{"id":66699,"date":"2024-07-09T19:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-09T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/1e6d6ef2-18cd-46c5-9c1f-818c621587da"},"modified":"2024-07-09T19:25:40","modified_gmt":"2024-07-09T17:25:40","slug":"from-2008-to-2024-mark-cavendishs-first-and-last-tour-de-france-stage-winning-bikes-compared","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/cyclingplus\/rss_feed\/from-2008-to-2024-mark-cavendishs-first-and-last-tour-de-france-stage-winning-bikes-compared\/","title":{"rendered":"From 2008 to 2024: Mark Cavendish’s first and last Tour de France stage-winning bikes compared"},"content":{"rendered":"

How much has bike tech changed in 16 years? <\/p>

By Simon von Bromley\n <\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 09 July 2024 at 17:00 PM<\/p>

\n\n

Having achieved a record-breaking 35th stage win at this year\u2019s Tour de France, Mark Cavendish will \u2013 as far as we know \u2013 soon close the book on his illustrious career.<\/p>

Over the course of a career spanning almost two decades, bike tech has changed dramatically.<\/p>

Cavendish’s first Tour de France<\/a> stage win was taken in 2008 aboard a prototype Giant TCR Advanced SL<\/a>. Complete with external cable routing, rim brakes, narrow tubular wheels and tyres, and 10-speed mechanical gears, it truly was something from another era.<\/p>

With the 2024 Tour being his last, any remaining stage wins will come aboard a custom-painted Wilier Filante SLR<\/a>.<\/p>

Aerodynamically optimised with integrated everything, hydraulic disc brakes, 12-speed electronic gears, tubeless wheels and tyres, and so on, it\u2019s every inch the modern race bike.<\/p>

So, let\u2019s take a walk down memory lane and compare Cav\u2019s final Tour stage-winning bike to his first.<\/p>

2008 \u2013 Prototype Giant TCR Advanced SL<\/h2>
Mark Cavendish’s 2008 Giant TCR Advanced SL. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
At 39, Cavendish is older than many things in professional cycling, but the Giant TCR<\/a> isn\u2019t one of them.<\/p>
Having debuted at the highest level in 2000, the Giant TCR was already a WorldTour<\/a> (or ProTour, as it was known back then) veteran by the time a young Mark Cavendish joined T-Mobile Team in 2006.<\/p>
The Manx Missile first rode the Tour in 2007 (the year Alberto Contador<\/a> took his first yellow jersey<\/a>), but had to wait until the following year to break his duck.<\/p>
$\"Mark$
As with many bikes of the period, Giant’s primary goals for the TCR were low weight and high stiffness. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
At the 2008 Tour, Cavendish rode a prototype version of what would become the 2009 Giant TCR Advanced SL<\/a>.<\/p>
Following trends of that era, Cavendish\u2019s 2008 TCR was \u201csignificantly stiffer\u201d and \u201clighter\u201d than the previous model.<\/p>
It carried a claimed frameset weight of 1,497g \u2013 which accounted for a painted size-medium frame and its integrated seatpost, an uncut fork, plus hardware.<\/p>
Despite shedding more than 200g, Giant also claimed this TCR saw a 42 per cent jump in overall stiffness, and a 26 per cent improvement to its \u201cpedalling rigidity\u201d, compared to the outgoing version.<\/p>
$\"Mark$
The bottom bracket area of this Giant TCR was rectangular and very beefy. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Our report from the time<\/a> doesn’t mention aerodynamics, but the TCR\u2019s integrated seatpost did get an aerodynamic profile \u2013 something that was fairly progressive at the time.<\/p>
It does say, however, that Giant provided Cavendish\u2019s team (Team Columbia\u2013High Road) with TCRs that had custom geometry, with longer reach and lower stack, and steeper seat tube angles than those available to everyday riders.<\/p>
$\"Mark$
The only nod to aerodynamics came in the form of an optimised integrated seatpost. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Notably, Giant also claimed this version of the TCR was more comfortable than before \u2013 thanks to tweaks and improvements to its integrated seatpost.<\/p>
Having owned a 2009 Giant TCR Advanced SL<\/a>, though, I can tell you that it doesn\u2019t compare to today\u2019s plush road bikes<\/a> with clearance for wider tyres<\/a>.<\/p>
Old-school Dura-Ace and rolling stock<\/h3>
$\"Mark$
Dura-Ace 7800 shifters used external cable routing, making for a particularly messy cockpit. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Cavendish used a 10-speed Dura-Ace 7800 groupset to take his maiden Tour stage win.<\/p>
Although 11-speed, mechanical Dura-Ace 7900<\/a> launched during the 2008 Tour, and was put to use during the race by his teammate Marcus Burghardt, Cavendish wasn\u2019t the household name he would become and perhaps wasn\u2019t favoured for new equipment at that point.<\/p>
As noted in our feature on Cav\u2019s green-jersey winning bikes<\/a> in 2021, Shimano\u2019s Di2 electronic shifting system<\/a> wouldn\u2019t debut until the following year.<\/p>
$\"Shimano$
Dura-Ace 7800’s polished silver aesthetic is very traditional. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
With its external cable routing and predominantly polished-silver aesthetic, it\u2019s fair to say it looks \u2018classic\u2019 and even old-fashioned by today\u2019s standards (that\u2019s not necessarily a bad thing).<\/p>
As most riders of that era did, Cavendish used 53\/39t chainrings paired with a tight 11-23t cassette.<\/p>
$\"Shimano$
11-23t cassettes were all the rage in 2008. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Cav may have swapped to a wider-range cassette for big days in the mountains, but it\u2019s worth remembering the biggest cassette available for Dura-Ace 7800 was a 12-27t and the only FC-7800 crankset option was for a \u2018standard\u2019 130 (BCD) Bolt Circle DIameter<\/a> \u2013 there was no \u2018compact\u2019 crankset<\/a>.<\/p>
The team used tubular wheels with deep-section rims, branded with decals bearing its team sponsors (Columbia and Highroad).<\/p>
$\"Mark$
For the Tour, Cavendish used wheels branded with his team’s sponsors. – Jasper Juinen\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>
I suspect they could be a set of Zipp 404 or HED Stinger wheels, but it\u2019s hard to be certain. Either way, the team was clearly looking for faster options than its stock Shimano Dura-Ace WH-7850-C50-TU wheels.<\/p>
$\"22m$
Tyres were narrow back in 2008. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
The team\u2019s tyre sponsor for 2008 was Schwalbe, with Cavendish and his teammates using the German brand\u2019s Ultremo tubulars in a skinny 22mm width.<\/p>
It\u2019s a measure of how far things have come that you\u2019re unlikely to find tyres that narrow on a track bike<\/a> these days, let alone a road racing bike.<\/p>
External everything<\/h3>
$\"Pro$
Deep-drop, anatomic-bend handlebars were popular in the early-2000s. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
In contrast to today\u2019s fully integrated bikes, Cav\u2019s 2008 Giant TCR had fully external cable routing and a non-integrated, aluminium front end.<\/p>
Cav opted for a Pro PLT OS Road stem, in a 110mm length, paired with a Pro Vibe 7S Anatomic OS handlebar, in a 42cm width (centre-to-centre).<\/p>
They\u2019ve fallen out of favour now, but anatomic-bend road bike handlebars<\/a> had a moment in the sun around this period \u2013 as classic bend handlebars went out of fashion, but before compact drop bars arrived.<\/p>
Back when SRM ruled the peloton<\/h3>
$\"Dura-Ace$
SRM power meters once dominated the Tour peloton. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Before the major groupset manufacturers began making their own power meters<\/a>, SRM dominated the professional peloton (to an extent \u2013 not every rider chose to use a power meter at that point).<\/p>
Shimano even provided the German brand with specially machined crank arms to fit its power meter spiders<\/a>.<\/p>
Cavendish\u2019s Dura-Ace 7800 SRM power meter was also one of the first to go wireless, using ANT+ instead of a wired connection to the brand\u2019s own head unit.<\/p>
Finishing kit and weight<\/h3>
$\"Selle$
In 2008, Cavendish used a Selle Italia Thoork Team Edition saddle. – James Huang \/ Immediate Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
According to our report from the time, Cavendish used a Selle Italia Thoork Team Edition saddle \u2013 a model that no longer exists in 2024.<\/p>
His bottle cages came courtesy of Elite, in the form of its Custom Macia model (which lives on as the slightly evolved Custom Race model), while Cav used Shimano\u2019s aluminium Dura-Ace PD-7810 pedals.<\/p>
All in, it apparently weighed 7.2kg. As we\u2019ll come on to, that\u2019s quite a bit lighter than his 2024 bike.<\/p>
2024 \u2013 Custom-painted Wilier Filante SLR<\/h2>
$\"Mark$
Mark Cavendish’s custom Wilier Filante SLR for the 2024 Tour de France. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
For his final Tour de France (assuming he doesn\u2019t ride next year), Cavendish is riding a custom-painted Wilier Filante SLR<\/a>.<\/p>
We\u2019ve covered this bike in exhaustive detail in a hands-on feature<\/a>, so check that out if you want to learn everything there is to know about Cavendish\u2019s record-breaking bike.<\/p>
Here, though, let\u2019s compare and contrast it to the 2008 Giant TCR.<\/p>
$\"Mark$
The custom paintjob celebrates some of Cavendish’s major achievements. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
First, and perhaps most obviously, Cavendish gets a custom paintjob befitting of his glittering palmar\u00e8s.<\/p>
Instead of the team issue paintjob he rode in 2008, Cav\u2019s 2024 bike evokes memories of some of his most important victories.<\/p>
In terms of technology, the Filante SLR takes a markedly different approach to speed than the 2008 TCR.<\/p>
$\"Mark$
Every tube shape on the Filante SLR is aerodynamically optimised. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Instead of focusing solely on stiffness and low weight, the Filante SLR uses truncated aerofoil shapes throughout to make it efficient at cutting through the wind, without sacrificing in those other areas.<\/p>
It\u2019s a formula often repeated in 2024, as aero road bikes<\/a> and climbing bikes<\/a> have fallen somewhat out of fashion, in favour of all-rounder models that combine low weight and aerodynamic efficiency in a single package.<\/p>
12-speed electronic gears and hydraulic disc brakes<\/h3>
$\"Shimano$
Electronic groupsets came soon after Cavendish started winning and have seen much refinement since. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Beyond the frameset, the most obvious change compared to Cav\u2019s 2008 bike is the move to hydraulic disc brakes<\/a> and an electronic groupset<\/a>.<\/p>
These undoubtedly contribute extra weight \u2013 as far as I can work out, a Dura-Ace 7800 groupset weighed around 2,200g, whereas Shimano\u2019s latest Dura-Ace Di2 R9200 groupset<\/a> weighs a little more than 2,500g.<\/p>
$\"Vision$
In 2024, every road bike at the Tour uses hydraulic disc brakes. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
The improved stopping power and all-weather performance they offer almost certainly outweighs the small weight gain for most average riders, but would Cavendish prefer a lighter rim-brake equipped bike if he had the choice?<\/p>
We\u2019ll likely never know, but if I had to guess I would say I suspect not.<\/p>
Sprinters such as Cavendish are often demon descenders (due to the need to finish within the time cut on the big mountain stages). The improved stopping power and all-weather reliability of disc brakes compared to rim brakes \u2013 especially when carbon rims are involved \u2013 is something these types of riders can take advantage of.<\/p>
$\"Vision$
Wireless electronic shifters make for a clean and aerodynamic cockpit. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Likewise, while electronic shifting doesn\u2019t offer incredible performance gains in terms of speed or reliability, the latest wireless shifters certainly allow for a cleaner, more aerodynamic cockpit.<\/p>
Beyond that, Cavendish has 12 instead of 10 sprockets at the rear and a much wider-ranging set of gears.<\/p>
$\"Shimano$
Cavendish uses 12-speed electronic gears and a wide-range cassette in 2024. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
At the rear, Cavendish is now using an 11-34t cassette, while up-front he has 55\/40t chainrings. While his climbing gears have got easier, Cavendish\u2019s top gear is harder than before.\u00a0<\/p>
While easier climbing gears have been coming to road bikes of all kinds in recent years, big chainrings have been a notable trend<\/a> at the top level of the sport of late.<\/p>
Wide wheels and tyres<\/h3>
$\"Mark$
Cavendish’s Vision Metron 60 SL wheels are likely heavier, but \u2013 crucially \u2013 faster. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Cavendish and most other pro riders are also now using substantially wider wheels and tyres.<\/p>
For 2024, he used Vision\u2019s Metron 60 SL wheels with Vittoria Corsa Pro TLR tyres<\/a>, in a size 700x28c.<\/p>
With a claimed weight of 1,590g, the tubeless-ready Vision wheels are likely heavier than the tubular wheels Cavendish used in 2008. However, with their blunted aerofoil profile and wide rims (33mm external, 21mm internal), they\u2019re likely both faster and easier to handle on windy days.<\/p>
$\"Vittoria$
Tyre sizes in the pro peloton have grown substantially in recent years. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Likewise, the wide, tubeless Vittoria tyres may be heavier than the 22mm Schwalbe tubs, but they almost certainly have far less rolling resistance<\/a> and offer much more grip.<\/p>
Finishing kit and weight<\/h3>
$\"Vision$
The Wilier Filante SLR has a fully integrated front end. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
In stark contrast to his 2008 Giant TCR, Cavendish\u2019s Filante SLR has a fully integrated and aerodynamically-optimised front end.<\/p>
His handlebar of choice for 2024 is Vision\u2019s Metron 5D ACR Integrated 3K model, with aerodynamic tops and compact-bend drops.<\/p>
$\"Vision$
Vision\u2019s Metron 5D ACR Integrated 3K handlebar has aerodynamic tops and flared drops. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
His stem length has grown by 10mm to 120mm, but his bar width has narrowed to 385mm (centre to centre at the brake hoods), with a slight flare to the drops.<\/p>
While the Dura-Ace shifters are wireless, the hydraulic brake hoses run internally through the handlebar and into the frame via the upper headset bearing, where they are concealed until they reach the brakes at the fork and non-driveside chainstay.<\/p>
$\"Fizik$
Cavendish appears to prefer a non-sponsor-correct Fizik Arione saddle. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
At this year\u2019s Tour, Cavendish is using a Fizik Arione saddle (with the branding covered up because his Astana Qazaqstan team is sponsored by Prologo), while he\u2019s also been switching between Tacx Ciro Carbon bottle cages and Tacx Aero water bottles and cages, depending on the stage.<\/p>
A set of composite Shimano Dura-Ace PD-R9100 pedals completes the bike. Although these have switched to a composite pedal body, they\u2019re otherwise largely unchanged from the 7800 model Cavendish was using back in 2008, with the same SPD-SL cleats<\/a>.<\/p>
$\"Shimano$
Shimano’s latest Dura-Ace SPD-SL pedals haven’t changed much over the years. – Simon von Bromley \/ Our Media<\/figcaption><\/figure>
On the scales, Cavendish’s 2024 Wilier Filante weighed 7.74kg \u2013 around 500g more than his bike from 2008.<\/p>
Does that represent progress? That depends on your perspective, of course, but we’re confident his latest bike is most likely the faster option and, for a sprinter, that’s what matters.<\/p>
Is this really the end of the road for Mark Cavendish?<\/h2>
There have been a number of times when it looked as if Mark Cavendish might be about to end his career in professional cycling.<\/p>
Fans of the sport may remember an emotional interview he gave in October 2020, after finishing Gent-Wevelgem, because \u2013 at the time \u2013 he didn\u2019t have a contract for the following season.<\/p>
After securing a contract with Deceuninck\u2013Quick-Step (reportedly for the UCI\u2019s minimum salary of \u20ac40,000, and on condition he bring personal sponsors on board<\/a>), Cavendish went on another remarkable streak at the 2021 Tour de France, winning four stages and taking his second green jersey<\/a> as the winner of the points classification.<\/p>
Could we see something similar in 2025? We\u2019ll have to wait and see.<\/p>
If we\u2019ve learned anything about Mark Cavendish, it\u2019s that he\u2019s not finished until he says he is.<\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n
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