Quote of the Giro so far imo. 
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Is it just me, or does there seem to be a lot of mechanicals in the pro peloton? Is it because they are pushing the equipment to the limits? That the bikes are basically being stripped down and rebuilt every few days with errors creeping in? Or maybe watching 100 people ride, the odds are that youāll see mechanicals?
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Bingo
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Probably a bit of both
A, B & C.
Whizzy parts, whizzy problems. But you push this stuff at the pointy end en masse and you are going to tease out issues. That said there seems to be a higher frequency of issues with a certain brand of equipment lately.
These āProfessionalā bike riders need to remember they are sales people for their sponsors. If winning bike races sells product, then, great. Publicly talking shit about one of the big three component manufacturers is certainly not helping to sell product and is a bigger failure as a bike rider than losing a race. If he has an equipment issue, he needs to work with SRAM and help them improve their product.
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Itās just a funny comment in the heat of the moment man.
I wonder if Ritchie Porte said the same thing the other week at the queen stage in California
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In Richieās case, it is normally āF@#$% collarboneā or āF@#$% pelvisā.
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Itās this axs first gen. Seems buggy.
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Well, these guys have been racing for three weeks now. Under really harsh conditions these year. Iād say this takes a huge psychological toll as well. Even āprofessionalsā can snap at a certain point. Furthermore, we donāt know how much trouble theyāve already had during this yearās race. The team did not really have a smooth start with their SRAM equipment this season, see Degenkolb. And this is just what became public. And as we can see with teams like Aqua Blue, mechanical problems can play a major part in teams folding.
Since I race Eagle AXS I donāt feel entirely comfortable with seeing quite a few issues with the system. And I have minor hick ups with my system as well.
I absolutely loved this. It was like a breath of fresh air.
Why? Because it seems like the bike manufacturers and groupset manufacturers seem to hold the balance of power over the media right now. Look at the 3T Strada with the 1x drivetrain, like @sryke mentions. All the reviews were full of praise or were virtually just parroting the claims made by 3T, with very little objective testing and any reservations about the bike expressed in the mildest, most cautious language. And it wasnāt until the Aqua Blue team folded, and Adam Blythe and others basically said the bike was a heap of junk, before everyone saw the Emperor didnāt have any clothes after all.
And same with Sram AXS - seems like all the tech videos and reviews are just completely accepting the manufacturerās claims rather than putting them to the test. So added to Porte and Degenkolbās problems, Mollema shouting āf***ing Sram!ā is probably the most honest and helpful review of the product so far.
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Given that heās riding for T-S, I assume heās on AXS as well:
Many of the top favorites suffered various mechanical setbacks during the gravel race, which is known for punishing bodies and gear alike. Stetina said he suffered an early flat tire which forced him into the tech pits at mile 50 and saw him chase to get back on. A dead electronic shifting battery sent him back into the pits at the raceās midpoint, and occurred just as Strickland attacked.
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here the bike:
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Aqua Blue didnāt fold because of 3T or SRAM. Their results were their own fault by talking shit. Their whole mission was to move product for Aqua Blue, SRAM and 3T as the team was funded via sales through aquabluesport.com
They could have been professional and rationally discussed how 1X was great for some races and some courses, but, it has itās limitations and that they working together w/ 3T and SRAM, to optimize the product line and expect to see better gear range options from 3T and SRAM in 2019.
Iām convinced Christian kicked his own chain off the ring in that breakaway and their poor results are probably attributed to not running the 3T cassettes and not running recommended chainring set ups. Blytheās and his former teammates results this year on 2x are no different than they were last year. They only difference is theyāve got no one to blame but themselves.
Iām shocked any manufacturer or supplier would agree to sign any team with any of these guys who were so unprofessional about their sponsorsā products.
These teams need to understand that they are sales people who sell heir sponsorās products and they pay their mortgage via their ability to help their sponsors push product. If they canāt do that, they have zero value for the sponsor.
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Ask @brendanhousler about Shimanoās battery performance in gravel races.
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Funny, I thought they were sportsmen who need to win races and rightly expect their equipment to be equal to that task.
As for the rest of your post, I need to be careful here about the forum rules regarding crossing the line between attacking the idea and attacking the person, but letās just say youāre doing a decent impression of someone with a vested interest in protecting 3T and Sramās brand.
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My opinion is it lies somewhere between the two. As professional athlete your job is to win but as part of being paid by product usage and endorsement that you are an ambassador for said brand. I think their are many pros whose egos get away from them and think it is all about them without any consideration for what allows them to be professional athletes.
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I receive no monetary compensation from 3T or SRAM, but, I do ride a Strada and so does my team - who all paid for them with our own money - by choice, BTW.
And thereās the crux of the situation of why Pro cycling teams are in the situation they are in. Itās a bunch of sportsmen trying to get someone else to fund their ambitions without recognizing the ROI (or lack thereof).
What if @Nate_Pearson sponsored a team and some of the members of the team said TrainerRoad was the reason they lost races? How long do you think they would receive funding from TrainerRoad?
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