I asked Eros Poli to tell me about his experience of riding a RockShox equipped Eddy Merckx in P-R when he was on the GAN team. He replied: "We used the RockShox because it served to damp the vibrations on the pavè, on the smooth road portions we closed it to zero and it became rigid. It was much too heavy and did not give great advantages. They were replaced with forks with more inclination to the front which damped and tracked better, also they responded better to attacks on the pavè or from a curve."
I have placed a photo of Eros riding that bike on my blog:
http://italiancyclingjournal.blogspot.com/
Angel Garcia Long valley, NJ
---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Freek Faro <khun.freek@gmail.com> Date: Sat, Sep 26, 2009 at 3:09 PM Subject: Re: [CR] duclos-lasalle and RockShox To: ternst <ternst1@cox.net> Cc: classicrendezvous <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>, Marie Autrey < ridingrabbit@earthlink.net>
So now I've pulled out the July 1994 issue of Petersen's Bicycle Guide, where the main article is 'Special section: Suspension Bikes for Roadies!'. And another one: Prototype peek: Paris Roubaix spy camera shots, Duclos-Lasalle's Lemond. And more: Riding impressions: Team Motorola Eddy Merckx/RockShox.
Sigh .... OK, I'm gonna post some excerpts from those articles later.
What I remember form the top off my head, is that they just took a normal steel frame and stuck a RockShox contration, which is obviously a lot longer. Now I may be over-sensitive, but that would alter geometry and handling quite a bit! And not in the right directyion I assume.
Freek Faro Rotterdam Netherlands
2009/9/26 ternst <ternst1@cox.net>
> I was thinking about the shock forks.
> I also remember the guys saying that they didn't work real well, too
> awkward to adjust, and too much power loss on hills and when out of seat.
> I also remember them being blocked out and not used.
> All of you should remember that bike riders are lemmings, and the pros the
> worst. Like a heard of buffalo the indians drove over the cliff.
> The "peloton" thinking D-L/S had this secret weapon and therefore won, had
> to have it.
> It seemed to die a natural death after that.
> Remember also we're talking a long time ago and the equipment was nowhere
> near today's technology.
> Keep in mind also that if weight offsets results the guys would be using
it
> exclusively today.
> It obviously doesn't meet muster and is not part of today's equipment
> package for those guys
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Marie Autrey" <
> ridingrabbit@earthlink.net>
> To: "classicrendezvous" <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
> Sent: Saturday, September 26, 2009 2:31 AM
> Subject: [CR] duclos-lasalle and RockShox
>
>
> I'm far away from my magazine archive, so somebody else will have to
>> verify (or disprove) this.
>>
>> I recall an interview with Duclos-LaSalle in Winning shortly after his
>> second P-R win, in which he said that riding the sprung forks was a nod
to
>> one of LeMond's many sponsors, and that he rode with the 'boing' locked
out.
>>
>> That might explain why they disappeared after two years. Legislation may
>> have had nothing to do with it
>>
>> Marie Autrey
>> Water Island, US VIrgin Islands, where only an optimist goes in hurricane
>> season
>> _______________________________________________
>>
>
> _______________________________________________
>
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You may enjoy reading my blog:
http://www.italiancyclingjournal.blogspot.com