the most careful because of how many they have to prep, only so many mechanics to do the work, etc.
Perhaps he was just too hard on the braking and plain old overheated them...could have happened with rim brakes...they too would have failed when needed most.
You would have to remove the parts and look at them closely to see if there is a mechanical reason for failure.
I'd want to talk to the rider to hear how, when, etc. they failed.
It is interesting.

Oh it is a lot of fun to be in a race and the rider in front of you rolls his sewup...you know the next few seconds are going to be hair raising fun for those behind.
Kai Winters is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 01:00 PM
  #17  
spelger
Senior Member
 
spelger's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: reno, nv
Posts: 2,274

Bikes: yes, i have one

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1122 Post(s)
Liked 1,170 Times in 682 Posts
Originally Posted by WhyFi
So when someone cites an off-the-wall absurdity as an excuse, we're supposed to swallow it because they've ridden more miles than us? I might buy your line of reasoning, but you're going to have to tell me how many miles you've ridden, first.
he still has a few miles to go.
spelger is offline  
Likes For spelger:
Old 05-16-22, 01:08 PM
  #18  
Miles2go
Zen Master
Thread Starter
 
Miles2go's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 999

Bikes: Cervelo R5 - SuperSix

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 75 Post(s)
Liked 89 Times in 42 Posts
Originally Posted by genejockey
Tubular. And these still are the days of tubular tires in the pro peloton, though some are riding tubeless, I hear.
I didn't confuse tubulars and tubeless (raced a decade on sew ups), so read it again knowing that I meant to say tubeless, then oh wait!...no, we're talking about glue, tubulars, sew ups.
__________________
Ron - Tucson, AZ
Miles2go is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 01:12 PM
  #19  
Miles2go
Zen Master
Thread Starter
 
Miles2go's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 999

Bikes: Cervelo R5 - SuperSix

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 75 Post(s)
Liked 89 Times in 42 Posts
Originally Posted by WhyFi
So when someone cites an off-the-wall absurdity as an excuse, we're supposed to swallow it because they've ridden more miles than us?
Of course not. The discussion wouldn't be as interesting if I didn't paint that picture. Now we can see that pro cyclists don't know what they are doing, bike mechanics might not be maintaining the brakes properly, etc., etc.
__________________
Ron - Tucson, AZ
Miles2go is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 01:16 PM
  #20  
genejockey 
Klaatu..Verata..Necktie?
 
genejockey's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 17,649

Bikes: Litespeed Ultimate, Ultegra; Canyon Endurace, 105; Battaglin MAX, Chorus; Bianchi 928 Veloce; Ritchey Road Logic, Dura Ace; Cannondale R500 RX100; Schwinn Circuit, Sante; Lotus Supreme, Dura Ace

Mentioned: 41 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10243 Post(s)
Liked 11,595 Times in 5,942 Posts
Originally Posted by Miles2go
I didn't confuse tubulars and tubeless (raced a decade on sew ups), so read it again knowing that I meant to say tubeless, then oh wait!...no, we're talking about glue, tubulars, sew ups.
The problem is, it doesn't make sense.
__________________
"Don't take life so serious-it ain't nohow permanent."

"Everybody's gotta be somewhere." - Eccles
genejockey is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 01:19 PM
  #21  
Iride01 
I'm good to go!
 
Iride01's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 14,802

Bikes: Tarmac Disc Comp Di2 - 2020

Mentioned: 50 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6099 Post(s)
Liked 4,730 Times in 3,260 Posts
Races of any sort for the last couple centuries have almost always involved manufacturers showcasing and doing practical testing of their latest technology. If we are only to race on proven and trouble free technology, then we'd probably be riding the stuff that was cutting edge back in 1903.
Iride01 is online now  
Likes For Iride01:
Old 05-16-22, 01:42 PM
  #22  
Jack Tone 
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 598
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 389 Post(s)
Liked 255 Times in 165 Posts
I'm going to make a wild assumption: There are very few, if any, pros that ride their brakes down a hill in a race. I really doubt if there were any over heating problems.
Jack Tone is offline  
Likes For Jack Tone:
Old 05-16-22, 01:48 PM
  #23  
aplcr0331
Hear myself getting fat
 
aplcr0331's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Inland Northwest
Posts: 759

Bikes: Sir Velo A Sparrow

Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 335 Post(s)
Liked 265 Times in 134 Posts
He also said he had a sore back.

By the way his teammate actually won the stage...Wonder what kind of brakes was he using?
aplcr0331 is offline  
Old 05-16-22, 01:59 PM
  #24  
PeteHski
Senior Member
 
PeteHski's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2021
Posts: 8,172
Mentioned: 12 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4272 Post(s)
Liked 4,707 Times in 2,907 Posts
Originally Posted by Miles2go
I guess it is human nature to discount the word of someone having road racing as their actual profession, riding more miles than most everyone reading this article, having bikes which are maintained by some of the most skilled mechanics, etc.
He breaks down how crappy of a day it was for him, on many levels, including disc brake issues....but there's no matching forum wisdom.
But from his quote he clearly doesn't understand the engineering. His profession is riding bikes, not designing them. Whatever caused the spoke failure certainly wasn't heat from the brake disc.
PeteHski is online now  
Likes For PeteHski:
Old 05-16-22, 02:16 PM
  #25  
WhyFi
Senior Member
 
WhyFi's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: TC, MN
Posts: 39,505

Bikes: R3 Disc, Haanjo

Mentioned: 353 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20791 Post(s)
Liked 9,436 Times in 4,663 Posts
Originally Posted by Miles2go
Of course not. The discussion wouldn't be as interesting if I didn't paint that picture. Now we can see that pro cyclists don't know what they are doing, bike mechanics might not be maintaining the brakes properly, etc., etc.
Got it. So let me see if this sums it up, then -

You came across a statement from a pro rider that was so dumb that it didn't merit discussion. Since you wanted to generate a discussion, you decided to adopt the position of an intellectually challenged devil's advocate.

Is that about right?
WhyFi is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.