Did 800km on a Pro Tour Race Bike break me? – LOOK 795 Blade RS

My week in Mallorca with the LOOK 795 Blade RS, and Viks’ TIME Alp D’Huez. Super Stiff, Super Aero, for sure, but can this unconditioned, 45yo bike mechanic handle a Pro Tour bike for 800km?

We talk about the Corima WC EVO 47 wheels, the GoodYear Eagle F1 tyres, the gear ratios and the bike as a whole. Vik gives her input on the TIME ADH23 and the limitations of her 1x set up on the flat fast roads of Mallorca.

Last Year I took the 765 Optimum on my holiday and I reflect on how I changed my route choices to suit each bike.
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I’ve been a bit naughty because the biker chose to take home your holiday was the Lars blade I I couldn’t help it I couldn’t help it it was just there I was going to ride it around like aoon I don’t care if it breaks me I’ve got this opportunity to take it and that’s how it went really it was I know it’s a stupid decision I know it’s going to hurt me by day four but wouldn’t you if you had the chance also got the wo element roam the first time I’ve really really got to grips with a Wahoo and I really like this for navigation it’s missing a few features for techie stuff that I’m missing from the Garmin but in terms of navigating I do think this is a superior unit to the Garmin I’m going to do some more stuff on this probably even a proper Garmin versus Wahoo feature one day this is day two so far about 200 and something kilometers into the holiday so why did I bring the blade it a bit of a last minute decision definitely Thinking With My Heart over my head I just thought well why the hell not I mean what’s the worst that could happen right but couple of things that really struck me about this bike and riding in the sunshine haven’t really ridden this bike since like November cuz British winter and just you why would you take a £10,000 bike out in British winter it’s ridiculous but um one thing I’ve really come to admire about this bike is this handlebar setup I know I’ve wax lyrical about it but it is without doubt the most robust sort of steadfast handlebar I’ve seen out here and felt is just you can just lean in it put all your weight into it it just doesn’t move and that’s so confidence inspiring if you’ve ever been out to meor before you’ll know that you’re surrounded by pinell dogmas and specialized TX and everything else and so far this is the only look RS blade that I’ve seen on the island um and it’s been getting a hell of a lot of attenion in in fact it’s sometimes a little bit embarrassing um a really really fast team of French riders came past me and ah look so look the new new blade like yeah yeah nice bike and they were all ofly on some hired Canyons or something but they really recognized it and that was quite cool few people people like going up nice park it up at a cafe actually and there’s always someone just like having a little eye around it it’s dead interesting as I’m liking the actual performance of it I don’t know if you can tell it do a Mone and sl8 or anything the one thing that does strike me though are these Kima Wheels I really to see if I can lend a set of these to Peete torque or something because I don’t think they’re talked about enough and the quality of them is exceptional Now They Ride beautifully smooth but they do have slightly thinner profile which means that on a really really windy crosswind they do just catch the wind a little bit more than my fast forwards even though my fast forwards are deeper I think that’s that little Vortex that comes uh off that Leading Edge um that’s the only time I’ve really felt it other than that that foam core line is just it’s a beautifully smooth ride um I just don’t think these wheels get talked about enough maybe we should dig into them a little bit more day three of new yoran holiday and just diving into a cafe because this is supposedly light rain the roads are rivers Time cake you okay sou 0.2 M rain .2 M rain it lies in per second I think here’s a good example for you last time I was here on the 765 Optimum the endurance bike I went up this road here now it’s lovely Viewpoint up there but it’s a rough Rocky descent as well and do you know this year on the blade I’m right thanks going to go straight down smoth Tac what an amazing holiday amazing we’ve done about 800 km just shy I by the time we finished about eight that’s not so bad cuz we had two days of wet weather and stuff so yeah and we didn’t have any rest days despite the wet weather yeah so this is going to be suit of a bike review to see what we’re up to you know what struck me last year you weren’t here but I came out with my 765 Optimum Y and it struck me when I was riding here that last year I purposefully sought out the roughest of back roads when I was planning my route I was like let’s go there let’s explore that let’s explore that let’s go and check that Monastery out this year I brought the blade um just because I could cuz you could and you T me into it I kind of did I kind of did and what do you think how’s it been it’s been an absolute privilege to ride it like a 10,000 road bike in nework I mean it’s a dream isn’t it everyone watching this you couldn’t really pass up the opportunity and I’ve been riding around like an absolute lunatic you have yeah you have and and basking in the amount of people that have said nice B to yeah absolutely well we had the thing the other day didn’t we a guy in a car slowed down I completely doled out Aldi you know black windows and everything else pulled up W his windows down let out the windows and nice bike where did you get it I’m like built it actually yeah you know what’s really striking this is a really pretty boring bike to look at it’s plain black uh it’s got lra group set on it it really nothing special to look at unless you know unless you know and that was sort of reflected sort of on day one when we were here and my bike got all the attention on day one nobody gave yours the second look the first day we were here did they I got all of the attent well the time got all of the attention yeah mostly cuz that amazing color well you can see why in the sun absolutely which in the sunshine that pink is like wow popping only a few people knew that it was a time though you’re getting a lot of Cs for the color and only a few people like oh it’s a time but when they knew they knew and we had a good discussion about time bikes and they how they’re made and why they’re so good yeah you’ve had some really indepth conversations with random Germans on on climes that’s very true mostly because I’ve been overtaken them just saying I think you’ve even sold a couple haven’t you I have Y which is amazing so just getting back to the blade ever so slightly this is I would never normally ride this gear ratio back home ever this is a 3652 uh 10 through to 30 and I never ran out of Gears here back home I would I would not be a to get that the hard not part no way no way and how was it cuz you usually ride a one B at home uh it’s taken me a little while to Rune to I mean I ride a lot of bikes test riding and everything else but there’s been a definitely some times and I’ve been a tired brain that I’ve forgotten that I’ve got two rings at the front other than that it good choice out here yeah out out here I think it is it’s bombing along and you’re in a big Pelon is about the only time I think I can spin out that type of gear I mean I was going to ask you because this is probably the one occasion in our riding lives where you might wish for a tu byai but yeah R rarely but there have there has been a few occasions this week when I’ve I’ve sort of spun out in a pelaton um and that’s been me yeah and that’s been all right I’m okay with that but yeah it’s probably lasted 5 minutes most if that before you Pelon slowed down a bit and we’ve been doing some pretty big speeds 42 45 kph along the flats and stuff so which for me is that’s not normally how I ride at all no you never do totally no I would never ever do that at home and I’m glad and happily yeah um back home of either hit a pothole a corner a car or a hill by that side usually going up hill and there have been a couple of the the CL cuz the climbs are so lovely here having I don’t know a little bit more variety of Gears may have been a nice luxury going uphill I’ve had to work maybe a little bit harder but I’m okay with that I’ve been absolutely fine with that and generally those nice four five % gradients have suited my gear ratios really well yeah so I’ve been I’ve been a happy girl because I’m not I’m not into going all fast on the flats all the time so wish I condition to a good Cadence AR what we do in the turbo trony Studio that changing the Cadence is is absolutely fine absolutely couple other weird little things these wheels are still bothering me I don’t know what to think about them they yeah how have you found those this week for the audience I know I mean they’re they’re super stiff like you can put your foot down and they just go they just they just flick and they’re they’re away and you can lean into them and you can stand out the pedal and you can crank and nothing nothing on that b moves like the handlebars are dead rigid the whole thing is just rigid and the wheels just respond I had a puncher had had two punchers on my front wheel um and they’re not easy to remove tires from I haven’t found a single Tire combination that works easily with those um and yeah on those sort of mountain roads with like the sea wind Etc they just they catch the wind more than their depth would suggest like I normally my 55s quite happily on Windy windy days and it’s weird these are only 47 they don’t actually look that deep no they don’t and yet I felt them like just catch every now they’re not it’s like driving a van on a Motorway you get used to it you know you recondition but it’s been noticeable because I think oh I’m riding some 50s or 60s and they’re not they’re only that’s interesting I’ve only I’ve only noticed it a couple of times today and it is a bit we are where we are where we’re riding it’s a little bit exposed today so I don’t think the aerodynamics on this are probably what they should be okay in all honesty but they do they are beautiful like I tell you what I have notic about you riding your time you a rapid on the desent on that yes correct you just found the whole new level of confidence I did I did yeah I did it’s it’s the time magic isn’t it it the stiffness just gives back and I had some top tips for my friend JN Paul Jones on my bike my position on the bike and what to do and yeah I’m flying downhill and it’s great I’ve loved every single descent that we’ve done it’s been insane you just lean into it and it’s th yeah I’ve I’ve pred everything unintentionally I haven’t even been trying I’ve just been enjoying myself and I’ve I’ve only been here a couple like once before and yeah I’m streets ahead of where I was before and that’s all down to this bike it’s absolutely insane and we’ve done some long days cruising the flats as well and that’s normally where I feel the vibrations on on this a little bit and stuff but um it’s been it’s super smooth to ride aren’t they yeah it’s um oh I have no I have no complaints at all like I’m I’m even riding today and I I went back to bed after breakfast to have a sleep cuz I am so tired there is nothing left in my legs at all nothing and I’m still happy to get on this bike and ride it and that says something I think makes you smile doesn’t it definitely it’s something about these sort of bikes they just they just hook up and they just work and they just respond and they and they’re lovely and they’re cruisy and you can lean into a corner and they take you where you want there’s no like nervousness or jness about them at all they just I just feel like they just got you I just feel like they’re super solid yeah I do I do feel very lucky to have this bike out here I really do so one part of this is I need I I still need to review the 785 for our audience and I thought I was going to be doing it out here and I’m kind of glad I did I didn’t actually because it’s not the right bike for out here that 785 it’s um that 785 I think is going to suit the late District much more okay because it’s steep hills steep descents that’s proper the hills out here are lovely and they’re big but they’re not steep no no uh like the 785 is really designed for so I think I’ve done the right thing by bringing this out giving this a really good road test and really get into grips of what a race bike can do and it’s proper natural European smooth Road environment and we’ll get the 785 out um for a proper test on Lake distri steep Mountain proper Mountain proper Mountain seat climbs in fact one of one someone in our audience said it’s um is it what is a a mountain bike for the road I’m like it might be it could be yeah it could be what’s your space absolutely cool I hope you’ve enjoyed this video of me and vict just talking through our experience of these two very very lovely bike if you did please give it a thumbs up and consider subscribing and hopefully we’ll see you on the next one which might be back in the UK without this beautiful weather [Music] a